EUROPEAN companies remain reluctant to invest in the Philippines due to concerns over the country’s bidding process. This, according to European Union (EU) Ambassador to the Philippines Guy Ledoux, is despite the procurement reforms initiated by the Aquino administration.
Ledoux hailed the move of the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to modernize the government’s procurement process through the electronic-bidding platform called PhilGEPS.
The system ensures accessibility and transparency of the procurement process.
He said PhilGEPS now includes thousands of state agencies and has provided over 550,000 opportunities, but was not known for its “user-friendliness.”
“The recent decision to update the tool by 2016 is encouraging, as the increase of functionality of the system will further reduce procurement costs, provide audit trails and make available online services, such as e-bidding and e-payment,” said Ledoux at the forum on procurement Friedrich Neumann Foundation (FNF) organized recently at the Mind Museum in Taguig City.
However, Ledoux urged the Philippine government to address concerns of foreign companies on the country’s bidding process.
“[These] problems include short timeframes between publication of tenders and bid submissions, which do not allow foreign bidders to complete all the formal requirements, for instance, the certification of eligibility and translation of documents,” said Ledoux in his speech at the FNF forum on procurement.
The EU envoy said foreign companies also face difficulty in dealing with the complex formal requirements, such as certifications, business licensing and disclosure requirements. These include details of similar contracts performed in other countries and details on prices, which have become deterrents for interested bidders.
He said several regulatory measures need to be addressed “for the Philippines to get a much larger share of EU investments.”
These include joining the Government Procurement Agreement as an observer, so the administration can show its engagement
toward transparency, nondiscrimination and international competition, as well as benchmark its own policies against international ones.
The Philippines can also attract investments from Europe by improving the legal framework for foreign bidders by allowing foreign companies to bid at a more equal footing.
“A procurement market open to foreign bidders is a key asset to significantly upgrade the level of competition and ensure better value for money. One way to facilitate this is to include all 28 EU member-states on the ‘reciprocity’ list envisaged in the Government Procurement Reform Act,” Ledoux said.
He said the government needs to liberalize foreign bids for infrastructure projects above P1 billion.
“This task that has just been outlined is certainly an ambitious one,” said Ledoux, as he hailed the government’s move to pass economic-reform bills and to create a more conducive regulatory environment for foreign investment.
Ledoux hailed the move of the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to modernize the government’s procurement process through the electronic-bidding platform called PhilGEPS.
The system ensures accessibility and transparency of the procurement process.
He said PhilGEPS now includes thousands of state agencies and has provided over 550,000 opportunities, but was not known for its “user-friendliness.”
“The recent decision to update the tool by 2016 is encouraging, as the increase of functionality of the system will further reduce procurement costs, provide audit trails and make available online services, such as e-bidding and e-payment,” said Ledoux at the forum on procurement Friedrich Neumann Foundation (FNF) organized recently at the Mind Museum in Taguig City.
However, Ledoux urged the Philippine government to address concerns of foreign companies on the country’s bidding process.
“[These] problems include short timeframes between publication of tenders and bid submissions, which do not allow foreign bidders to complete all the formal requirements, for instance, the certification of eligibility and translation of documents,” said Ledoux in his speech at the FNF forum on procurement.
The EU envoy said foreign companies also face difficulty in dealing with the complex formal requirements, such as certifications, business licensing and disclosure requirements. These include details of similar contracts performed in other countries and details on prices, which have become deterrents for interested bidders.
He said several regulatory measures need to be addressed “for the Philippines to get a much larger share of EU investments.”
These include joining the Government Procurement Agreement as an observer, so the administration can show its engagement
toward transparency, nondiscrimination and international competition, as well as benchmark its own policies against international ones.
The Philippines can also attract investments from Europe by improving the legal framework for foreign bidders by allowing foreign companies to bid at a more equal footing.
“A procurement market open to foreign bidders is a key asset to significantly upgrade the level of competition and ensure better value for money. One way to facilitate this is to include all 28 EU member-states on the ‘reciprocity’ list envisaged in the Government Procurement Reform Act,” Ledoux said.
He said the government needs to liberalize foreign bids for infrastructure projects above P1 billion.
“This task that has just been outlined is certainly an ambitious one,” said Ledoux, as he hailed the government’s move to pass economic-reform bills and to create a more conducive regulatory environment for foreign investment.