Electronic Module to be Launched in the Work of Dispute Resolution Board Set up at the State Procurement Agency

11 Nov '11

On November 11 the Business Association hosted the press conference of the Dispute Resolution Board established at the State Procurement Agency, summarizing the results of the Board's work and introducing to the public the new electronic dispute resolution module for submitting complaints.
The Dispute Resolution Board was set up within the Procurement Agency at the end of last year and counts six members. The Board is staffed by the employees of the State Procurement Agency on the one hand and representatives of civil society on the other (one representative from Young Lawyers' Association, Association of Oil Product Importers and Business Association of Georgia respectively. NGO sector is represented in the membership of the Board through the broadest NGO composition possible in rotation for one year term."). The Chairman of the Procurement Agency, Mr. Tato Urjumelashvili chairs the Board. The Board's task is to review and resolve the complaints related to state procurements based on the principles of rule of law, equality of parties and transparency.
From its establishment until present it has already reviewed about fifty complaints. Considering the fact that before the establishment of the Board the number of filed to the Agency was ten times less than today, we can easily say that this new instrument meets the expectations. Level of trust in the Board has grown. The meetings of the Board are open for everyone and its decisions are public and accessible on the Agency's website: www.dispute.procurement.gov.ge;
Analysis of the cases reviewed until today shows that suppliers' complaints basically concern the issues of adjustment/non-adjustment of bids, lawful disqualification of a bidder from a tender and discriminatory nature of tender requirements. The entities registered as suppliers within the system are offered another novelty by the Dispute Resolution Board: The Board's electronic module will be launched which will further simplify the appeal process and make the dispute resolution procedures more transparent. If today the approved form of complaint is physically submitted to the Agency, the electronic module can minimize the procedural requirements laid down for the filing of complaint.
For more information please visit www.dispute.procurement.gov.ge