The Center for Civil Communications started ad-hoc monitoring of coronavirus-related emergency public procurements even before the crisis’s onset in March 2020, by publishing regular reports with findings and recommendations.
The monitoring shows that, from the crisis’s onset, i.e. from early March to the end of October 2020, a total of 523 contracts were awarded under the negotiation procedure without previous announcement of call for bids, in total value of 500 million MKD, i.e. 8.1 million EUR.
Emergency procurement contracts for coronavirus protection were signed by 103 institutions. The highest value of such contracts is observed with the Ministry of Interior, which has awarded 10 contracts in total value of 2 million euros, accounting for one quarter of the total value of all contracts signed under urgent procedures. Next is the Ministry of Health, which has signed 21 contracts in total value of 730,000 euros. In that, the Ministry of Interior has signed the two biggest urgent contracts related to the corona crisis, of which the first was signed in the value of 1.1 million euros and concerned procurement of masks for members of the police, and the second was signed in the value of 657,000 euros and concerned procurement of masks and gloves for the police. Procurements of the second-ranked Ministry of Health are mainly grouped and were signed for the needs of the entire healthcare system, including construction works and equipment for modular pre-fabricated hospital.
Nevertheless, 52% of the total value of urgent procurements for coronavirus protection was implemented by institutions in the healthcare sector, which organized individual procurements, mainly because there were very few centralized procurements.
The research can be downloaded in Macedonian and English language
This publication is developed with financial assistance from the European Union, as part of the project “Balkan Tender Watch”.