This Week’s News from the Public Procurement Cafe

This Week’s News from the Public Procurement Cafe

Webinar – ICLEI’s  initiatives, activities and achievements in the field of sustainable and innovation procurement

Hosted by the United Nations Environment Programme Division of Technology, Industry and
Economics, Cities and Lifestyles Unit, this webinar on September 13 is co-organised with ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI). The webinar presents the initiatives, activities and achievements of ICLEI in the field of sustainable and innovation procurement.

Business Information Firm Bisnode Hungary Reports Slight Improvement in Late Payments

“The ratio of late payment of invoices by Hungarian businesses was approximately 32.9% in the first half of 2016, dropping slightly from 33.2% in the corresponding period a year earlier. In the first half of 2014, the proportion was 36.1% …” There’s more in the Budapest Business Journal.

Global Innovation Index 2016 Report Is Now Available

The Global Innovation Index (GII) this year is its 9th edition and is themed: ‘Winning with Global Innovation’. Science and innovation are more internationalised and collaborative than ever before, it says. The index ranks more than 100 countries and this year for innovation Switzerland, Sweden and the UK are in the top three. You can read more about this year’s rankings and findings online.

UK Government announces new code of practice for procuring IT

The UK Government has announced a new code of practice for government departments seeking to procure IT systems and services. The guidelines aim to help departments make better purchasing decisions when choosing how to buy their IT systems and services and stipulate meeting users’ needs, scaleability and future-proofness, inter-department useability and easy maintenance, among others. There are more details in the article in Channel Pro.

The Social Side of Sustainable Procurement – Learning Lab Webinar

The International Learning Lab will be hosting a webinar as part of the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council’s series of webinars on 21 September 2016, from 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM EDT. It will focus on the social side of sustainable procurement, and will highlight the risk of human rights abuses – The Smoke, Suicide and Slavery – in key sectors like apparel, electronics, and food. Panelists will outline the need for effective practices that governments can share with (and learn from) other purchasers including universities, hospitals, retailers and brands.

UK Fire service spend data published on common national procurement needs

“The Home Office has published what it says is the first ever national overview of procurement for 25 types of common equipment or IT hardware by all English fire and rescue authorities in a transparency drive aimed at encouraging greater collaboration,” says Government Computing.

Slovakian National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases violates public procurement rules

The Solvak Spectator reports that “The National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NÚSCH) in Bratislava has violated the law on public procurement when sourcing specialised medical material. They did not check the ownership structure of the winning company, the Public Procurement Office (ÚVO) informed.” There’s more there.