Close to 130 government officials from 45 WTO
members and observers improved their expertise on various aspects of the plurilateral Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) at the
2021 Advanced Global e-Workshop on the GPA held virtually from 25 October to 26
November 2021. Improving the efficiency of government procurement markets and creating
open, fair and transparent conditions of competition in government procurement were
among the topics discussed by the participants.
The workshop gave participants the opportunity to share their experiences
regarding the benefits of the revised WTO Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA)
adopted in 2012. The revised Agreement — also known as “GPA 2012” — is based on
the principles of non-discrimination, transparency and procedural fairness.
The participants comprised government officials with experience in
trade and government procurement policy matters from 45 economies.(1)
In opening the workshop on 25 October, WTO Deputy Director-General
Anabel González noted the special character of this year's workshop as "the
WTO celebrates the 25th anniversary of the WTO GPA, which entered into force in
1996, and the 40th anniversary of the first-ever version of the GPA". She highlighted
the vital role of government procurement in "building infrastructure and delivering
essential public services for the benefit of citizens, including health, education
and national defence", and the "undeniable development dimension"
of sound and efficient procurement procedures.
Participants delved into the implementation of GPA 2012, the accession
process (benefits and potential challenges, including the flexibilities available
to developing countries), the work of the Committee on Government Procurement and
the benefits of observership.
The workshop also explored the link between government procurement,
trade growth, economic development and good governance and familiarized participants
with the complementarities between GPA 2012 and other international instruments
and regional trade agreements. Also covered were topics such as sustainable procurement,
the participation of small and medium-sized enterprises in public procurement markets,
e-procurement, emergency procurement and the role of government procurement in helping
achieve public health outcomes. An online discussion on the process of acceding
to the GPA 2012 took place on 23 November.
The workshop benefited from the expertise of numerous policy practitioners
and experts from national authorities, international organizations and academia,
as well as the WTO Secretariat. This is the second time this annual event has been
held virtually in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
1.
Angola; Argentina; Armenia; Belize; Brazil; Burkina Faso; China; Costa
Rica; Côte d'Ivoire; Cuba; Dominican Republic; Ecuador; El Salvador; Georgia; Guatemala;
Haiti; India; Iran; Kazakhstan; Kyrgyz Republic; Malawi; Malaysia; Mali; Mexico;
Moldova; Mongolia; Morocco; Niger; Nigeria; North Macedonia; Peru; Russian Federation;
Saint Kitts and Nevis; Sri Lanka; Suriname; Chinese Taipei; Thailand; Timor Leste; Togo; Trinidad and Tobago; Turkey; Ukraine; Uzbekistan;
Zambia; Zimbabwe.