GOVERNANCEBRIEF                                            APRIL 2017
                                                           MOLDOVA



MOLDOVA’S OPEN CONTRACTING PORTAL
BOOSTS OPENNESS AND ACCOUNTABILITY
IN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT
            “Thanks to the new open contracting data portal, anyone can
            see what the government is buying, and who got the contract.
              This means real transparency and it’s a great way to fight
                               corruption in Moldova.”       - Alex Kremer
                                                                          Country Manager for
                                                                       the World Bank in Moldova




                                                                                        Photo: Alexandru Panoiu
Challenge
Ensuring that scarce public resources are spent with integrity and effectiveness is at the core of
effective governance. In Moldova, fighting entrenched corruption and making the vast bureaucracy
more efficient have been key challenges for the government. Public finances are increasingly under
pressure, especially with an aging population to support, and delays in service delivery are common.
Moldova needs to encourage broad-based economic growth, in part by strengthening the business
climate, and to empower citizens to hold government accountable for its use of resources.
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GOVERNANCEBRIEF                                            APRIL 2017
                                                           MOLDOVA



Approach
The government has developed an overarching e-transformation strategy to increase openness and
leverage technology to improve governance and public services. Its Public Procurement Agency, with
support from the World Bank and in partnership with Moldova’s eGovernment Center, launched an online
portal in 2016 to publish information at different stages of the procurement process--from planning
through tendering, contracting, and implementation. This is increasing the transparency of government
spending and promoting participation in the procurement process by making information more
accessible and user-friendly.

Results

  21,500                  The portal contains              $750                 More than $750 million

  GOVERNMENT
                          information on
                          more than 21,500
                                                           million              worth of contracts are
                                                                                available for public
   CONTRACTS              government contracts.           WORTH OF              scrutiny.
                                                         CONTRACTS

The contracting portal has expanded the type and amount of information available on specific
contracts, allowing for enhanced accountability to the public, as well as made information on contracting
procedures easier to access and understand, encouraging greater competition. Now, the government
is working toward linking contract information with court case data and a database of blacklisted
contractors to empower government and non-state actors in the fight against corruption. Non-state
actors are training civil society groups on using the data and future plans for the site include adding
citizen feedback to contract listings.




                                                                                          Photo: Clay Gilliland

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