Africa-Press – Senegal. The reform establishing the creation of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (ARCOP), to replace the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (ARMP), is now complete, learned the APS Thursday from the new institution.
‘’L’ARMP n’existe plus. La naissance de l’ARCOP est officiellement actée. Le décret numéro 2023-832 fixant les règles d’organisation et de fonctionnement de la nouvelle autorité a été signé par le président de la République, le 5 avril’’, annonce le service chargé de la communication de l’ARCOP dans un document.
La nouvelle structure est définie comme ‘’une autorité administrative indépendante, rattachée à la présidence de la République’’.
‘’Elle bénéficie d’une autonomie administrative et financière. Son siège est à Dakar. Mais des antennes régionales peuvent […] être créées’’, explique le document, auquel est joint le décret signé par le président de la République.
« The mission of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority » is to « regulate the system for awarding and executing public procurement contracts », specifies the same source.
ARCOP « issues […] opinions, proposals or recommendations within the framework of the definition of policies and assistance in the development of regulations in the area of public procurement ».
It is responsible for overseeing « the implementation of responsible and sustainable public procurement, contributing to the information and training of all those involved in public procurement ».
It also has the role of overseeing « the development of the professional framework and the evaluation of the performance of the players in the system for awarding, executing and controlling public procurement ».
It is also up to ARCOP to carry out investigations, to implement independent audit procedures, to sanction the irregularities noted, to proceed to the non-judicial settlement of disputes arising during the award of contracts public and public-private partnership (PPP) contracts.
At the same time, the new institution must « provide opinions or […] propose solutions, within the framework of the amicable settlement of disputes arising during the [execution » of the said procurements and PPP contracts.
The rationalization of the bodies responsible for public procurement is the purpose of the reform establishing ARCOP, specifies the document.
The administrative authority responsible for public procurement was created with « innovations » in this area, including the unification of the legal and institutional framework for public-private partnerships and the extension of the scope of application to all forms of public-private partnership.
« Major changes »
These innovations also include the introduction of the concept of program agreement, which makes it possible to « conclude a contract establishing all or part of the rules relating to the orders to be placed during a given period, for the implementation rapid implementation of investment programs of public-private partnership contracts relating to substantially similar needs ».
The distribution of competences between the governance bodies in a logic of rationalization and avoidance of incompatibilities is part of the novelties.
The reform enshrines the devolution to the Central Department of Public Procurement – the body responsible for the a priori control of public service delegations – of the same functions as in terms of public-private partnership contracts.
The abolition of the infrastructure council and the distribution of its competences between other entities – the a priori control body, the regulatory body and the National PPP Support Unit – is one of the innovations.
The consecration of the concept of private initiative offer, the revision of the deadlines for certain procedures and positive discrimination in favor of the local private sector, for public-private partnerships whose amount does not reach a certain threshold to be set by decree, are among the many new provisions.
The reform also brings « major changes », including the extension of ARCOP’s powers to all areas of public procurement and audits of public contracts and PPP contracts – including contracts that are subject to of a derogation.
These changes also include the creation of a public procurement institute, which will be responsible for “accompanying the professionalization of the system”.
From now on, the Dispute Resolution Committee has the exclusive right to conduct conciliation in the event of disputes in PPPs.
At the same time, the reform reinforces the missions of modernizing the public procurement system.
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