Panama: Long-Term State Suppliers will be able to Increase PricesMonday, November 23, 2009 With the new decree, state suppliers will be able to increase prices during the execution of macro agreements ('Convenios Marco'). A macro agreement is a contract under which a provider supplies large amounts of products or services during an extended period of time (less than a year). Rica: Mer-link System Can Now Perform 14 ProceduresFriday, May 13, 2011 The system for performing government transactions online now allows data about procurement processes to be exchanged between institutions. There are now 14 procedures that can be done online through the Mer-Link system which has been implemented by the Technical Secretariat of Digital Government. Costa Rica: New Public Purchase ModelFriday, March 20, 2009 The country will adopt the South Korean online purchase system which allows all the paperwork to be completed electronically. The Nacion.com website published: "By being a fully digital process, it ensures greater transparency, increases supplier participation and achieves better prices." The "Direct" Governing Style of MartinelliMonday, December 13, 2010 Martinelli, after 16 months in office, is about to exceed the amount of direct contracts done in four years of administration by his predecessor. Although during his campaign Ricardo Martinelli questioned direct purchases conducted by the administration of Martin Torrijos, his strong executive style of management leads to avoid bidding processes accumulating $ 490 million in direct contracting, while during the whole Torrijos administration such purchases came out to add about $ 540 million. No-bid contracts authorized in PanamaWednesday, July 23, 2008 Panama's National Assembly has passed a law decreasing the transparency of public spending. The new Law of Public Contracts allows the Executive Branch to contract consulting services of up to 300,000 dollars without going through the bidding process. The legislation also includes a paragraph which includes in the category of "urgent local interest or social benefit" all energy and water projects. Guatemala: Regulations for Selling to the StateFriday, June 17, 2016 The much awaited regulation on the Law on Government Procurement determines the process for ERAs, and sets out a methodology for reference prices. On June 24 the regulations for the amended Law on Government Procurement will come into effect, establishing, among other things, how negotiations should be conducted, a definition for the information system for Contracting and Procurements, and procedures to be followed when setting reference prices in tenders. More and Better Competition Sought in Government ProcurementsMonday, July 20, 2015 Panamanian entrepreneurs stress that the procedures for selecting suppliers in procurements must not only be independent and transparent, but must also be perceived as being so. From a statement issued by the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture of Panama (CCIAP): Guatemala: Untransparent Public ProcurementsWednesday, November 14, 2012 In Guatemala, in practice, the Procurement Act does not apply to 84% of the purchases by institutions. According to Nora Segura, Controller General of Accounts, the high percentage is due the fact that direct purchases, exceptions and trusts are not subject to the law. Panama Has New Public Procurement LawMonday, May 2, 2016 The new law eliminates abbreviated procurements (Licitación Abreviada) and decreases possible addenda to contracts. The new rules for public procurement in Panama will come into effect six months after their promulgation by the Panamanian Presidency. Panama: Call for Transparency in Government ProcurementsFriday, August 16, 2013 After several cases of apparent favoritism in the awarding of government contracts, Panamanian businessmen are demanding efforts be made to keep to standards of transparency and ethical values. From a statement by the Panamanian Association of Business Executives (APEDE): Tires, Lubricants and Car BatteriesThursday, July 19, 2012 The Directorate of Public Procurement in Panama has included tires, lubricants and batteries for vehicles and motor equipment in the Electronic Catalogue of Products and Services. A statement from the Directorate of Public Procurement reads: Lack of Transparency in Public PurchasingMonday, July 29, 2019 For the business sector in Costa Rica, the large number of direct contracts between state institutions implies a number of defects and abuses in the use of public funds. The employers' guild is of the opinion that in direct contracting there is no guarantee that the best use is actually being made of public funds, and there are indications of a lack of transparency in contracts. Some of them have even been declared confidential. Institutional Nepotism in Costa RicaMonday, October 10, 2016 The private sector has denounced the "clear abuse on the part of the state by forcing all agencies and public companies to make contracts with each other." From a statement issued by the Costa Rican Union of Chambers and Associations in the Private Business Sector (UCCAEP): Public Purchases: YES, to TransparencyMonday, October 21, 2019 Costa Rican businessmen support efforts to avoid changes to the bill being discussed in the Legislative Assembly, which originally seeks to stop abuses in hiring directly by public entities. The issue has become increasingly important in the country, as at the end of July the Costa Rican Union of Chambers and Associations of Private Business Sector (UCCAEP) said in a statement that in direct contracts there is no guarantee that really is giving the best use to public funds, as there are indications of lack of transparency in contracts. Some of them have even been declared confidential. Panama: Changes to Law on Public ProcurementThursday, January 7, 2016 In addition to forbidding the participation of companies whose representatives have committed crimes against the public administration, a proposal has been made to eliminate hidden costs in tenders and modify the advance payment bonds to the companies awarded contracts. The bill amending the Public Procurement Law 22 was prepared by the Ministry of Economy and will be presented to the Cabinet on 19 January, and then submitted for discussion to the National Assembly. One of the new features in it is the elimination of the hidden prices in tenders for best value with separate evaluation. |
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