The absolute majority of customers have done competitive tendering for pre-threshold procurement (81%). These are the results of the online survey by Transparency International Ukraine. Granted, a third of the respondents have only done a limited number of such procedures (1-10). Only 18% have announced over 70 competitive tenders for pre-threshold procurement. 

How many pre-threshold tenders have you (your organization) done through the e-system ProZorro?
Number of tenders: 1-10, 11-30, 31-50, 51-70, >70, none.

It is noteworthy that 42 of the customers have made the decision to do a reversed auction not at their own initiative but at the decision of a governing agency. 18% have done it because of the order of the chief executive of the organization. Only 19% of those surveyed have used this opportunity at their own initiative. 

Why do you announce pre-threshold tenders through the e-system Prozorro?
42.42% – order / requirement of a governing body
19.47% – at my own initiative
19.26% – I do not do it
17.62% – order of the chief executive
1.02% – other

The survey has also demonstrated that in most organizations, pre-threshold tenders place an additional burden on the employees who perform other functions in general (76%).

Who is responsible for the organization and supervision of procurement in your organization?
76% – employees for whom procurement is an additional burden
22% – employees who work exclusively with procurement
15% – a duly authorized person
1% – consulting companies

49% of customers do not support the perspective of legislative regulation of pre-threshold procurement by the Law of Ukraine “On Public Procurement.” Such regulation has been supported by 33% of the respondents. 18% have remained undecided. (What is interesting, a similar survey of business representatives shows a much higher percentage of those who support such changes – 62%).

Do you agree that pre-threshold procurement should be regulated through its inclusion to the Law of Ukraine “On Public Procurement”? 
48.98% – no, 32.86% – yes, 18.16% – I don’t know.

Several problems have been identified as most significant in pre-threshold procurement: low interest of business due to low revenue (53%); overburdening the employees who work with procurement (45%); a lack of time for urgent procedures (43%); low quality of paperwork done by the participants (39%) and supply of low-quality products (34%). 

What problems do you believe exist in pre-threshold procurement?
53.4% – low interest from the participants due to low revenue, 44.6% – overburdening the employees who work with procurement; 42.5% – a lack of time for urgent procedures; 39.4 – low quality of paperwork done by the participants; 33.5% – supply of low-quality products; 30.2% – it is difficult to prepare a work statement; 27.5 – the participants increase prices after the agreement has been concluded, 25.5% – the participants violate the time frame; 20.3% – dumping; 18.9% – the personnel is not qualified to organize procurement; 10.5% – the auction winner often refuses to sign the agreement; 3.5% – other; 0.8% – there are no problems. 

Yet, if the competitive tendering for pre-threshold procurement ends up introduced, almost half the customers agree on the amount starting from UAH 50,000.

Red: the amount, UAH (other – 1.43%; not necessary – 5.11%), blue: the share of respondents who chose this option. 

The customers were also offered to evaluate their experience of work in the e-system of public procurement ProZorro. On a scale from 1 to 5, the customers who participated in the survey have given the system the average grade of 3.5 points. 

The number of agreements of the organization concerning procured goods, works and services and the average grade of efficiency of public procurement through the ProZorro system for your organization
Blue bar chart: the percentage of organizations by the number of tenders in 2016, from none to 500+ (7.1% – other). Orange line chart: assessment of efficiency of public procurement through the ProZorro system. 

For reference: The total number of respondents of the online survey is 489. The survey is not representative. The survey was offered to all customers registered on the e-platforms in the ProZorro system. The full text of the research can be found here