On February 27, the online platform of public auctions ProZorro.Sale received the international anti-corruption award from C5 Accelerate and USA Institute of Peace as part of The Shield in the Cloud Innovation Challenge. The award is given to projects producing significant anti-corruption effect and setting an example for other countries across the world.
During only a year, ProZorro.Sale managed to fundamentally change the sector of government sales. Based on the success of the government e-procurement system, the project team, together with the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, the Deposit Guarantee Fund, the National Bank of Ukraine and Transparency International Ukraine, launched a pilot project for selling the assets of insolvent banks.
“The project developed quickly. We signed the memorandum in June, 2016 and the first auction took place in October,” recalls First Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine Maksym Nefyodov. “Starting from February 1, 2017, all insolvent banks’ assets were sold through ProZorro.Sale. And in spring, we reached UAH 1 billion.”
ProZorro.Sale provided open and safe sale of toxic bank assets for the amount of over UAH 6 billion. “Such a significant and quick leap to transparent government procurement would be impossible in any other country of the world. This is because Ukraine is in a truly unique situation today: the country is ready for change, despite complicated conditions,” says Chief Executive Officer of the project Oleksii Sobolev, who received the award in Washington.
Today, the system of transparent auctions is used to sell not only the rights of demand of insolvent banks, but also assets of state and communal enterprises and even tenant rights.
“We successfully sell scrap metal, bottom ash, massive objects, for instance, the Palace of Culture Ilyich. Furthermore, we sell tenant rights for space in the Central Post Office in Kyiv, or advertising space in Lviv trams,” says Oleksii Sobolev. “This year, ProZorro.Sale will be used for small privatization.”
“Ukraine shows the world a range of innovative anti-corruption solutions. First in procurement, and now in sales,” noted Executive Director of Transparency International Ukraine Yaroslav Yurchyshyn. According to him, the success of ProZorro projects proves that transparency and equal access together with fair rules of the game allow to reform even the most complicated sector quickly. “The key is to keep the high rate of the reform to make the changes irreversible,” he added.
The secret of ProZorro.Sale’s success is full transparency and openness, adds Oleksii Sobolev. Moreover, a unique two-level structure allows to connect an infinite number of e-platforms, which provides quality service and proper competition. “We are a remarkable example of the efficiency of the ‘golden triangle partnership’: state – business – society. And it is based on our innovative technology,” says the Chief Executive Officer of ProZorro.Sale. “And we are ready to share our experience with the whole world.”
