The impact of public procurement on innovative socio-economic development

Nowadays, in the era of globalization, innovations are one of the key factors affecting the socio-economic development. In turn, public procurement is one of the areas of social, economic and political life, which plays an... [ view full abstract ]

Nowadays, in the era of globalization, innovations are one of the key factors affecting the socio-economic development. In turn, public procurement is one of the areas of social, economic and political life, which plays an important role in the development of a competitive economy and effective implementation of public tasks. A necessary condition is of course the appropriate configuration of legal regulations and a public procurement system.
In the Europe 2020 Strategy contained in the Commission Communication of 3 March 2010 entitled “Europe 2020 Strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth” it is emphasized that the intention of the European Union is the increase of the efficiency of public spending, the facilitation of the participation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in public procurement, and enabling contracting authorities to make better use of public procurement in support of common societal goals, the implementation of innovative solutions, and solutions for the protection of the environment.
Currently, the regulations contained in the European Union law and national legislation meet these intentions. But does the designed procurement system actually raise the level of competitiveness of the economy? Is it reflected in raising the level of innovativeness of the economy and the public sector? Is it conducive to sustainable socio-economic development? These and other issues will be analysed in this study.
The basic thesis adopted in the article is based on the assumption that existing legislation at the EU and national levels only partially affect the implementation of the goals adopted by the EU. According to the opinion of various environments, the existing complexity of laws and procedures of public procurement is conducive to innovative socio-economic development only to a small extent.
The article also undertakes to justify the thesis that despite the long-term functioning of the public procurement system, efficient and society and economy friendly solutions that truly impact the development of innovations have not been developed.
The source of the analyses presented in the article are data from the literature, analyses and strategic documents at the EU and national level, analyses of legal acts, as well as own observations.
To verify the questions presented in the article a descriptive method, system analysis, document analysis and surveys were used.