Scope and practices of sustainable procurement in Local Government Engineering Department (LGED), Bangladesh: A case study on Rupganj Upazila, Narayanganj

Abstract

Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) is a process by which government of the country seek to achieve the appropriate balance between the three pillars of sustainable development - economic, social and environmental - when procuring goods, services or works at all stages of the project. In Bangladesh, Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) is one of the largest public sector organizations in the country entrusted for planning and implementation of rural, urban and small-scale water resources infrastructure development programs who procures goods, works and services as a large scale. A case study has been conducted with LGED officials of Upazila level addressing three aspects of sustainability to know the present scenario of procurement practice and find out the opportunities and barriers to adopt the sustainability in the public sector procurement in Rupganj Upazila, Narayanganj. From interview survey through the questionnaires it is found that the preparedness of the field level professionals is quite satisfactory but due to different barriers the practices of sustainability in procurement cannot be done effectively. A clear and formal commitment is necessary between the top level of government and Upazila level through proper channel for effective sustainable development. Besides different awareness programs for other entities, contractors, local leaders and mass beneficiaries about public procurement are required to ease the sustainable public procurement process. Besides, reduction of major obstacles, such as, financial barriers, land acquisition difficulties and bureaucratic complexities may create more scope to adopt sustainability in procurement for LGED at field level. Advanced research needs to be conducted in order to get a deeper insight into the sustainability issue in relation to the public procurement at Upazila.