Ethiopian Procurement Proclamation 2009
Ethiopian Procurement Proclamation 2009
1. Short Title
This Proclamation may be cited as “The Ethiopian Federal Government Procurement and Property
Administration Proclamation No.649/2009”.
2. Définitions
3. Scope of Application
1/ This Proclamation shall apply to all Federal Government procurement and property administration.
2/ Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-article
(1) of this Article:
a) the Minister in consultation with the heads of the relevant public bodies may in the interest of national security or national defense decide to
use a different procedure of procurement and property administration in which case the Minister shall define by a directive the method of
procurement and property administration to be followed in order to serve the interest of economy and efficiency;
b) this Proclamation does not apply to contracts a public body enters into with another public body for the provision of goods, works,
consultancy or other services at cost.
4. Gender Reference
Provisions of this Proclamation set out in masculine gender shall also apply to the feminine gender.
5. Principles of Public Procurement and Property Administration
Public procurement and property administration shall have to comply with the following principles:
1/ ensure value for money in the use of public fund for procurement;
2/ non discrimination among candidates on grounds of nationality or any other criteria not having to do with their qualification, except in cases
of preference specifically provided for in this Proclamation;
3/ transparency and fairness of the criteria on the basis of which decisions are given in public procurement as well as of decisions in each
procurement;
4/ accountability for decisions made and measures taken with regard to public procurement and property administration;
5/ careful handling and proper use of public property.
6. International Obligations
1/ To the extent that this Proclamation conflicts with an obligation of the Federal Government under or arising out of an agreement with one or
more other states or with an international organization, the provisions of that agreement shall prevail.
2/ Where an agreement referred to in sub-article
(1) of this Article contains a preference or preferences in favour of national and resident bidders, the public body shall ensure that the
applicable preference or preferences are clearly stated in the bidding documents.
Public bodies shall have overall responsibility for procurements they carry out and the property they administer. In particular, the head of a
public body shall apart from those specified in the directives to be issued by the Minister, have the following responsibilities:
a) cause to be established an adequately staffed unit for procurement and property administration;
b) setup a procurement endorsing committee which approves procurements of higher value; it may also setup ad hoc evaluation committee for
complex procurement;
c) ensure that staff and officials assigned in the procurement and property administration and those assigned as members of the procurement
endorsing committee receive training to enable them acquire knowledge of the content and application of this Proclamation, the directives to be
issued in accordance with this Proclamation, the procurement and property administration manuals, the standard bidding documents and other
relevant forms;
d) ensure that the procurement of the public body is preplanned and complies with procurement principles enshrined in this Proclamation;
e) ensure that the procurement department, the procurement endorsing committee and other sections of the public body involved in
procurement discharge their duties properly;
f) where necessary, enter into a contract with third parties which support the public body in the process of procurement;
g) ensure that property at the disposal of the public body is used in such a manner as to achieve economy and efficiency;
h) ensure that property at the disposal of the public body is duly registered and traceable, properly handled and looked after and disposed off
when it is no longer useful.
9. Duties and Responsibilities of Procurement and Property Administration Unit
The procurement department in a public body shall, apart from the responsibilities assigned to it by the procurement directives and the job
description prepared by the public body have the following duties and responsibilities:
a) execute public procurement in a perfectly ethical and skillful manner;
b) carry out public procurement in accordance with this Proclamation, the procurement directives, the procurement manual , the standard bid
documents, the forms and the procurement contract;
c) maintain complete record for each procurement in accordance with Article 23 of this Proclamation.
11. Accountability
Procurement and property administration staff or heads of procurement and property administration units and members of the procurement
endorsing committee in public bodies shall be accountable for their actions in accordance with this Proclamation and the directives to be issued
by the Minister.
CHAPTER TWO THE PUBLIC PROCUREMENT AND PROPERTY ADMINISTRATION AGENCY
12. Establishment
1/ It is hereby reestablished the Public Procurement and Property Administration Agency (hereinafter referred to as the "Agency") as an
autonomous Federal Government organ having its own juridical personality.
2/ The Agency shall be accountable to the Minister.
The head office of the Agency shall be in Addis Ababa and may have branch offices else where as may be necessary.
1/ The Director General shall be the chief executive officer of the Agency and shall, subject to the general directives of the Minister, direct and
administer the activities of the Agency.
2/ Without prejudice to the generalities of the provisions of sub-article (1) of this Article, the Director General shall:
(a) exercise the powers and functions of the Agency specified under Articles 15 and 16 of this Proclamation;
b) employ, administer and dismiss personnel of the Agency in accordance with the Federal Civil Service Proclamation;
c) prepare the work program and budget of the Agency and implement the same upon approval;
d) prepare and submit to the Minister operational and financial report on the activities of the Agency;
e) represent the Agency in all its relations with third parties.
3/ The Director General may delegate part of his powers and duties to employees of the Agency to the extent necessary for the effective
management of the functions of Agency.
1) Subject to directions given from the Director General, the Deputy Director General shall assist the Director General in planning, organizing,
directing and coordinating the activities of the Agency. assist the Director General in planning, organizing, directing and coordinating the
activities of the Agency.
2) The Deputy Director General shall act on behalf of the Director General in his absence.
1) Public bodies shall have to prepare an annual procurement plan showing their procurement for the concerned budget year and containing
such details as are stated in the directive to be issued by the Minister.
2) The procurement plan to be prepared by public bodies in accordance with sub-article
(1) of this Article, shall have to be approved by the head of the public body concerned and communicated to the relevant departments of the
public body and the Agency until Hamle 30 of the Ethiopian Calendar.
1/ Public bodies shall have to maintain records and documents regarding their public procurement for such period of time as is determined by
the directive to be issued by the Minister from the date of concluding any procurement proceeding Such informations shall include the
following:
a) a brief description of the goods works or services to be procured;
b) the invitation to bid;
c) the names and addresses of suppliers that submitted bids, proposals or quotations, and the name and address of the winning suppliers;
d) the evaluation criteria stipulated and applied and a summary of the evaluation and comparison of bids, proposals and quotations received;
e) information on the proceeding of any decision rendered where a complaint against a procurement process is lodged;
f) the grounds for using a procurement procedure other than open bidding.
2/ The record concerning any proceeding shall on request, and once the proceedings have resulted in a contract or have otherwise been
terminated, be made available to candidates who participated in the proceedings.
However, except when ordered to do so by a competent court or other body authorized by law and subject to the conditions of such an order,
the pblic body shall not disclose:
a) information if its disclosure would be contrary to law, would impede law enforcement, would not be in the public interest, would prejudice
legitimate commercial interest of the parties or would inhibit fair competition;
b) information relating to the examination and evaluation of bids, proposals or quotations and the actual content of bids, proposals or
quotations, other than in the summary record form referred to in subarticle
(1)(d) of this Article.
24. Non-discrimination
Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 25 of this Proclamation, candidates shall not be discriminated against in the proceeding of public
procurement on the basis of nationality, race or any other criterion not having to do with their qualifications.
25. Preference
1/ A preference margin which shall be determined by a directive to be issued by the Minister for goods produced in Ethiopia, for works carried
out by Ethiopian nationals and for consultancy services rendered by Ethiopian nationals be granted in the evaluation process.
2/ In addition to the preference provided for in sub-article (1) of this Article, further preference of such margin as to be determined by the
directive to be issued by the Minister may be allowed for small and micro-enterprises established in accordance with Small and Micro-
Enterprises Proclamation.
3/ Where in the evaluation of bids for procurement of goods, services or works equal percentage points are resulted for bidders offering similar
price and quality, preference shall be given to local goods, services or companies.
4/ For the purpose of sub-article (1) of this Article any good to which more than 35% of the value added occurs in Ethiopia shall be deemed as
one which is produced in Ethiopia.
1) Communications between candidates and public bodies shall be in writing. Any communications not made in written form shall be
subsequently referred to and confirmed in writing.
2) Subject to necessary safeguards with regard to authenticity and confidentiality, and when technical conditions so permit, the Minister may
issue a directive to determine the extent by which communication by electronic means may be used in addition to or instead of writing.
27. Language
1) Except where a procurement proceeding involves international bidders, for national bids in which only local bidders participate, the bid
document shall be prepared and the bid process shall be conducted in the Amharic language. However, if it is found to facilitate the
procurement process, the public body concerned may authorize the use of English language in the preparation of bid documents and bid
proposals in a national bid in which only local bidders participate, provided that such an act is not prejudicial to fair competition.
2) For procurement to be conducted by means of international competitive bidding, all documents shall have to be prepared in English
language.
28. Qualification of Candidates
1/ In order to participate in public procurement, candidates must qualify by meeting the following criteria and such other criteria, as the public
body considers appropriate Under the circumstances:
a) that they possess the necessary professional and technical qualifications and competence, financial resources, equipment and other physical
facilities, managerial capability, experience in the procurement object, reputation, and the personnel, to perform the contract;
b) that they have the legal capacity to enter into the contract;
c) that they are not insolvent, in receivership, bankrupt or being wound up, their business activities have not been suspended, and they are not
the subject of legal proceedings for any of the foregoing;
d) subject to the directives to be issued by the Minister, that they are registered in the suppliers list;
e) that the period for which they were suspended from participating in public procurement is over;
f) that they have renewed trade license and fulfilled their obligations to pay taxes according to Ethiopian tax laws;
g) that they have a bank account.
2/ The public body may require candidates to provide such appropriate documentary evidence or other information as it may deem useful to
satisfy itself that the candidates are qualified in accordance with the criteria referred to in sub-article (1) of this Article.
3/ Any requirement established pursuant to this Article shall be set forth in the bid documents or other documents for solicitation of proposals,
and shall apply equally to all candidates.
4/ The public body shall evaluate the qualifications of candidates in accordance with the criteria and procedures set forth in the documents
referred to in sub-article (3) of this Article.
5/ The public body shall disqualify a candidate who submits a document containing false information for purposes of qualification; it shall
disqualify a candidate if it finds at any time that the information submitted concerning the qualifications of the candidate was materially
inaccurate or materially incomplete.
1/ Technical specifications and descriptions laying down the characteristics of the goods, works or services to be procured shall be prepared for
the purpose of providing a correct and complete description of the object of procurement and for the purpose of creating conditions of fair and
open competition between all candidates.
2/ The technical specifications shall clearly describe the public body’s requirements with respect to quality, performance, safety and where
necessary dimensions, symbols, terminology, packaging, marking and labeling or the processes and methods of production and requirements
relating to conformity assessment procedures.
3/ Technical specification prescribed by public bodies shall, as far as possible:
a) be in terms of performance rather than design or descriptive characteristics;
b) be based on national standards, where such exist, or otherwise on internationally recognized standards or building codes;
c) inviting open competition and devoid of any statement having the effect of restricting competition.
4/ There shall be no requirement or reference in the technical specifications to a particular trademark or name, patent, design or type, specific
original producer or service provider, unless there is no sufficiently precise or intelligible way of describing the procurement requirements of
the public body and provided that words such as“or equivalent” are included in the specifications.
b) with an intention to mislead a procurement proceeding not to present a falsified document or not to withhold information he/she should have
disclosed;
c) not to connive with another candidate in an act of false competition in order to get unfair advantages;
d) to report to the law enforcement agencies any intended or completed action of corruption which he came to know during the procurement
proceedings and contribute to the effort to fight corruption and malpractice.
The Minister may issue directive prescribing the rules governing the formation of Public Private
Partnership and the modes of implementation of such partnership.
35. Advertisements
1) Invitation to bid shall be advertised in at least one times in a national news paper of general circulation which is published in the language
the bidding document is prepared.
2) Where the public body finds it necessary, it may, in addition to the medium mentioned in sub article (1) of this Article, advertise the bid on a
national radio and television.
3) The time allowed for preparation of bids shall not be less than the minimum number of days stated in the procurement directives.
Apart from containing the following particulars, the invitation to bid shall be prepared in accordance with the standard bidding document to be
developed by the Agency:
a) the name and address of the public body;
b) a brief description of the goods, works or services to be procured;
c) the means and conditions for obtaining the bidding documents and the place from which they may be obtained;
d) the place and deadline for the submission of bids; and
e) the place and time for opening of bids, along with an announcement that bidders or their representatives are allowed to attend at the opening
of bids.
The bidding documents shall contain sufficient information to enable competition among the bidders to take place on the basis of complete,
neutral and objective terms. In particular, bidding documents must include:
a) instructions for the preparation and submission of bids;
b) information about the final date for receipt of bids, the address to which bids must be sent, the date, hour and place of opening, as well as an
announcement that bidders or their representatives are allowed to attend the opening ceremony;
c) bid submission forms and, where applicable, forms of bid security to be provided;
d) the number of copies to be submitted with the original bid;
e) the general and specific conditions of the contract;
f) specification of requirements, including time limit for delivery or completion of the task, as appropriate;
g) evidence to be provided by the bidder to demonstrate its qualifications as well as its fiscal and legal standing;
h) the period during which the bid remains in force;
(i) the criteria and the points given to each criterion for evaluation of bids and award of the contract;
(j) a reservation to the effect that the public body may reject all bids at any time prior to the notification of award; and
(k) the price adjustments that may be made during contract implementation and the conditions and the manner under which such price
adjustments can be made to special procurements prescribed by the Minister.
1) Bid documents shall be made available to candidates at a price not exceeding the cost of reproduction and delivery of such documents to
candidates.
2) The bidding document shall be delivered to candidates on working days between the date of publication of the invitation to bid and the
closing date of the bid and in the manner specified in the invitation to bid.
3) Where it deems it to be appropriate the public body may make the bidding document available to candidates free of charge.
1) At any time prior to the deadline for submission of bids, the public body may, on its own initiative or in response to an inquiry by a
candidate having purchased the bidding documents, modify the bidding documents by issuing an addendum, which becomes an integral part of
the bidding documents.
2) Any addendum shall be communicated promptly to all candidates having purchased the bid documents at the same time.
3) If the public body considers it necessary to amend the bidding documents and if it determines that there is no enough time to incorporate the
modification, it may postpone the closing date by a number of days, depending on the procurement object, which is sufficient to enable the
bidders to take the addendum into account in preparing their bids.
1/ Bids shall be submitted in writing, signed and in a sealed envelope, to the place and before the deadline stated in the invitation to bid.
2/ The public body shall give a receipt to the bidder indicating the time and date on which the bid document was submitted, where it becomes
impossible to put the bid document in a bid box due to its large size.
3/ Without prejudice to the provisions of subarticle
(2) of this Article, a bid document recieved after the deadline for submission shall be returned unopened to the bidder.
1/ At the time stipulated in the bidding document for opening of bids, which should follow immediately after the deadline for submission of
bids, the public body shall open all bids received before the deadline.
2/ The name of the bidder and the total amount of each bid, discounts offered and any such information as the public body deems necessary to
let the bidders know their relative rank shall be read out aloud and recorded and a copy of the record shall be made available to any bidder on
request.
3/. Notwithstanding the provisions of sub – article (2) of this Article, the envelope containing the price offered by the bidder shall be read after
the evaluation of the technical proposal where technical and financial proposals are submitted in two separate envelops.
1) The public body may ask bidders for clarification of their bids in order to assist in the examination and evaluation of bids; however, no
change in the substance of the bid, including changes in price, shall be sought, offered or permitted.
2) Notwithstanding sub-article (1) of this Article, the public body shall correct arithmetical errors that are discovered during the examination of
bids. The public body shall give prompt notice of any such correction to the bidder that submitted the bid.
3) Without preicdice to sub-article (4) of this Article, the public body may regard a bid as responsive only if it conforms to salient requirements
set forth in the bidding documents.
4) The public body may regard a bid as responsive even if it contains minor deviations that do not materially alter or depart from the
characteristics, terms, conditions and other requirement set forth in bidding documents or if it contains errors or oversights that are capable of
being corrected without touching on the substance of the bid. Any such deviations shall be quantified, to the extent possible, and appropriately
taken account of in the evaluation and comparison of bids.
5) Any public body shall not award a contract when:
a) the bidder has failed to demonstrate, in the manner provided in Article 28(1) of this Proclamation, that it is qualified;
b) the bidder does not accept a correction of an arithmetical error made pursuant to sub-article (2) of this Article;
c) the bid is not responsive.
6) In the process of selecting the successful bidder, the public body shall only consider substantially responsive bids for further evaluation and
comparison, as defined in subarticle
(8) of this Article in accordance with the criteria set forth in the bidding documents. No criterion shall be used that has not been set forth in the
bidding documents.
7) No bidder may be required to change the price offered in his bid or otherwise modify his proposal or to assume obligation to do so except as
set forth in the bidding document.
8) The successful bid shall be:
a) the bid that is found to be responsive to the technical requirements and with the lowest evaluated price;
b) if the public body has so stipulated in the bidding documents, the bid offering better economic advantage ascertained on the basis of factors
affecting the economic value of the bid which have been specified in the bidding documents, which factors shall, to the extent practicable, be
objective and quantifiable, and shall be given a relative weight in the evaluation procedure or be expressed in monetary terms wherever
practicable;
c) where it is ascertained in post evaluation of bids that the legal, financial and technical standing of the candidate selected as the successful
bidder in accordance with paragraph (a) or (b) of this sub-article conforms to the requirements stated in the bidding document.
9) The public body shall prepare an evaluation report, containing a summary of the examination and evaluation of bids.
After the opening of bids, information relating to the examination, clarification, and evaluation of bids and recommendations for award must
not be disclosed to bidders or other persons not officially concerned with this process until the award of the contract is announced
1) Prior to the expiry of the period of bid validity, the public body shall notify the successful bidder that its bid has been accepted. The
notification of award shall specify the time within which the contract must be signed. The unsuccessful bidders shall also be informed as to
who the successful bidder is and why they have lost the bid.
2) The existence of a contract shall be confirmed through the signature of a contract document incorporating all agreements between the
parties.
3) The contract shall not be signed by the public body prior to the receipt of the notice by the unsuccessful bidder and before the period
specified in the directive to be issued by the Minister has lapsed.
4) The procedures that public body has to follow in administering the contract shall be prescribed by a directive to be issued by the Minister.
A supplier shall provide the public body with a contract security to make good any damage the public body may sustain as a result of default
by the supplier under the contract. The type of procurement for which contract security is required and the type and amount of contract security
shall be determined by a directive to be issued by the Minister.
48. Advance Payment
1) The amount of advance payment that may be allowed to suppliers in public procurement and the manner in which it is made available shall
be determined by the directive to be issued by the Minister.
2) Advance payment may be effected only where a supplier furnishes advance payment guarantee in an amount equal to the advance payment.
Public bodies may use restricted tendering as a method of procurement only where the following conditions are satisfied:
1) it is a ascertained that the required object of procurement is available only with limited suppliers;
2) the cost of procurement does not exceed the threshold specified in respect of restricted tendering in the directive to be issued by the
Minister; or
3) where a repeated advertisement of the invitation to bid fails to attract bidders in respect of a procurement subject to the directive to be issued
by the Minister.
Restricted tendering procedures are the same as those applied in open tendering, except that:
1) where the object of procurement is available only with limited suppliers in accordance with Article 49(1) of this Proclamation the invitation
to bid shall be sent to all such suppliers;
2) if restricted tendering is used for the reason stated in Article 49 sub-articles(2) or (3) of this Paroclamation, the invitation to bid shall as far
as possible be sent to limited suppliers chosen from among those registered in the suppliers list on the basis of the following consideration:
a) any selection shall allow opportunities for suppliers on the list,
b) the number of suppliers to whom the invitation to bid is sent shall be such that it is sufficient to ensure effective competition and shall not as
far as possible be less than five compitators.
3) the time allowed for preparation of bids shall not be less than the minimum number of days stated in the procurement directive for this
method of procurement. However, if all suppliers invited to participate in the bid have submitted their bids before the closing date, the public
body may open the bid ahead of schedule by giving bidders prior notice;
4) if the public body uses restricted tendering for the reason stated on Article 49(1) of this Proclamation, it shall determine whether it is
necessary to require the candidates to submit bid security.
1) Public bodies may use direct procurement only where the following conditions are satisfied:
a) when in absence of competitions for technical reasons the goods, works consultancy or other required services can be supplied or provided
only by one candidate;
b) for additional deliveries of goods by the original supplier which are intended either as parts of replacement for existing supplies, services or
installations or as the extension of existing supplies, services or installation where a change of supplies would compel the public body to
procure equipment or services not meeting requirements of interchangeability with already existing equipment or services;
c) within limits defined in the procurement directive, when additional works, which have been not included in the initial contract have, through
unforeseeable circumstances, become necessary since the separation of the additional works from the initial contract would be difficult for
technical or economic
reasons;
d) within limits defined in the procurement directives, for new works consisting of the repetition of similar works which conform to a basic
project of which an initial contract has been awarded on the basis of open or restricted bidding;
e) within limits defined in the procurement directives, for continuation of consultant services, where the original contract has been
satisfactorily performed and the continuation is likely to lead to gains in economy and efficiency;
f) the head of the public body has determined that the need is one of pressing emergency in which delay would create serious problems and
therefore injurious to the performance of that public body;
g) where situations arise in which shopping becomes necessary to meet the special procurement needs of public bodies. The manner of
implementation of this provision shall be prescribed by the directive to be issued by the Minister;
h) for purchase of goods made Under exceptionally advantageous conditions which only arise in the very short term.
This provision is intended to cover unusual disposals by firms, which are not normally suppliers. It is not intended to cover routine purchases
from regular suppliers.
2) Public bodies may use direct procurement when the contract price does not exceed an amount stated in the procurement directive.
3) It shall not be necessary to conclude a contract in respect of direct procurements effected in accordance with sub-articles (1) (g) and (2) of
this Article.
4) Public bodies shall ensure that this method is not resorted to with a view to avoiding possible competition or in a manner which would
constitute a means of discrimination among candidates.
52. Procedure for Direct Procurement
1) When the public body engages in direct procurement according to Article 51(1) of this Proclamation, it shall prepare a description of its
needs and any special requirements as to quality, quantity, terms and time of delivery, and shall be free to negotiate on price and conditions of
offer with the sole candidate. Without prejudice to the provisions of sub-article (3) of Article 51 of this Proclamation, any agreement reached
to conduct the procurement shall be confirmed by a contract signed by both parties.
2) The salient points to focus on in the negotiation of contracts for direct procurements shall be approved by the head of the public body
concerned and communicated to the negotiators.
Public bodies may engage in procurement by means of request for proposals when it seeks to obtain consultancy services or contracts for
which the component of consultancy services represents more than 50% of the amount of the contract.
1) The selection of candidates for consultancy services above a threshold to be determined by a directive shall be made after inviting
candidates to submit expression of interest.
2) Requests for proposals shall be addressed to not less than three and not more than seven candidates selected by the public body.
3) A request for proposals shall contain at least the following information:
a) the name and address of the procuring entity;
b) description of the services required, normally through terms of reference;
c) in the case of consultancy assignments which may involve potential conflicts of interest, a reminder that candidates for such assignments
must exclude themselves from procurement of goods and works which may follow as a result of or in connection with the consultancy
agreement;
d) the criteria for evaluating the proposals, the relative weight to be given to price and other criteria, and the manner in which they will be
applied in the evaluation of proposals;
e) place and deadline for the submission of proposals.
4) Candidates shall be given adequate time in which to prepare their proposals; such time frame shall be determined by the directive to be
issued by the Minister.
5) The public body may negotiate with the first ranked candidate with respect to the nature, volume and organization of the services included
in their proposals.
6) Any award by the public body shall be made to the candidate whose proposal is most advantageous, determined in accordance with the
criteria and procedures for evaluating proposals set forth in the request for proposals.
Public bodies may engage in procurement by means of request for quotations for the purchase of readily available goods or for procurement of
works or services for which there is an established market, so long as the estimated value of the contract does not exceed an amount stated in
the procurement directive to be issued by the Minister.
56. Procedure for Request of Quotations
1) Public bodies shall request quotations from as many candidates as practicable, but from at least three, if possible from among suppliers
registered in the suppliers list.
2) In cases where procurements are made using request for quotation, as long as other suppliers, who can supply the same goods, services or
works are available, the public body shall not repeatedly invite the same suppliers to submit their quotations. The public body shall ensure that
equal opportunity of participation in public procurement is given to all candidates engaged in the business.
3) The request shall contain a clear statement of the requirements of the public body as to quality, quantity, terms and time of Delivery of the
goods, works, consultancy or other services as well as other special requirements.
4) The public body shall give adequate time to candidates in which to prepare their quotations.
5) A purchase order shall be placed with the candidate who meets the requirements of the public body stipulated in sub- article (3) of this
Article.
1) The solicitation documents shall call upon suppliers to submit, in the first stage of the two-stage bidding proceedings, initial tenders
containing their proposals without a tender price. The solicitation documents may solicit proposal relating to the technical, quality or other
characteristics of the goods, works or services as well as to contractual terms and conditions of supply, and where relevant the
professional and technical competence and qualifications of the suppliers.
2) The public body shall identify responsive bids by evaluating the proposals submitted by the bidders at the first stage of the bid proceeding
against its requirements. The public body may without prejudice to their intellectual property rights at this stage hold discussion with the
candidates on the content of their proposals.
3) The public body shall draw up a specification which is more appropriate to its requirements on the basis of the evaluation against the
requirements of the proposals submitted to it at the first stage of the bid proceeding. It shall then proceed to communicate the revised
specification to the candidates who submitted responsible bids at the first stage and invite such candidates to submit proposals on the basis of
the revised specification.
4) In formulating the revised specification in accordance with sub article (3) of this Article, the public body may delete or modify any aspect,
originally set forth in the solicitation documents of the technical or quality characteristics of the goods, works or services to be procured and
any criterion originally set forth in those documents for evaluating and comparing bids and for ascertaining the successful bids and may add
new characteristics or criteria that conform with this Proclamation. Any such deletion,
modification or addition shall be communicated to suppliers in the invitation to submit final bids.
5) A supplier not wishing to participate in the second stage of tendering in accordance with the reformulated specification may withdraw from
the proceeding.
6) The public body shall evaluate the bids submitted at the second stage to ascertain the successful bidder pursuant to the provisions of Article
43 of this Proclamation.
7) The public body may engage in negotiation with the first ranking bidder concerning any aspect of its bid, except price.
1) Open international bidding shall be used whenever in national open bidding an effective competition cannot be obtained unless foreign firms
are invited to bid or for procurements above a threshold level for national bidding to be determined by a directive to be issued by the Minister
2) A procurement may be effected by means of national competitive bidding notwithstanding that the cost of the procurement exceeds the
threshold established in the directive for national bidding if it is ascertained that the required object of procurement is available only locally.
3) Open international bidding shall respect the provisions of Chapter Four of this Proclamation as well as the following procedures:
a) the invitation to bid and the bid documents shall be in the English language;
b) the invitation to bid shall be advertised in a news paper published in English language which has world wide circulation and attracts foreign
competition as well as on the Agency’s website in the manner prescribed in the directive;
c) the time allowed for submission of bids shall be sufficient for the invitation to reach candidates and for enabling them to prepare and submit
bids. In any case it shall not be less than the time prescribed by the directive to be issued by the Minister;
d) technical specifications of the goods, works and services shall be compatible with national requirements, and conform as far as possible with
international standards or standards widely used in international trade;
e) candidates shall be permitted to express their bids, as well as any security documents to be presented by them in Ethiopian Birr, or in a
currency widely used in international trade and stated in the bidding documents;
f) general and special conditions of contract shall be of a kind generally used in international trade.
4) Without prejudice to the threshold to be established in the directive to be issued by the Minister and provided that conditions for using other
methods of procurement than open bidding are satisfied, public bodies may conduct procurement through international competitive bidding by
means of restricted tendering, request for proposals, request for quotation or direct procurement where it is ascertained that it is impossible to
carry out effective procurement with out the participation of foreign companies.
1) There shall be established a central body, which shall be in charge of the execution of large value procurements having national significance
procurements of supplies for which a demand is shown by more than one public body and sale of public property to be disposed off, by a
regulation to be issued by the Council of Ministers.
2) The Minister shall identify and update the types of procurements to be executed on account of their national significance by the central body
which shall be established pursuant to sub article (1) of this Article.
61. Procedure of Framework Contract
1) Framework contracts may be used to fulfill similar procurement requirements of various public bodies or recurrent procurement
requirements of a public body.
2) The following procedure of Framework contract shall be followed to meet similar procurement requirements of public bodies within a given
time frame:
a) the Agency shall undertake a survey of the similar requirements of public bodies, issue a list of goods and services constituting such
requirements and update the list regularly;
b) public bodies shall prepare a forecast of their requirements of goods and services falling under the list mentioned in sub-article (2) (a) of this
Article and communicate the same to the body authorized to conduct large procurements;
c) the body to be established in accordance with Article 60(1) of this Proclamation shall conclude and administer Framework contracts in the
manner prescribed herein and the directive to be issued by the Ministry
d) public bodies shall on the basis of the framework contract signed by the central body of procurement conclude the procurement by making
order with the suppliers of goods and services that they require;
e) the order that public bodies place with the suppliers for goods and services of their requirements under the frame work contract shall confirm
to the terms of the Framework contract regarding price, terms of payment and other matters related to the execution of procurement.
3) Except in cases provided for in Article 37 paragraph (k) of this Proclamation, public bodies shall not be allowed to vary unit prices and such
other fundamental terms of the framework contract when placing order for goods and services. However, the public body and the supplier may
agree on terms that have not been dealt with in the framework contract or that do not materially affect the frame work contract.
4) The framework contract shall be awarded through open bidding procedure and may remain valid for three years.
5) In procuring goods and services under a framework contract to fulfill their recurrent requirements, public bodies shall have to adhere to the
criterion of fixing prices of goods and services to be determined in the directive to be issued by the Minister.
62. General
The head of each public body shall ensure that property at the disposal of the public body is properly handled, used and where necessary,
disposed off in accordance with the directive to be issued by the Minister.
63. Acquisition
1) All acquisitions of public property shall be for the sole purpose of facilitating the Delivery and maintenance of approved programs as
efficiently and effectively as possible.
2) The Agency shall account for, administer and where necessary, dispose off property of the Federal Government which are not administered
by any other public body.
1) Heads of public bodies shall ensure that all public property is used as productively as possible in carrying out of the responsibilities of the
public bodies.
2) Heads of public bodies shall establish a proper maintenance system for all public property to ensure that it will operate as economically and
effectively as possible in accordance with the directive to be issued by the Minister.
1) The heads of public bodies shall adopt a lifetime approach to the management of public property.
2) Heads of public bodies shall ensure that items of public property are recorded as to date, description, quantity and cost from acquisition to
the end of their life-time.
3) Heads of public bodies shall ensure that the custodial responsibility for each fixed asset acquired is assigned primarily to persons using such
fixed assets and that names of the custodians, and the locations of the fixed assets under their custody are recorded in the register of fixed
assets.
4) Heads of public bodies, shall ensure that supplies, not acquired for immediate consumption, shall form part of supply inventories and that
custodial responsibility be assigned for such inventories.
5) All inventories of public property shall be physically verified against records at least annually.
6) Where the actual cost of public property is not determinable, its cost shall be estimated in accordance with the directive to be issued by the
Minister.
7) Depreciation shall be calculated on fixed assets in accordance with the directive to be issued by the Minister.
The heads and all employees of public bodies are responsible for the protection and preservation of public property.
67. Disposal
1) Heads of public bodies shall ensure that fixed assets which are not useful to the organization are disposed off in the manner to be prescribed
in the directive to be issued by the Minister.
2) The description and amount received from all public property disposed off shall be included in the public accounts.
3) Without prejudice to the provisions of the directive to be issued by the Minister, concerning the matter, proceeds from the disposal of public
property shall be deposited into the account of the central treasury.
68. Deletion
1) Where public property is considered to be of no use in the public body or elsewhere, and has no- scrap value, it shall be deleted in
accordance with the directive to be issued by the Minister.
2) Deletion of public property shall be recorded when losses take place from inventory shortages, destruction, theft or any other reason.
3) The description and book value of all public property deleted shall be included in the public accounts in accordance with the directives to be
issued by the Minister.
69. Transfer
The Minister shall determine by directive the manner in which property which is not useful to the Federal Government may be transferred
gratis to regional governments, city administrations or any other body carrying on activities complementing the responsibility of the
government.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BOARD REVIEWING COMPLAINTS ON PUBLIC PROCUREMENT AND
PROPERTY ADMINISTRATION
1) A body (hereinafter referred to as the "Board") is hereby established which reviews and decides on complaints lodged in regard to public
procurement and property disposal proceedings.
2) The Board shall be accountable to the Minister.
1) The Board shall be drawn from persons representing the private business sector, the relevant public bodies and public enterprises.
2) The Agency shall serve as the secretariat of the Board.
3) The Minister shall appoint the members of the Board. He shall determine the amount of allowance to be paid to the members of the Board
and the mode of payment.
4) The term of service of members of the Board shall be three years. However, any member of the Board failing to properly discharge his duty
maybe replaced at any time before his term of service expires.
1) The Minister shall issue and implement a directive setting for the procedure the Board has to follow in the exercise of its powers and duties;
such directive shall adhere to the following general rules:
a) the Board shall review and decide on complaints from candidates or suppliers;
b) the Board may in the exercise of its function require the production of relevant documents and the testimony of officials and employees of
the concerned bodies;
c) the Board may also seek Professional assistance from governmental or nongovernmental entities where it finds such assistance to be useful
in reviewing and deciding on a complaint submitted to it.
2) The Agency shall provide the Board with office facility and technical assistance.
3) Upon deliberation on a complaint submitted to it, the Board may give one of the following decisions, which it deems to be appropriate, with
the details to be prescribed in the directive to be issued by the Minister:
a) that the procurement proceeding in respect of which a complaint was lodged be rectified or terminated;
b) to dismiss the case where in its judgment the complaint is unfounded.
4) The members of the Board shall discharge their duty in a perfectly ethical manner. They have the obligation to report any potential or actual
conflict of interest they may come across in the exercise of their functions and to exclude themselves from any proceeding involving such
conflict.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN COMPLAINTS THAT MAY BE LODGED WITH REGARD TO PROCEEDINGS OF PUBLIC
PROCUREMENT AND PROPERTY DISPOSAL
73. General
1) Without prejudice to the provisions of this Chapter, a candidate shall be entitled to submit a complaint to the head of the public body or to
the Board against an act or omission of the public body in regard to a public procurement or property disposal proceeding where he believes
that such an act or omission violates this Proclamation or the directives.
2) No complaint may be lodged in accordance with sub- article (1) of this Article in respect of the following matters:
a) the selection of procurement method pursuant to this Proclamation;
b) the rejection of bids, proposals or quotations pursuant to Article 30 of this Proclamation;
c) the selection of method of property disposal;
d) the handling and usage of public property.
3) Complaints against an act or omission of a public body pertaining to a proceeding leading to an award may not be brought before the head
of that public body or the Board after the contract has been signed with the successful bidder.
4) The provision of sub- article (3) of this Article shall apply where the following conditions are satisfied:
a) where the contract has been signed without a complaint being filed with the public body within the time limit prescribed in the directive;
b) where the public body responds to the complaint lodged and a contract is signed because of the expiration of the time limit for the signing of
contract after the award without the candidate pursuing its complaint further.
5) The procedure to be followed in resolving complaints brought in regard to public procurement and property disposal shall be determined in
accordance with the directive to be issued by the Minister.
1) A complaint against an act or omission by the public body shall in the first instance, be submitted to the head of the public body.
2) A candidate shall have to submit the complaint within five working days from the date he knew or should have known the circumstances
giving rise to the complaint.
3) Unless the complaint is resolved by mutual agreement, the head of the public body shall suspend the procurement or property disposal
proceedings and shall, within 10 days after submission of the complaint, issue a written decision, stating the reasons, and, if the complaint is
upheld, indicating the corrective measures to be taken.
4) If the head of the public body does not issue a decision within the time stated in sub-article (3) of this Article, or if the candidate is not
satisfied with the decision of the head of the public body the
candidate is entitled to submit a complaint to the Board within five working days from the date on which the decision has been or should have
been communicated to the candidate by the public body.
1) Upon receipt of a complaint, the Board shall promptly give notice of the complaint to the public body concerned. Such action automatically
suspends further action by the public body until the Board has settled the matter.
2) The Board, unless it dismisses the complaint, may:
a) prohibit the public body from acting or deciding unlawfully;
b) order the public body to proceed in a manner conforming to this Proclamation other than a decision to award or conclude a contract;
c) annul in whole or in part, an unlawful act or decision by the public body.
3) The Board shall, before taking any decision regarding a complaint, notify relevant bodies of the complaint and shall take into account
information and arguments received from such bodies and from the public body.
4) The Board shall issue its decision within 15 working days of receiving the complaint,
stating the reasons for its decision and remedies granted, if any.
1) Where a public body believes that an unlawful act or an act prejudicial to its legitimate interest has been committed by candidates, suppliers
or by buyers of disposed property, it shall without prejudice
to the measures it is entitled to take against such persons in accordance with the bidding document or the contract, notify the matter in writing
to the Agency.
2) Upon receipt of the complaint the Agency shall send a written notice of the complaint and the content of such complaint to the candidate,
the supplier or the buyer of disposed property against whom the complaint has been lodged.
3) Where the Agency finds it appropriate to the resolution of the complaint it may require persons concerned with the matter to appear in
person and give evidence or seek professional assistance from any appropriate body.
4) The Agency shall review and give decision on the complaint within 15 working days of receipt of such complaint.
5) The decision to be rendered by the Agency in accordance with sub-article (4) of this Article may be one of the following:
a) suspend for a definite or indefinite period the candidate, supplier or buyer of disposed property which it finds to be at fault from
participation in any public procurement or property disposal;
b) give a written warning;
c) dismiss the complaint.
6) The Minister shall establish by a directive the procedure the Agency follows in reviewing and deciding complaints submitted to it in
accordance with this Article.
1) Every person appointed to or employed by a public body in carrying out the provisions of this Proclamation who:
a) receives any payment for the performance of his official duty, except as provided by law;
b) who defrauds a public body, conspires or colludes with any person to defraud the public body or provides an opportunity for any person to
defraud the public body in regard to a public procurement or property disposal proceeding;
c) contravenes or intentionally permits any contravention of this Proclamation;
d) willfully makes or signs any false entry in any document or willfully makes or signs false certificates; is liable on conviction to a fine not
less than Birr 25,000 and not more than 35,000 and to a rigorous imprisonment for a term of not less than 10 years and not more than 15 years.
2) A procurement and property administration officer employed in carrying out the provisions of this Proclamation, except such information
required by this Proclamation to be official, who:
a) discloses to any person or that person’s representative, any matter in respect of another person, that, may, in the exercise of the procurement
officer’s powers or the performance of the procurement officer’s duties come to the procurement officer’s knowledge;
b) permits any other person to have access to records in the possession or custody of the public body, except in the exercise of the procurement
officer’s powers or the performance of the procurement officer’s duties under this Proclamation or by order of a court or any competent body;
commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine of not less than Birr 10,000 and to imprisonment for a term of not less than 2 years and
not more than 5 years.
3) Every person appointed to or employed by a public body in carrying out the provisions of this Proclamation who:
a) directly or indirectly asks for or receives in connection with any of his duties, a payment or gift, whether pecuniary or otherwise, or promise
or security for that payment or reward; or
b) enters into or acquiesces in an agreement to do or to abstain from doing, permit, conceal, or connive at any act or thing whereby the
procurement or property disposal is or may be defrauded or which
is contrary to the provisions of this Proclamation or to the proper execution of the procurement officer’s duty; commits an offence and is liable
on conviction to a fine of not less than 50,000 Birr and to imprisonment for a term of not less than ten (10) years and not more than twenty(20)
years.
4). Every person who, promises, offers or gives any bribe to any person appointed to or employed in any public procurement and property
administration with intent:
a) to influence the decision or action of that person on any question or matter that is pending, or may be brought before him in his official
capacity; or
b) to influence that person to commit, or aid or abet in committing any fraud on the procurement, and property administration or to connive at,
collide in or allow or permit any opportunity for the commission of any such fraud; is guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine of
not less than
Birr50,000 and to rigorous imprisonment for a term of not less than ten(10) years and not more than twenty (20) years,
5) Any candidate who, with the intention of deriving unlawful advantage, presents falsified
documentary evidence or conceals any evidence which he should have disclosed or connives at an act of fake competition shall upon
conviction be punishable with fine not less than 20,000 Birr and with rigorous imprisonment of not less than 5 years and not more than 10
years.
1) The Council of Ministers may, where necessary, issue regulation for the implementation of this Proclamation
2) The Minister may issue directives enabling the realization of the objectives and implementing the provisions of this Proclamation.
3) The Agency shall issue procurement and property administration manuals, standard bid documents, and forms that are necessary for the
implementation of public procurement and property administration.
1) Determining the Procedures of Public Procurement and Establishing the Supervisory Agency Proclamation No 430/2005 is hereby repealed
and replaced by this Proclamation.
2) No law, regulation, directive or practices inconsistent with this Proclamation shall have effect with respect to matters provided for in this
Proclamation;
This Proclamation shall enter into force up on the date of publication in the Federal Negarit Gazeta.
Done at Addis Ababa, this 9th t day of September, 2009
GIRMA WOLDEGIORGIS
PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF ETHIOPIA