Tag Archives: RVO
Operational Procurement vs Corporate Procurement
Over the last couple of months you may have noticed that we have published multiple tender announcements and opportunities on our blog, both under the ‘eConsultant2’ tab and the ‘Projects’ tab. You might be wondering, what is the difference? The difference between the opportunities published relates to the procuring entity. The Corporate Procurement (eConsultant2) is procured by the 
World Bank itself, while Operational Procurement (Projects) is procured by the borrowing countries. With operational procurement, the role of the World Bank is limited to oversight and issuing a ‘no objection’ – the World Bank has an oversight role in this but does not run the procurement process. Continue reading
Going local: a mission to Senegal and Ghana
By Daan Marks, advisor to the Dutch Executive Director at the World Bank
Traveling always makes me reflect on my life and 
surroundings. When I travel to Belgium (which is not too often), I realize that the Dutch transportation system is actually pretty good. Now that I live in the US, I have come to realize how efficient the Dutch public sector actually is. Last September I traveled to Senegal and Ghana and it made me realize how privileged I am to have a toilet. It is just a different dimension. The face of extreme poverty, and inequality, is obviously confronting. It is also frustrating to see that mismanagement and corruption put a halt on much needed social and economic development.
The economic perspective
Recent GDP figures show that the economies of Sub-Saharan Africa are generally on the rise (or ‘Africa rising’, as some have dubbed it). I think this picture is somewhat misleading. Given the very low starting point and rampant population growth, African countries need these high growth rates to raise living standards above subsistence levels, while absorbing the growing labor force. My guess is that GDP per capita growth is much less impressive, and that figures on GDP per worker do not show significant productivity growth. Simultaneously, the challenges remain immense: poverty figures are still shockingly high in many countries, the outbreak of Ebola shows the lack of capacity in the poorest countries, conflict and fragility continue to hamper economic development in Mali, Central African Republic and South Sudan and uneven growth and therefore rising inequality are leading to increased social instability.
Procurement Review Consultations
Tuesday, November 18, the World Bank Procurement Team visited the Netherlands to discuss the progress being made with the Procurement Review. Now in its last stages, the procurement review seeks to update the procurement policy of the World Bank, which applies to countries who borrow resources from the World Bank. This was the third time the team visited the Netherlands, and the new policy will be presented for approval to the Board of Directors in January 2015. This was the last time both the Netherlands public and private sector were able to provide input. Continue reading
Transport Specialist / Highway Engineer in Tanzania
The World Banks Transport and ICT Global Practice is looking for a highly organized, energized and experienced individual Short Term Consultant (STC) to serve as Transport Specialist/Highway Engineer based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The candidate will participate primarily in the Banks transport sector work and operations in Tanzania.
See full tender here: Transport Specialist or Highway Engineer – Tanzania.
Deadline: October 26, 2014
Do’s and Dont’s
1. Make use of the services provided by the Dutch government: World Bank liaisons
2. Elevator pitch (different from Sales Pitch, which is a don’t!)
3. Schedule a follow up (in person, by phone or by e-mail)
4. Gain knowledge on project procedures and guidelines documents/cycles
5. Research speaker(s): the World Bank is a multicultural environment.
6. Identify specific interests, purpose and deliverables for your visit
7. Ask questions
1. Make a sales pitch / sell products
2. Expect contracts and/or donations on the spot
3. Be general about intentions and interests
4. Expect quick wins; working with the World Bank takes patience and endurance
5. Cancel meetings last minute
6. Come to the meeting without knowledge of the World Bank (and its structure)
7. Distribute handouts (send an email with attachment afterwards instead)
If you have any questions or need advice to prepare for your meeting(s) please contact the World Bank Liaison officers at the Netherlands embassy here
World Bank tenders
Ever wondered where you can find World Bank project tenders?
The two sources provided by the World Bank are e-Consultant2 for all the corporate procurement tenders, and the World Bank project page for country executed projects.
Other sources that can be used to find tenders are Devex, Devbusiness and dgMarket. These are independently run websites that provide a clear overview of the available tenders of almost all the IFI’s, not necessarily only the World Bank.
The World Bank Reorganization 2: Who does what?
In an earlier blog entry we published the new organizational structure of the World Bank after the change process, explaining the new Global Practices (GPs) and Cross-Cutting Solution Areas (CCSAs). But more than the organizational structure the change process also impacted both the role of WB country offices vis-à-vis Headquarters, as well as the role of the different World Bank Units. To further illustrate the roles of the different organizational units, recall the figure below.
Procurement
The World Bank Board of Directors received a new Procurement Policy on July 23. This important new policy describes how borrowing countries must execute their tender processes. It includes stipulations regarding transparency, publication, economic and environmental sustainability, life-cycle cost, and price-quality considerations.
Perhaps the most important element of the new Procurement Policy is the vision, or guiding principle. It states: “Procurement in Bank operations supports clients
to achieve value for money with integrity in delivering sustainable development.”
Value for money
One element the Dutch government has paid much attention to is value for money, which means a number of things. First, it means procured goods, services, and works should be of high quality. The Dutch government believes it does not make economic sense to procure something that is cheaper and of sub-par quality only to replace it quickly. This means quality will get more attention and weight in a bid evaluation than currently is the case.
Second, it means that life-cycle cost will play a more important role in procurement. It is no longer just about the price tag of, say, a million light bulbs, but also about the cost of operating and maintaining those light bulbs over the next 10 years.
This brings us to the point of sustainable development. The World Bank uses a broad definition of the term “sustainable development.” It can refer to economic sustainability, social sustainability, and environmental sustainability. These aspects will be addressed in the Project Appraisal Document (PAD), but the World Bank has decided to leave it up to the borrowing countries to determine the extent of the sustainability criteria within procurement.
Other special topics
The revised procurement policy is designed to be less rigid while incorporating more common sense. In the words of the policy, it is designed to “apply tailored, fit for purpose procurement approaches to any operational circumstance.”
Another topic is that of prior review. To date, the view was that prior review, in which the World Bank needs to submit a “no objection” to approve the selection of a vendor by the borrowing country, should be applied more or less randomly. The new policy chooses to strategically target the “high risk, high value” contracts in order to “avoid diverting valuable staff time into low-value-added activities.”
Going forward, the World Bank will play a more important role in contract management, and will be more involved in engaging suppliers in strategic markets and sectors. This will, for instance, include competitive dialogue to increase vendor participation and overall contract performance.
Lastly, the World Bank is cautiously exploring the issue of a proper complaints mechanism. As a bank, it continues to argue that a contract is between the borrower and its vendor, and that the World Bank is a third party. However, it recognizes that it is, at the least, an interested third party. The bank is therefore exploring ideas to expand its complaints mechanism, for instance, by offering mediation, dispute review boards, or, as the Netherlands advocates, an ombudsman.
Consultations
With the draft Procurement Policy approved by the Board, the procurement team is authorized to take it to interested governments and companies for consultations. Consultations with the Netherlands will be held in the coming months at a yet-to-be-determined location. Those organizations that have been involved in the past will be invited to provide input during this session.
Additionally, feedback can be provided online The Netherlands embassy and Ministry of Foreign Affairs are closely involved with the Procurement Review.
Handbook ‘Zakendoen met de Wereldbank Groep’
Handbook ‘Zakendoen met de Wereldbank Groep’
The Netherlands embassy in Washington, D.C. recently published a handbook, “Zakendoen met de Wereldbank Groep,” to provide interested Dutch parties a basic introduction to the World Bank.
The handbook will provide those who are interested in contracting with the World Bank a first impression of how this large organization works. It discusses the differences between consultations and goods and works, and explores the position of the World Bank as a contract party.
One aspect that is not always well understood is the project cycle of the World Bank, and which party is responsible for each phase of the cycle. Here, the role of borrowing countries becomes more important, which the handbook explains in greater detail.
Lastly, the document shows you where you should go to find procurement notices, and where you will find the project pipeline. It finishes with a number of tips and tricks that have been shared with us over the years.
The publication is meant to be dynamic, and will be updated with feedback and new developments regularly. We would like to receive your feedback through was-ea@minbuza.nl. The handbook is available in Dutch only.
Netherlands for the World Bank 
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