Entry barriers to the public procurement market for companies based outside the capital region will be significantly eased, and their participation opportunities will be substantially expanded.
The Public Procurement Service (PPS) announced Wednesday that it has established a "Plan to Support Non-Capital Region (Local) Companies through Public Procurement" and will implement it in the second half of the year.
Under the current procurement system, preferential treatment is provided to local companies based on the location of the ordering agency, but there is no system that directly favors non-capital region companies.
The PPS will first allow companies located in population-declining areas to sign small-value private contracts based on a single quotation, raising the ceiling from 20 million won to 50 million won. It will also support purchase agency services for transactions under 100 million won to enhance the purchasing convenience of agencies.
In addition, under the Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) system (Nara Marketplace shopping mall), the PPS will raise the threshold for two-stage competition for products from companies in population-declining areas and prepare preferential policies such as priority review for non-capital region companies during shopping mall registration, thereby expanding supply opportunities for non-capital region firms.
The PPS will also establish preferential measures for non-capital region companies in qualification screenings for goods and services, as well as in two-stage competitive evaluations under the MAS, to expand their opportunities to win contracts.
Separate from the existing preferential bonus points given to local companies based on the ordering agency's location, a new bonus point system for non-capital region companies will be created. When key conditions such as price and quality are the same, products from non-capital region companies will be given priority through institutional arrangements.
In cooperation with local governments, the PPS will also identify promising regional innovative products, and excellent products from companies in population-declining areas will be included as eligible for designation period extensions (one year), supporting market access for technologically competitive local products.
For non-capital region companies, conditions for entering overseas procurement markets will also be strengthened, including bonus points for G-PASS designation and an increased priority allocation ratio (from 50% to 60%) when selecting recipients for support programs.
"The public procurement market, where more than 600,000 procurement companies participate and which amounts to 225 trillion won, equivalent to about 9% of GDP, is a key policy tool for balanced national growth," PPS Administrator Baek Seung-bo said. "We will boldly support local companies and take the lead in resolving the imbalanced growth of non-capital regions."
