Open Contracting A Guide For Practitioners by Practitioners-V2

Open Contracting
The Open Contracting Partnership and the authors of this guide would like to thank Felipe Heusser and the team at Fundacin Ciudadano Inteligente for providing the inspiration for the concept featured on our book cover. We are grateful for the opportunity to share a concept that illustrates so well the impact of collaborative action
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Contents
INTRODUCTIONANDFRAMING Introduction HOWTODOIT? Overview UnderstandingTheBasics ContextAnalysis ConstructiveEngagement Monitoring,AnalysisAndReporting ClosingTheLoop HowDoWeKnowWeAreMakingADifference? REFLECTIONSRISKS,SUSTAINABILITYANDLESSONS Overview Reality+Risks OpenContractingDynamics EnablingEnvironment HowDoWeKeepItGoing? What'sNext? CONCLUSION Sprinters Glossary Resources 1 3 7 9 13 25 31 37 55 59 65 67 69 77 83 87 91 93 95 97 103
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Introduction And Framing

Introduction
Introductionandframing
Introduction
Seriously,howoftendoyoureadthe'termsandconditions'beforeyouagreeto somethingonline?Howcloselydoyoureadthe'legalese'beforesigningonthedotted line? Probably,mostofusdon'ttherearecertainlynumerouscontractsouttherethatwe simplydon'tread.Publiccontractsarealsoyourcontracts,justsignedbythegovernment onyourbehalf!Youareboundbythesecontracts,andyouoftendon'tgettoreadthem letaloneparticipateinshapingthem.Atthestrokeofapen,millionsofdollarsare committedtoaroadprojectorforthehiringofathousandpublicschoolteachers.Doyou knowaboutthesecontracts?Andaftertheyaresigned,doyouknowifthecontracts' commitmentsevermaterialise? Whydoescontractingmatter? GovernmentsspendanestimatedamountofUS$9.5trilliononcontracts,anddeveloping countriesspendabout70%oftheirbudgetsthroughcontractsforthedeliveryofbasic goodsandservices.Unfortunately,mostinformationrelatedtosuchcontractsishidden fromthepubliceye,manycontractsarepoorlymanaged,andoftencitizensdonotderive thebenefitsofthesehugeinvestments.Ultimately,contractingthatisnotopen underminesdevelopmentforall.
Open Contracting
Inordertoavoidsucherosion,itisbothnecessaryandpossibletoachieveanewnormal inwhichpubliccontractingbenefitsfromeffectivedisclosureandparticipation.Now,that needsemphasis:disclosure+participation.Thesetwoconceptsencompasswhatopen contractingisallabout.Whenappliedtotheentirecontractingprocessfromplanningto executionandcontractclosureopencontractingaimstostrengthenaccountabilityand trustamongthevariousactorsintheprocessandultimatelycontributetobettercontract performanceandimproveddevelopmentoutcomesforallofus. Inthepast,isolatedpractitionersfromthegovernment,privatesector,andcivilsocietyin manycountrieshavebeenworkingonopeningupcontracting.Butitisdifficulttofightthe sharkofpoorcontractingalone.
Onlytogethercanwemakeopencontractingareality!
Recently,opencontractingpractitionershavecometogether,likeaschooloffish,inan emergingglobalmovementtofosteracultureandenablingenvironmentofcontract disclosureandbroadparticipation.Asacommunityweaimtostrengtheneachothers' capacitiestodoso. Sixteenofusgatheredtoshareourinsightsfromdoingopencontracting,comingfromall differentcontinentsandbackgroundsbutwithacommonpassionforimprovingthe outcomesofpubliccontracting.
The Book
Theresultofthisgatheringisthebookyouseebeforeyou,writtenbypractitionersfor practitioners.ThebookwaswritteninafivedayBookSprinttocollaborativelypublisha guidetoopencontracting.Theparticipatoryapproachadoptedindevelopingthisbookis alivingtestimonytothecollaborativeparticipationthatisanintegralpartoftheopen contractingprocess.
Introduction
Theaimofthebookistoguideandinspireothersintheirownopencontractingactivities, andtosupporttheemergingglobalcommunityofpractitionersaroundopencontracting. INSIGHTSANDLESSONS Ourguidanceisbasedonwhatwehavelearnedasrepresentativesofgovernments, companiesfromtheprivatesector,andcivilsociety,workingthroughvariousentrypoints topromotedisclosureandparticipationinpubliccontracting. Whathavewelearned?Herearesomeofouroverarchinginsights.
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Opencontractingmattersforeveryone!Contractsareapublicgoodthatthe governmentsignsonyourbehalf.Allofusshouldcareaboutcontracting. Weneedtoshiftfromafocusonimprovingthecontractingprocessasagoalinitself,to improvingtheperformanceofcontracts.Morepeoplecareaboutresultsabout,for example,thequalityoftheroadthatwasbuiltratherthanwhatthecontractsays.Itwill beeasiertobringthedifferentpeopletothetablewhenthefocusisonbuildingbetter roads. Capacity,capacity,capacity.Weneedtoincreasecapacitiesofallactorstoensurethat contractscandeliver.Inthepastweusedtofocusnarrowlyoncorruption.Open contractingfocusesoncapacitydevelopmenthowwecanstrengthenourabilitiesto drivechange. Informationispower,andispowerfulnomatterwhichenvironmentyouworkin whetheryouhaveaccesstocontractsornot.Therearemanywaystogetinformation, eventhroughmoreinformalmeans,thatwillempoweryouropencontractingefforts. Opencontractingisaboutmorethancontracts.Itisaboutbuildingtrustacrosspeople whooftenhavedivergentinterests.Reachouttoyourstakeholdersearlyon,investin therelationship,buildtrust,andworkcollaborativelythroughouttheprocess. Monitoringandreportingisnotenough!Wemayinvestalotoftimeinmonitoringbut thatmustleadtoconcreteactionsthataddresstheproblemsidentifiedduring monitoring.Wehavetoclosetheloop!
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Throughoutthisbook,youwillfindoneinsightfromeachofuswhojoinedtheSprint.Our lessonsonlybegintoscratchthesurfaceofthevastknowledgethatexistsaroundopen contracting.Wehopeyouwillbeinspiredtoaddtoit.
TARGETAUDIENCE Wewrotethisbookforanyoneinterestedinprocurementandcontracting.These practitionersfoundinpublicentitiesorcivilsociety,publicoversightinstitutionssuchas supremeauditinstitutions,parliamentsorthejudiciary,privatecompaniesandindustryor professionalassociations,andotherswillgetaclearerunderstandingofhowtheycan engagewithopencontractingactivitiesindifferentcountries,settingsandenvironments, andwhatelementstotakeintoaccountwhenengaginginthistypeofwork. INVITATIONTOJOINOPENCONTRACTING Inthisspirit,weinviteyoutojoinus.Inspiredbyourinsightsandsupportedbyour community,wehopethatyouwillusethisbook,doopencontractingandhelpspreadthe practiceofopencontracting.Comeswimwithus!
How To Do It?
Overview Understanding The Basics Context Analysis Constructive Engagement Monitoring, Analysis And Reporting Closing The Loop How Do We Know We Are Making A Difference?
Howtodoit?
Overview
Let'sgetstarted. It'stimetodiscussthewaysinwhichpractitionerscanengageinopencontractingat communityandcountrylevel.First,let'sreflectforoneminuteontheopencontracting 'theoryofchange',whichisthevisionofhowdisclosureandparticipationinpublic contractingtriggerbettercontractperformanceandimproveddevelopmentoutcomes. Thisfigureillustratesthosedynamics:
Inanysituation,astartingpointforanopencontractinginterventionwillbebasedonthe existingcapacityofthedifferentstakeholders,inadditiontotheincentivestheyhaveto participate. Bypromotingcontractinginformationdisclosureandcreatingopportunitiesfor stakeholderparticipation ,theopencontractingprocessfostersacollaborative engagementbetweenpublic,privateandcivilsocietyactorsthatservestoenhance accountabilityandtrust. Throughthisengagement,theexpectationisthatpracticalproblemsinthecontracting processwillbeidentifiedandacteduponbytheresponsibleparties,whichwillreduce mismanagementandinefficienciesandgiverisetoimprovedcontractperformance wherebybetteroutcomesmaterialiseintheformofbetterservicestocitizens.Thisleads togreatersatisfactionamongcitizenswithpublicandprivateproviders.Thissatisfaction, inturn,contributestothelegitimacyofthewholeprocessand,asaconsequence,
Howtodoit?
reinforcedtheincentivesforresponsiblestakeholderstofurtherinvestintheirown capacitytocontinueengaginginopencontracting. Inthisway,opencontractingisintendedtosetuptwovirtuouscyclesthatcontributeto improvedperformanceovertime.Whetherthishappensinpracticedependsverymuch ontheenablingenvironmentthepolicies,laws,regulations,institutionalarrangements, andotherfactorsthroughwhichthecontractingprocessunfolds,butwhichmaynotbe underdirectstakeholdercontrol.Asahigherlevelobjective,opencontractingseeksto influencethedevelopmentofthatenablingenvironment. Opencontractingreinforcesmechanismstoimproveaccountabilitythrough inclusionanddisclosureandtobuildtrustamongstakeholdersthrough participationHamish
How Do We Go About It?

The"howto"ofopencontractingisamaptonavigatetheabovetheoryofchange.While thereisasuggestedstartingpointandalikelysequencing,it'scriticaltointerpretthe layersofcirclesasprocessesthathappeninparallel.Eachofthecomponentsis discussedindetailalongthissection,soitprovesconvenientto'zoomin'tooneelement, findthediscussionbelow.Tounderstandthismapandhowitallworks,checkoutthe figureandcontinuereading
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Overview
Afirsttimeuserwillbeginwithcontextanalysistogetasenseoftheplayingfield. Gettingtoknowtheenvironmentinvolvessomeconstructiveengagement,or strategicallyreachingouttootheractorswhoseworkandinterestswillshowuponthe playingfield.Inotherwords,bepreparedtoliterallyandfiguratively'introduceyourself'to yourcontext. Contextanalysisisalsothetimetobeginidentifyingrisks.Notallriskswillbedirectly relevanttoyourintervention,buttheyshouldbesurfacedaspartofacompletecontext analysis.Asyoubegintodesignyourownintervention,themostrelevantriskswillbe featuredinyourtrackingprogressandimpactplan.Notethatthisisacyclewithinthe
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cycle,requiringyourregularattention. Now,youprobablynoticedthattherearetwotypesofmonitoringthisisintentional.And youneedtobeabletodistinguishbetweenthemboth.Themonitoring,analysisand reporting isthe'heart'ofthecycle,oryourparticularinterventioninapubliccontracting situation.Separately,theinternalcircleoftrackingprogressandimpactisjustthat, internal,andisthewayyoutrackyourownprogress.Thelearningfromyourtracking occupiesanimportantspaceinthecircle,andwillinformeverythingelse. Thecircleadvancesclockwisetowardsclosingtheloop andadvocacyfortwosimple reasons.Firstly,closingtheloop,orsecuringtheadequateresponsestodirectlyimprove contractingperformance,reliesonthepriorstepsofthecycle.Forexample,without crediblereportingtotheMinistryofEducation,therelevantofficialwillnotaddressa complaintrelatedtoteacherabsenteeism.Advocacyisongoingstrategiccommunication thatsustainsyouropencontractingeffort.Bothofthesebecomeinputstoyourcontext analysisandstrengthenyourconstructiveengagement.Repeat! Regardlessofyourexperiencelevel,don'tforgethowrelevantthebasicsare Carey
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Understanding The Basics

Whatdoweneedtoknowbeforeyougetstartedwithopencontracting?Oneofthefirst thingstodoistounderstandthebasics.Whatisacontract?Howdoesthecontracting processwork?Whatdowemeanbyvalueformoney?Aretherequalityelementstolook forinacontract?Mayacontractcontainconfidentialparts?Whatshouldyoukeepinmind regardingdata? Thesequestionsshouldapplytoeverycontextandconstitutethefirststepforanopen contractingpractitioner.Onceweunderstandthis,we'rereadytogo! Thecontractisapointofleverage,givingtheopportunityforcivilsocietyto positionitselfasalegitimateactortomonitortheworkbeingdonebya company,andforthisreasonitneedstobeaccessibleLorenzo
What Is A Contract?
Mostpeoplewouldagreethatacontractisalegallyenforceableagreementbetweentwo (ormore)parties,inwhichthepartiesagreetodo(ornotdo)certainthings(purpose)in exchangeforsomething(considerations).Contractsareoftenthoughtofasasingle documentthatwhichissignedbythepartiesinvolved.However,inmanycases,a contractcanbemadeupofmultipledocumentscontainingadditionalterms, specifications,provisions,standardformsorotherinformation(knownasaddenda, annexes,appendices,schedules,riders,etc.).Acontractshouldalsobeunderstoodto includeanylateragreementsofthepartiesthatchangethetermsoftheinitialcontract (amendments).Asalegaldocument,thelaw(statutes,regulations,caselaw)mayalso imposeadditionaltermsorconditionsorotherwiseaffectacontract. Whataretherelateddocuments?Whichdocumentsarenotpartofthecontract,yet closelyrelatedtothecontractsothattheyshouldbedisseminatedaspartofopen contracting?Relateddocumentscouldincludeprocurementdocumentsthatarenot otherwiseincorporatedintothecontract,suchasbiddingdocumentsorrequestsfor proposals,evaluationreportsandawardnotices,documentsrelatedtotheprojectsuchas socialandenvironmentalimpactassessments,anddocumentsreportingoncontract executionsuchasmonitoringdocumentsorauditingdocuments.Theparticularlistof relateddocumentswillvarydependingonthetypeofcontract,thesectortowhichit pertains,andthecircumstancesunderwhichitwasnegotiated.
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The Contracting Process

Toeffectivelyengageinanopencontractingprocess,wemustconstantlyremind ourselvesofthereasonwhypubliccontractsareundertaken.Thegovernment,throughits publicentities,servesasacustodianofpublicresources.Publicentitieshavethereforea dutytoidentifyunfulfilledpublicneedsanddevelopastrategytomeetthoseneedsina waythatmakesthemostefficientuseofavailableorpotentiallyavailableresources.
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UnderstandingtheBasics
Thecontractingprocesswouldgenerallyandbroadlytakeplaceaccordingtothefollowing stages: PLANNING Theplanningstagemustensurethatthecontractisinlinewiththegovernment'saction planandwiththemissionofthepublicentitythatwilloverseeit.Intheplanningstagethe needmustbeidentifiedandnarroweddown,alongwiththeassociatedrisksandthe budgetmustbeallocated.Documentssuchasannualprocurementplansaremandatory inseveralcountriesandmarkthebeginningoftheplanningstage.Citizenscanreview differentdocumentsassociatedtotheplanningstage.Theyshouldalsoadvocatefor consultationssothatdecisionsaremadeofthebasisofneedseffectivelyexpressedby potentialbeneficiariesandtheyhaveasayontheoptionsavailable. Severalcountrieshavedevelopedprovisionsintheirlawstoestablishtheroleofcitizens intheplanningstage.Forinstance,infrastructureandextractionprojectsinmanyLatin Americancountriesmustbesubjecttohearingsandagreementswiththeindigenous communitiesthatwillbeaffectedwiththeseprojects.Failuretoreachanagreement meanscancellingoratleastmodifyingthecontracttodealwiththeissuesraisedduring thehearings. InthespecificcaseofaPPP,notonlyshouldthepurposeoftheprojectbeassessed,but thecitizenshouldalsoaskwhythegovernmentisengaginginaPPPratherthanina publicwork.Therearecertaincharacteristicsthatmakethistypeofcontractpreferablein certainsituations,whereriskscanbesharedbetweenthepublicandprivateparties involved.Thesecontractsusuallyhavelongertimeframesandlargerbudgetdimensions, whichmakesthemanimportantconsiderationofopencontracting.
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TENDERING Oncethecontracthasbeenplanned,theentityisreadytoopenthetenderingprocess. Thisisusuallydonebyinvitinginterestedsupplierstosubmitbidsthatwillbeevaluated accordingtospecificproceduresandevaluationcriteriasetinthebiddingdocuments.In general,citizensshouldbeallowedtocommentontherequirementsandprocedures beforethebidsaresubmitted.Oncethe"winner"ischosenandbeforethecontractis signed,thelosingbiddersshouldbeallowedtofilecomplaintsiftheyfindthattheprocess hasnotproperlyfollowedtheestablishedrules.Citizensalsohaveakeyroleoncethe evaluationdecisionisannouncedandcanaskfordetailedexplanations. Whatarethedifferenttypesoftendering?Insomecases,publiccontractingfollowsa directcontractingscheme,suchaswhenonlyonecompanyhasthespecificexpertisefor thework,orwhenurgencydoesnotallowforthecompleteopentenderingprocess. Nonetheless,thereasonsforsuchadecisionshouldbeclearlystated.Beyonddirect contractingthereareseveralmodesoftenderingfromshopping(knowasthree quotationsmethod),opencompetitivebidding,inverseauctions,frameworkcontractsto morecomplexcontractualarrangementsaspublicprivatepartnerships,licensesand concessions. CONTRACTEXECUTION Afterthecontractisawarded,thecontractissigned,andthenecessaryguaranteesarein place,theexecutionofthecontractstarts.Duringtheexecutionstage,thecontractormust complywiththelegalrequirementsaswellaswithwhatwasstatedinthecontract.The publicentityisaccountabletoensurethatthecontractisbeingexecutedinaproperand timelymannerandmustalsocomplywithwhatwasagreed,particularlyinwhatregards payments. Atthisstagepropercontractmanagementproceduresmustbeinplaceandcitizens shouldaskwhetherthemilestonesarebeingmetregardingcostsandtimes.Arethe partiesmeetingthecommitmentsthatwereputinthecontract?Ifthereareamendments, whyaretheyhappening?Aretheyjustified?Qualityofdeliverablesisalsoakeyfactorto beevaluatedatthisstage.
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CLOSING Thecontractmustbeclosedoncetheobligationshavebeenfulfilled.Nevertheless,itis importanttostatethatitispossibleforcontractobligationstoexceedthecontractterm. Forexample,guaranteesmaybeenforcedevenafterthelastpaymenthasoccurred.For instance,ifaroadthatisbuiltandpaidforbutisruinedseveralmonthslater,citizens shouldhaveasayonthis. Likewise,postconsumptionobligationsmaybepresent,suchasdisposalschemesfor pollutingmaterials.Thecontractshouldanswerthequestions:Isthecontractorobligedto pickupthepollutingpackaging?Wasthecommunityaffectedasaresultofthecontract's completion?Whatweretheimpactsoftheprojectorprocurement?Answerstoquestions likethesecandrivepositivechanges,makingacontractorassumeresponsibilityand establishingafreshgroundforgovernmenttoimprovefuturecontractplanning. Citizenshavetheabilitytoparticipateinthewholecontractingprocess,from theinitialstagesoftheplanningtothefinalmonitoringofthecontract Nicolas
Preparing To Engage
Nowthatwehaveabasicunderstandingofthecontractingprocess,framingour expectations,beingabletodeterminewhattoexpectfromacontractandknowingwhat documentstolooktoforinformedengagementmayaddflavoranddepthtoour engagement.Letsreadon! WHATCOULDWEEXPECTFROMTHECONTRACTINGPROCESS? Themainthingweshoulddemandfromacontractisvalueformoney.Governments haveamandatetodelivergoodsandservicesfortheircitizens.Publicresourcescollected fromthetaxpayersmustbeusedbygovernmentsinawaythatguaranteesthebest returnforthemoneyspent,intermsofeffectiveness,efficiencyandeconomy.
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Effectiveness Publiccontractingshouldbeeffective.Thismeansthatthespecifiedneedissatisfiedor solvedthroughthecontract.Inseveralsituations,mainlyduetopoorplanning, governmentinstitutionscanendupwithcontractsthatdonotmeetexpectations.How manytimeshaveweseenroadsthatleadtonowhere,orelectronicdevicesboughtfor
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placeswithnoelectricpower?Thishasadirecteffectonthepopulation,asgoodsand servicesarenotwelldelivered.Citizensshouldaskwhethertheresultofthecontracting processhasbeenachieved.
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Efficiency Efficientcontractingmeansthatthegovernmenthasminimizedtheresourcesithas usedduringthecontractingprocess.Thatis,incurringthelowestcostspossiblewhile stillobtainingagoodresult,intermsoftime,moneyinvested,paperandenergyused. Citizensshouldanalyzetheamountofresourcesspentandcompareitwiththeresults achievedtoassesswhethertheprocesswasefficient.Propermonitoringcanleadto reducedcontractmanagementcosts,thusincreasingoverallefficiency. Economy Economyrelatestoobtainingaproperprice,takingintoaccounteverycostthroughout thelifespanofthegoodorserviceprocuredortheprojectundertaken.Measuressuch asreturnoninvestmentandcostbenefitanalysiscanhelptocheckforthisaspect.This isespeciallythecaseinaPPP,whereapropercomparisonwithalternativepublic worksshouldbecarriedout,consideringthatattheendofthecontract,thecontractor shouldreverttheassettothestate.
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Incertaincasespubliccontractsspecifycharacteristicsthatexcludetheuseofmaterials thatmightbereadilyavailableinthesecaseseconomymaynotbeachieved.For example,thiswasthecaseforseveralinfrastructurecontractsinAfghanistanwhich bannedIranianrawmaterial,despiteitsbeingcheapandeasilyavailable. Inaddition,timeandcostshouldbecloselymonitoredagainstinitialbudgetsandproject milestonesastheyalsohaveanimpactontheeconomyofcontracts. Opencontractingisallaboutknowingwhatisbeingdonewithourownmoney Claudio
Thenextelementtoconsideriscontractquality.Acontractservesasatooltoestablish theobligationsofthedifferentpartiesagreeingonit.Thereareissuesrelatedto unintendedconsequencesthatshouldbeclearlystatedwithinthecontractifnot, contractsmayfailtoguaranteetheinterestsoftheparties.Citizensshouldcheckhowthe contractprovidesthemeansofaddressingtheseissues.
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Thecontractshouldhaveanumberofclausesdirectedtothelongtermorunintended problemsresultingfromtheimplementationofthecontract.Theseclausesshouldinclude insuranceincaseofsocial,environmentalorothertypesofdamage.Dependingonthe contract,maintenanceresponsibilities,conditionsforthecontractrenegotiation, obligationsintermoftimeanddelivery,andwarrantyshouldbepresent. Inadditiontothoselongtermresponsibilities,detailedqualitystandardsandtechnical specificationsshouldbeexplainedinthecontractannexesandcheckedbycitizens. Thereshouldalsobemechanismsinplacetodetectandaddressproblemsregardingthe contractexecution.Oftenproblemsintheexecutionofacontractarenotaddressedeven whendetected,simplybecausetherearenoclearlydefinedmechanisms.Thecontract shoulddefinethewaysproblemscanbeaddressedoratleastpavethewayforthis. Thesemechanismsshouldbeaccessiblefordifferentactors:partiesofthecontract, citizens,oversightbodiesandmedia. Meansofdealingwithgrievancesorcomplaintsshouldalsobewelldefinedinthe contract,orbytheinstitutionsorpartiesinvolvedinitsimplementation.Clearresponsibility linesshouldbeidentified.Measurementtoolsshouldallowforthemonitoringofproblem solvingaccordingtothesourceandthenatureofthegrievance.Theperformanceof thesemechanismsshouldbecloselyanalysedanddisclosediftheyarepresentbutnot working. Astrongemphasisshouldbegiventodialogueandforaprocesstoresolvegrievances. Publicshamingshouldnotbethefirstoptionasitmightleadtoconflict,andmaybe counterproductiveordangerousespeciallyinpostconflictsettingsorwherepalpable tensionsalreadyexistinacommunity. WHATINFORMATIONCANYOUEXPECTTOHAVEACCESSTO? Dependingonthelegalframeworkofeachcountrydifferentlevelsofinformationonthe contractingprocesswouldbepubliclyavailable.Theywillalsobeavailableindifferent kindsofformats. Opencontractingprinciplesadvocatesforproactivedisclosureofinformationonthe formation,awardandexecutionofthecontractasfarasitdoesn'taffectlegitimate commerciallysensitiveinformationthatisproprietaryoftheprivatesector.Accordingly,at leastthefollowingcontractinginformationshouldbedisclosedinanidealsituation:
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Contracts,includinglicenses,concessions,permits,grantsoranyotherdocument exchangingpublicgoods,assets,orresources(includingallannexes,schedulesand documentsincorporatedbyreference)andanyamendmentsthereto
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Relatedprestudies,biddocuments,performanceevaluations,guarantees,and auditingreports.
" Informationconcerningcontractformation,including: " " Theplanningprocessoftheprocurement,includingneedsassessment " Themethodofprocurementorawardandthejustificationthereof " Thescopeandspecificationsforeachcontract " Thecriteriaforevaluationandselection " Thebiddersorparticipantsintheprocess,theirvalidationdocuments,andany
proceduralexemptionsforwhichtheyqualify
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Anyconflictsofinterestuncoveredordebarmentissued Theresultsoftheevaluation,includingthejustificationfortheawardand Theidentityofthecontractrecipientandanystatementsofbeneficialownership provided
Informationrelatedtoperformanceandcompletionofpubliccontracts,including informationregardingsubcontractedarrangements,suchas: Generalschedules,includingmajormilestonesinexecution,andanychanges thereto Statusofimplementationagainstmilestones Datesandamountsofstagepaymentsmadeorreceived(againsttotalamount)and thesourceofthosepayments Servicedeliveryandpricing Arrangementsforendingcontracts Finalsettlementsandresponsibilities Riskassessments,includingenvironmentalandsocialimpactassessments Assessmentsofassetsandliabilitiesofgovernmentrelatedtothecontract Provisionsinplacetoensureappropriatemanagementofongoingrisksand liabilitiesand Appropriatefinancialinformationregardingrevenuesandexpenditures,suchastime andcostoverruns,ifany.
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Again,onanidealworld,thisinformationwouldbeavailableinformatsthatwouldmake lifeeasierforinterestedstakeholdersascivilsociety,themedia,academics,theprivate sectoritselfwhowantstolearnaboutthepubliccontractingmarketand,believeitornot, thepublicsectoritselfwhowantstolearnabouthowotheragenciescontractsotheycan betterperformtheiradministrativeoroversightfunctions. Therearedevelopmentsthatcanhelpthatinformationbemoregenerallyavailableandin friendlieruserformats.Partofopencontractingadvocacyshouldbedirectedtostrivefor theadoptionofdatastandardsassociatedtoopenformatsandqualityassurance methods.Let'sseewhatallthisis: DATASTANDARDS Datastandardsserveasameansofcomparingcontractsacrossdifferentsectors, regions,countriesorentities.Datashouldbestructuredinsuchawaythatthenecessary informationisvisibleandsearchable.Thedatafieldsneedtobeuniversaland standardized,allowingforuniversalreportsandminimizingthechancesofmistakes. Severalinitiativeshavealreadydevelopeddetailedstandards.TheOpenContracting Partnership(OCP)hasbeguntoanalyzedataalreadypublishedbymanycountriesand internationalinstitutionstoestablishstandardsinthefuture.Amongstothers,thisworkis buildingoneffortsalreadydevelopedbyothersectorspecificinitiatives,includingthe ConstructionSectorTransparencyInitiative(CoST)andtheInternationalAid TransparencyInitiative(IATI),whohavealreadydevelopeddisclosurestandardsand informationdatasetsthatconstitutetheessenceoftheirdisclosureefforts. IfyouwanttolearnmoreabouttheprogressofOCPindevelopingtheopencontractdata standardhavealookaTimDavies'bloginthefollowinglink: http://www.timdavies.org.uk/2013/04/04/developingdatastandardsforopencontracting/ FORMATSANDSTORAGEOFDATA Theformatofthedatacanfacilitatefurtheranalysisofthecontract.Accesstosearchable textordatabasedataismuchmoreusefulformonitoringthanascannedimageofthe contract.Governmentsshouldstrivetoprovidedatainawaythatisopentoanyonethat wantstoanalyzeit.Thus,formatsareessentialforopencontracting. CommonformatsfordisclosinginformationarePDF,textsandspreadsheetfilesin searchableformatssuchasXMLandCSVfiles.Informationshouldideallybepresentedin awaytoallowuserstovisualizedatasimplyandtoexportreportsthatcanbefurther analyzedusingspreadsheetorstatisticalsoftware.AlthoughimagefilesandimagePDF
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filesareusefulforreadingtheentirecontentofcontracts,informationshouldalsobe presentedinawaythatallowsstakeholderstoeasilyextractbasicinformationfromits contents. Thegovernmentisalsoaccountableforsafeguardingthedataandforoverallsecurityof theinformation.Technicalquestionsofsysteminfrastructureandarchitectureshouldbe addressedinthecontracttoprovideasafeenvironmentforinformationdisclosureand analysis. QUALITYASSURANCEOFDATA Acompleteandsecuredatasystemwhereallthebasicinformationisdisclosedisofno useifpoorqualitydataisuploaded.Ideally,discloseddataisaperfectreflectionofthe realityofthecontract.Forthistohappen,dataqualitymustbeassured. Thereareseveralmeansofensuringthatdatamaintainsproperqualitythroughoutthe process.Themostthoroughbutalsothemostexpensivewaytodothisistodevelopa completeeprocurementsystemthatenablescontractualtransactionstohappenonline, keepingtrackofeverydocumentandalldatarelatedtotheprocess. Inmanycountries,thisisnotthecase,andauthoritieshavetouploadcertaincontract informationdirectlytooneorseveralwebpages.Thiscanleadtoduplicationof informationandtopossibletypingmistakes.Itisthereforeimportanttoverifywithall possiblesourcesofinformationtocrosscheckinformationandseeifthereare inconsistencies.Thismustalsobetheprocedureinsituationswherethereisalackof informationtechnology,andwheredatamustbefoundandcrosscheckedusingpaper basedformats.
Be Aware Of Confidentiality Issues

Aswehavesaid,opencontractingadvocatesfordisclosureasadefault.However,be awarethattherearepiecesofinformationthatneedtobekeptundisclosedforlegitimate reasonsatallorspecifictimesoftheprocess.Whatisimportant,asstatedintheopen contractingprinciplesisthatcontractinginformationmadeavailabletothepublicshallbe ascompleteaspossible,withanyexceptionsorlimitationsnarrowlydefinedbylaw. Forexample,specificbiddatamightbekeptconfidentialuntilatleastthebidshavebeen evaluated.Undercertaincircumstances,citizensmayhaveaccesstothecompletebid historyoncethisstagehasbeencompleted.Specialcontracttypesmayalsocontain specificconfidentialityclauses.Forexample,theColombianPPPregulationallowsfor unsolicitedprivateinitiativeprojectstobepresented.Ifthecontactedpublicentitywantsto
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goonwiththeproject,itmustdisclosetheprojectdetailsastheywerepresentedexcept forthefinancialmodel,whichisthecoreoftheproject.Thisisdonetomaintainaproper levelofinnovationandcompetition.Ifthesedetailsweredisclosed,contractorswouldnot feelsafeproposingprojectsthatmightnotbeawarded,andthatmightbecopiedbyother competitors.Nevertheless,eveninthesesituations,citizensshouldbeinvolvedin monitoringthecontractinallitsphases. Thetypicalreasonwhyinformationiskeptconfidentialisbecauseitisdefinedas "commerciallysensitive"whichmeansthatifdisclosedthiswillarguablyaffectthe competitiveadvantagesoftheprivatecompanieswhoownthatinformation.Thisistrue butthisargumentshouldnotbeusedtokeepeverythingundisclosed.Thisiswhyitis importanttoadvocateforlawsandregulationstodetermineexplicitlywhatisthetypeof informationthatcanbeconsideredcommerciallysensitiveandthatthisdefinitionisas narrowaspossible. Anotherareawhereconfidentialityissueshavetraditionallyexistedisthedefensesector. Agenciesthatcontractusingconfidentialbudgetwilltypicallynotdisclosedetailssuchas specificationsandplansoffacilities,weaponsormachines.Whilethisinformationissecret becauseofsecurityreasons,thecitizenhasarighttoknowatleastsomeofthebasic informationincludingcontractornameandvalueofthecontract. Handleinformationwithcare,thewayyouhandleitcanaffectrelationships Don
Allthesesituationsemphasizethefactthatcitizens'oversightisimportantevenwhenthe completedataisnotavailablebecauseofconfidentialityissues.Regulationregarding thesesubjectsiscountryspecificanditisthusvitaltounderstandwhichinformation shouldalwaysbemadeavailable.Thiswouldallowthepractitionertodetermineifthe informationisnotbeingdisclosedbecauseofaregulatoryrestrictionorifitisbecause someofthepartiesdon'twanttogiveaccesstothedata.Forconfidentialdata,citizens mightbeabletoobtaininformationregardingtheseaspectsaftersometime,whenitis unclassified.
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Context Analysis
Oneofthefirstthingstodoistoanalyzeyourenvironmenttheforcesthatwillinfluence youractivities,suchaslaws,institutionsandpeople.
Thischapterwillhelpyoutoconductacontextanalysis.Itisdividedintothreeparts:
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Whatisthelegalenvironment(forcontractdisclosureandparticipation)? Whoareyourkeystakeholders? Whatareotherissuestoconsider?
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Andremember,itisdifficulttoreallygettoknowyourenvironmentbysittinginanoffice. Doingacontextanalysismeanstalkingtopeopleandaskingquestions.Contextanalysis thusalreadyinvolvessomestrategicoutreachtootheractorswhoseworkandinterests willinfluenceyouropencontractingactivities. Also,onceyoubeginyouropencontractinginterventionyouwillcontinuouslyneedto reflectonyour'operatingenvironment'.Thecontextthatyouworkinisnotstatic.It changesallthetime.Keepanalyzingthesechangesandhowtheyimpactyouropen contractinginterventions. Opencontractingisanevolvingprocessasitinvolvesdisclosureand participation.Becreative,innovate,andtrydifferentstrategiestodealwithnew situations.Felipe
What Is The Legal Environment?

Laws,regulationsandstandardscanmakecontractdisclosureandparticipationeasieror difficult.Mostcountriesdonotyethavestrongprovisionsforopencontracting. Practitionersoftenhavetobecomeveryresourcefulandcreativeinaccessinginformation andinparticipatingincontractingprocesses. LAWSANDREGULATIONS Thefirstaspecttokeepinmindisthelegalframeworkinwhichyouwillconductyouropen contractingintervention.Moredetailsonthelegalframeworkwillbecoveredinlater sectionsofthisbook. Thefirstlawsthatyouwanttolookat,ifyourcountryhasthem,aretheprocurement, accesstoinformationandcitizensparticipationlaws.Theywillincludekeyprovisionson whathastobedisclosed,how,towhomandwhen.Theyalsodeterminewhatyourrightis intermsofparticipationwhen,whereandhowyoucanparticipateingeneralinpublic interestissues.Theselawswillaffecthowyoucanengageinprocurementplanningand evaluationsorcontractsimplementation. Theremightbeotherlawsthatcontainhelpfulinformation,suchasregulationsforpublic privatepartnerships,concessions,electronicdataorsectorspecificissues.Rememberto checkifthereareregulationsorguidespertainingtotheselaws.Theseregulationsoften
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ContextAnalysis
specifyrequirementsandcommitmentsinmoredetailthanthelaws. Alsohavealookatlocalandsubnationallevelregulations.Theymighthavedifferent requirementsfromthenationallevel. Inanycasebearinmindthatthemereexistenceoflawsandregulationdoesnotensure thattheyarebeingimplementedinpractice. STANDARDSANDVOLUNTARYCOMMITMENTS Inreality,countriesoftendonothaveaccesstoinformationlawsortheselawsarenot beingimplementedinthewaytheyshould.Thismakesaccessingcontractinginformation andparticipatinginthedifferentphasesofcontractingmoredifficult,butnotimpossible.If therearenolaws,youcanlookatinternational,regionalorlocalstandardsaswellas voluntarycommitments,suchasinternationaltransparencyinitiatives. Contractdisclosureandmonitoringcanbeaquestionofimage.Somecompaniesor governmentinstitutionsmightbeinterestedinpublishingcontractsorincontract monitoringonacasetocasebasis.Foryourcontextanalysis,checkthewebsitesofthe governmentagenciesandthecontractorcompany.
Who Are The Key Stakeholders?

Astakeholderisaperson,groupofpeopleorinstitutionwhohasaninterestinoris affectedbyopencontracting.Earlierchaptersintroducedtheopencontractingfamily. Astakeholderanalysisisconductedinordertoidentifytherolesofthevarious stakeholdersvisvisyouropencontractingintervention.Ithelpstoidentifythelinesof accountabilityandpowerdynamics.Inthiswaythestakeholderanalysisexercisescan laterbecomeanimportanttoolforadvocacyactivities,sothatthefindingsand recommendationsactuallyreachtherelevantstakeholders.
27
Howtodoit?
Intheaboverepresentation,thedifferentkeystakeholdersandthecontextualelements areplacedinachart.Theirpositionswilldependontheirdegreeofinfluenceandtheir degreeofsupportforthepositionyouareadvocatingfor.Inthefirstchartthe stakeholdersarejustpositionedandtheiridealpositionsasaresultoftheadvocacyhave beendefined.Inthesecondcharttheprioritiesandthestrategytoreachtheresults definedbythefirstdraftareidentifiedandtheactorsrelationandinteractionarealso identified.
What Are Other Issues To Consider?

Therearesomeotherissuestothinkaboutwhenyouanalyzeyourplayingfield:
"
Risks Wealreadymentionedrisksinseveraloccasionsandthebookhasadedicatedsection onrisk.Youneedtoanalyzeverycloselywhatthepotentialrisksarerelatedtoyour opencontractinginterventionsandhowyoucanmanagethemsothattheydon't jeopardizeyourpossibilitiesofsuccess. Capacities Capacityintermsoftechnicalknowledge,availabilityoftoolsandavailablefundingis keywhenyoubegintodesignyouropencontractinginterventions.Youmightwantto mapoutyourowncapacityandthecapacityofyourpartnersbeforeyourgetstartedso thatyoumanageyourownexpectationsandthoseofothers.
"
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ContextAnalysis
29
Howtodoit?
30
Constructive Engagement
Settingthepropertoneofengagementiskeytostartingthewholeopencontracting process.Nomatterwhatkindofenvironmentexists,engagementbetweenandamongthe interestedstakeholderscanhappenifapproachedinaconstructivemanner.Informedby theinsightsfromthecontextanalysis,wecanpursuetheopencontractingagendaandlet thegameplanproceedbycreatingthespaceforallinterestedstakeholderstocome together. Wecannolongerthinkinstakeholderboxes.It'sexcitingtoredefine partnershipsandconstructiveengagement!Claire
Coming Together
Theinitialefforttoreachouttoeveryimportantstakeholdershouldalreadyconvey sinceritytoconstructivelyengageinopencontracting.Thekickoffmeetingshouldmake everyonefeelwelcomeandestablishtherapport.Thedominantspiritintheroomshould beoneofurgentcollaborationbasedontrustandmutualefforttohelpeachother. However,weshouldstillkeepinmindthateveryonehastheirmaterialinterestandselfish motivationsforbeingpresent.Asthisistheveryfirstmeeting,practitionersshouldnotbe askingforinformationanddocumentsrightaway. Theagendaofthefirstmeetingshouldleveloffonthefollowing:
" " " " " " "
Whatcurrentissuesoncontractingconfrontthestakeholders? Howaretheseaffectingthestakeholders,thecommunitiesandthecountryasa whole? Whyshouldthestakeholdersbeinvolvedinaddressingtheissues? Canstakeholderscometogethertoaddressthem?Ifso,how? Whatcapacitiesareneededtoaddressthem? Whatcapacitiescanstakeholdersactuallybringintotheprocess? Arethestakeholderswillingtocontributethesecapacities?
31
Howtodoit?
Thesearecrucialquestionsthatneedtobeopenlydiscussedandtheywilllaytheground formovingforwardwiththeopencontractingadvocacy.Theywillhelptolayoutwhatto expectfromthecollaboration,makeeachstakeholdercomfortablewiththeprocess,and convincethemtocontinueonwiththeengagement. Thekickoffmeetingneednotbeaonetimemeeting.Notallthequestionswill necessarilybeansweredinjustonesittingandtheprocessshouldprovidesufficienttime forthestakeholderstothinkandreflectonthem.However,thereshouldalsobea designatedtimewheneveryonehastomakeadecision.
Meeting Of Minds
Whenthedecisionhasbeenmadeandthestakeholdershaveconvergedonaclear missionandobjectives,someoperationalaspectsofthecollaborationshouldbeset.This willensurethatthecommoninterestisclearlyandexplicitlyarticulated,forthiswillbond stakeholderstogethertocommittime,capacitiesandresourcestoeffecttheneeded change. Whenthismeetingofthemindstakesplace,thegovernment,privatesectorandcivil societyactorsshouldtakenoteofthefollowing:
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Willitbealooseorformalsetup? Thestakeholderswillhavetodecidewhatkindofsetupitwillbe.Thethreesectors government,privatesectorandcivilsocietymaynotautomaticallyseecollective workaspartoftheircoreresponsibility.Formalizingsuchtripartitearrangement maynotcomeinstantly.Thismay,however,beconsideredwhentheyhaveworked togetherandstartedaccruingtheincentivesandtheircapacitybuilt.Itentails providingastructurewithleadershipandsecretariatrolesestablishedtokeepthe collaborationtogether.Issuesrelatedtotherunningofthegroupshouldbe capturedinminutesofmeetingsandcanbebindingasandwhenneeded. Considerthespecialcaseofsettinguptheengagementbetweengovernmentand civilsociety.Twoscenariosneedtobeconsideredhere,namelyonethathasan existingpolicyframeworkforcitizenparticipationintheprocess,andanotherwith none.Inthelattercase,civilsocietymayneedtoinnovatetoformaliseorlegitimise itsengagementandaction.Experiencesinvariouscountriesshowcasetheuseof theMemorandumofUnderstanding(MoU)asausefultooltomakethe engagementbetweencivilsocietyandgovernmentlegallybinding.TheMoUcould definetheresponsibilitiesofeachpartyaswellastheterms,conditionsand coordinationstructureofthepartnership. Ifthereisanexistingpolicyframeworkforparticipation,thencivilsocietywillsimply havetoinvokeit.TheoptiontoenterintoanMoUmay,however,stillbeconsidered
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ConstructiveEngagement
ifthepolicyhaslimitedornoprovisiononnecessarylogisticalrequirementsfor collaboration. Ineitherofthesescenarios,itiskeytoincludeany'missingvoices'whomaynot havebeenidentifiedbythecontextanalysis.Constructiveengagementalsomeans theengagementshouldbeopenenoughtoaccommodatenew,unorthodox,and evensomeopposinggroups.
"
Whatwillbetheinternalaccountabilitymechanisms? Establishingclearandopenaccountabilitymechanismsiskeytobuildingand maintainingtrust,aswellasensuringthatthecollaborationlivesuptotheprinciples ofengagement.Aclearlineofreportingandaccountabilitywillenhance collaborationandreducetherisksofweakparties. Howdowegetresourcestowork? Themainpurposeoftheengagementofthestakeholdersistopromoteopen contracting.Thiscanonlybedoneeffectivelyiftheneededhumanandfinancial resourcesareavailablefortheengagementtoyielditsobjectives.Itistherefore veryusefulifthegroupagreesonthemethodandwaysofaccessingtheresources neededtoengageinopencontracting. Opencontractingisopeninguptoworkwithothersandcontributeindividual effortstomakethemcollectivetomakethingshappenGilbert
"
Examples Of Constructive Engagement

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Howtodoit?
Examples Of Constructive Engagement

ThefollowingaresomerealworldexamplesofConstructiveEngagement. GWATCHTEXTBOOKCOUNT TheAffiliatedNetworkforSocialAccountabilityinEastAsiaandthePacific(ANSAEAP)is aregionalnonprofitorganisationbasedinthePhilippines.Itaimstohelpimprove governancebymainstreamingthesocialaccountabilityapproach.Aprojectithas documentedfeaturestheTextbookCount:nationwidemonitoringoftextbookprocurement anddelivery.ItisapartnershipprojectbetweentheDepartmentoftheEducationanda civilsocietyconsortium.GovernedbyanMoU,thedepartmentwelcomedthecivilsociety monitorstoobservethecontractingprocess,visitthewarehousestoinspecttextbook production,deploycommunityvolunteerstochecktextbookdeliveriesattheschoollevel, andreportobservations.Thepartnershiphasgoneintoseveraliterationsnowandisnow consideredinstitutionalisedwithinthedepartment.(www.ansaeap.net/ansaeap videos/talestoolsandtechniquesofsocialaccountability/) GLOBALINFRASTRUCTUREANTICORRUPTIONCENTRE TheGlobalInfrastructureAntiCorruptionCentreisanallianceofinternational,regional andnationalorganisations,setuptoworktogethertopromotetheimplementationofanti corruptionmeasuresasanintegralpartofgovernment,corporateandproject management.Italsoagrees,onacasebycasebasis,onprojectsonwhichtheycan cooperateinordertoachievetheobjective.Theallianceis informal.(www.giaccentre.org/alliances) UGANDACONTRACTMONITORINGCOALITION TheUgandanContractMonitoringCoalitioncomprises21members,includingengineers andcontractors.ItactivelycollaborateswiththeMinistryofEducation,Energy,Agriculture andUgandaIndustrialResearchInstitute,workingonpromotingtransparencyand accountabilityissuesinpubliccontracting.Initialdiscussionsonthecollaborationsurfaced thedifficultyofthepublicagenciesinsigninganofficialMoUasaconditionforthe collaboration.However,theneededstructurewasputinplace,andthegovernment agreedtocollaboratewiththeCSOsandprivatesectoronthebasisofaloosenetwork, untiltheyhavebegunimplementingthemonitoringofprojectsunderwhichtheywillhave aformalrelationshipwiththeparticularsectorministryinvolved.(www.ucmc.ug)
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ConstructiveEngagement
UKANTICORRUPTIONFORUM TheUKAntiCorruptionForumisanallianceofUKbusinessassociations,professional institutions,civilsocietyorganisationsandcompanieswithinterestindomesticand internalinfrastructure,constructionandengineeringsectors.Theforum'sobjectiveisto helpcreateabusinessenvironmentthatisfreeofcorruption.(www.anticorruption.org.uk) WESTAFRICACONTRACTMONITORINGNETWORKWACMN TheWestAfricaRegionalContractMonitoringNetworkisanetworkofnationalmulti stakeholdercoalitionsinGhana,Liberia,NigeriaandSierraLeone.Itsaimistobuild capacityandprovidelearningandsharingplatformstoeffectivelymonitorandimprove governanceinpublicprocurementandcontractingprocessesintheparticipating countries.Eachoftheparticipatingcountriesworksthroughacoalitionbondedbysimple formalstructurescateringtocountryspecificneeds.Asandwhenneeded,country coalitionssignMoUsandcontractswiththeregionalcoordinatinginstitutionfor implementingprojects.(www.wacmn.gacc.gh.org)
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Howtodoit?
36
Monitoring, Analysis And Reporting

"It is in the interest of Government that citizens can verify its performance. There is no better way to mobilize citizens behind a government program than to give them access to participate in public expenditure decision-making and monitoring."
ChibuzoEkwekwuoofthePublicPrivateDevelopmentCenterinNigeria Regardlessofthestakeholdergrouptowhichyoubelong,weallhaveacollectivestakein opencontractingastakewhichconfersonusaresponsibilitytomonitorpubliccontract performance.Withourexposuretoconstructiveengagementamongourselves,thisbitof thebookshedslightonhowtoactuallymonitor. Giventhediversityofpractitionersinthecontractingprocess,therealityofthecontract monitoringexperiencesarelikelytobequitevariedandmaytakeplaceacrossavarietyof scenarios.Somepractitionersmayfocusmoreonaparticularstage.Ortheenabling environmentformonitoringmaydifferacrosscontexts,likewisemakingthemonitoring methodsdiffer.However,becauseweagreeontheprinciplesofopencontracting,the aimsofthetoolsarethesameandcanbewidelyornarrowlyadaptedtofitourrealities. Thefirsttipistoreadonandfindoutwhatworksbestgivenyourlevelsofenergyto engage,capacity,accesstocontractmonitoringpartnerships,and,amongotherthings, thekindofinformationtowhichwehaveaccess.Itisquitepossibletomonitoraccording tothecontractingprocess,soweshallprovideinsightsintomonitoringatvariousstages, aswellasconsidermonitoringwherewemayormaynothaveaccesstoinformation. Bearinmindthatthisisaguide,nota'silverbullet'prescriptionagenuineappreciation ofyourcontextwillbeessentialasyoustart.Headsupeveryone!
Monitoring At The Contract Planning Stage

Fromourbasicunderstandingofthecontractingprocess,weknowthatplanningiskeyto publicservicedelivery.Itisthereforeakeyareaforpractitionerstomonitorandreporton. Whatevertoolyoudecidetouseatthisstage,yourmonitoringtoolshouldbedesignedto respondtowhetheradequateplanningwasundertakenforthecontractprocessin question.Possiblequestionsthatyourmonitoringshouldaddressinclude:
" " "
Wasanassessmentofpublicneedsundertaken? Weretheidentifiedpublicneedsprioritized? Wasthereanidentificationofresourcesrequiredtomeettheidentifiedpublicneeds?

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Howtodoit?
" " " " " "
Werecostsanalysedwithrelationtothebenefit? Werethereanyenvironmentalorsocialimpactassessmentsconducted? Wasthedecisiontofulfillaparticularpublicneedjustifiedinrelationtoothercompeting publicneeds? Didthepublicbodyestimatethetimeitwouldtaketodelivertheproject? Didthepublicbodydetermineanyrisksassociatedwiththeproject? Weretheprioritiesandsuggestionsofthecommunitytakenintoaccountinprioritizing therelevantprojectand/orcontract?
Itseemsobviousthatmonitoringatthestageofplanningisarigorousprocessand requiresaccesstoalotofinformation. ACCESSTOINFORMATIONTIPS Inordertoaccesscontractplanninginformation,considerthefollowingtips:
" "
Secureaccesstotheapprovedbudgetassoonasitispublished(usuallyinanofficial gazette,increasinglyavailableonline).Thiswouldprovidepreliminaryinformationon theplansforwhichpublicentitieshavebudgeted. Wherepossible,getinvolvedinpublichearingsforthebudgetandforsocialprojectsor developapartnershipwithotherpractitionersthatparticipateinthepublichearingsfor thebudgetorforsocialproject.Thiswouldhelpyouharvestinformationthatwould informbudgetplansevenbeforetheyareofficial. Proactivelyseekupdatesfromthepublicbodyresponsibleforthecontractingprocess youcanaskthemfortheprojectplansforthecomingyear.Often,aNeedAssessment maybefoundinsuchplans. Joinormaintaincloselinkswithgrassrootsdevelopmentgroupswhomayhave informationonplannedprojectplans.
" "
Conductregularinformationharvestsfromwebsites,newspapers,noticeboards,theradio andtelevision.The"regular"partiscriticalgiventhatsuchinformationappearsforlimited amountsoftimebeforebeingremovedordisplacedbynewcontent.
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Monitoring,AnalysisandReporting
REALITYCHECKINACCESSINGCONTRACTINFORMATIONFORMONITORING Somepublicentitieshavegoodrecordsmanagementsystemsso,intheory,itshouldbe relativelyeasytoaccessinformationinatimelyfashion!However,thisisseldomthecase evenwherepublicrecordsmanagementissound,forahostofhumanengineered obstacles.Itis,therefore,yourresponsibilityasapractitionertobeontheconstantlook outforinformationandtoactquicklyandefficientlywithyourrequestsatcontractplanning stageifyouwishtoengagebeforeplansturnintoimplementation... Whereyouhaveanaccesstoinformationlaworyouhavelawsthatallowcitizens participationinonewayortheother,itisgoodtoleveragesuchrightsatthecontract planningstage. Intheabsenceofaccesstoinformationlaws,itwouldbeveryhelpfulforyourmonitoring tohaveagreatmediainformationharvestingplansothatinformationthatisroutinely circulatedinmassmediacanbeleveraged. POSSIBLETOOLSFORMONITORINGCONTRACTPLANS Thetoolstobeusedatthestageofcontractplanningwoulddependonfactorssuchas thepurposeofthemonitoringandthedepthofmonitoringdataanalysistobeconducted. Theplanningstageoftenrequiresparticipationofcitizens,makingsocialaudittools especiallyhelpful.Checklistsaresimpleandeleganttoolsforthisstageaswell. FURTHERCONSIDERATIONSFORMONITORINGATTHECONTRACTPLANNING STAGE Youmayalsowishtoconsiderthefollowingquestionsthatmayaffectyourabilityto monitorthecontractplanningstage:
" " "
HasthepublicentitycalledCSOs,localcommunitiesandothergroupswhowillbe directlyorindirectlyimpactedbythisinvestmenttodiscusstheprojectdesign? Wassufficienttimeandvisibilitygiventotheconsultativeprocess? Bearinmindthatthemorecomplexaprocurement(e.g.aninterstatehighway comprisingmultiplecontractsandsubcontractors),thegreaterthenumberofpublic hearingsormeetingsapublicentityshouldhold.Sometimesacontractorwillhostthese consultationsaspartofthecontract,sobemindfulthattherearedifferent arrangementsforpublicoutreachandconsultation.
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Howtodoit?
Monitoringtheplanningstageforpubliccontractsisimportantintwoways:fromsociety's perspective,participationcreatesasenseofempowermentandengagementonthe mattersofpublicgoods.Forexample,inamultiyearnationalroadsprojectundertakenin India,thePublicAffairsCenterengagedincitizenmonitoringin2008forandlearnedthat 76%ofbeneficiariesbelievedcommunitymonitoringisneededwhilst64%wouldwantto volunteerforsuchmonitoring.Thiscasereflectsoneoftheopencontractingprinciples, whichstatesthepublicsrighttoparticipateinpubliccontracting.Italsoreflectstheopen contractingprinciplesfromtheperspectiveofpublicentities:thebroaderthearrayof stakeholdersparticipatinginplanning,themoreeffectivetheseinvestmentsbecomein termsofadequateservicedelivery,legitimacyandperformance.
Monitoring At The Stage Of Tendering Through Contract Award

Duringthetenderingphase,onefundamentalquestionis:whatkindofprocurement methodisbeingused?Themostcommontypesofprocurementareopen,selectedor invitedtendering.Butgovernmentsareconstantlytryingtoinnovatearoundthispoint. Electronicauctionsareoneexample.Regardless,governmentsshoulddisclosea justificationastowhyaspecificprocurementmethodisselected.Thisdecisionhastobe basedonacombinationoffactorssuchasurgency(isittobuildtemporaryhousinginan areadevastatedbyacyclone?),necessity(isitfornationalsecurity,foodprovision, transport?),andimpact(willtheprojectdisplacecitizensfromtheirland?).Procurement methodhaseverythingtodowiththeselifechangingactivities.Andthechosen procurementmethodinfluencesthetypeandamountofinformationyouwouldget regardingthecontractingprocess.
Keyquestionstoaskatthisstageinclude:
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" " " " " " "
Wasthetenderingprocessadvertised? Weretheadvertisementsconductedthroughmultiplechannels? Didtheadvertcontainclearcriteriaforcontractorselection? Didtheadvertisementcontainclearinformationonbidsubmissionprocedures? Werethebidsopenedinpublic? Wasthewinningbidderamongtheoriginalpoolofbidders? Wasthefinalselectionjustified?
Youwouldalsoneedtodeterminetheprofessionalandtechnicalexperienceofbidders. Thiswouldincludeyearsofexperience,evidenceofcompletedprojects,evidenceof financialcapacity,evidenceofconductingsimilarprojects,evidenceofhumanresource capacity,evidenceofsufficientequipment,pricesquotedwithrelationtostandardprices, responsivenessofcontractorsapplicationtotheproposedproject,verificationofphysical address. Toolsrecommendedformonitoringthetenderingprocessincludeimportanttoolssuchas IntegrityPactsasdevelopedbyTransparencyInternational.Anexampleofthesuccessful useofIntegrityPactsarrangementsisthecaseofColombia,whereananticorruption agreementinthepipemanufacturingsectorwassigned.Followingamethodologycreated byTransparencyInternational,companiesmanagedtosignificantlyreducethelevelof bribesthroughoutthebiddingprocess.Today,theColombiangovernmentpays,on average,20%lessforbasicsanitationworkscontractsthantheydidpriortothe agreement.Companiesinthesectorhavealsoincreasedsalesforinfrastructureworksby 25%.
Remembertoexaminethepricesthisistaxpayermoney,yourmoney!Wouldn't youwanttoknowhowmuchofyourmoneyyoursonordaughterhasspenton shopping?Inpractice,thismeanscheckingwhetherpricesareconsideredfairand competitive,especiallyifthereareothersupplierswhoaremakingoffers.Startwith asimplehistoricalcomparison:checkpastprocessesintermsofsizeandtypeof service,beingmindfulofinflationorrisingpricesovertime.Althoughdifferent conditionsmayapplytoeachcase,ingeneral,thereisatrendintermsofsize,final priceandtenderqualifications.Somecountriesstipulateofficialpricelistsforeach kindofmaterialthatispurchasedbygovernment,soitisimportanttolookforthose ontherelevantwebsiteorinthearchivesatherelevantagency.
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Howtodoit?
Realitycheckparticipationisemerginginsomeofthemostunlikelyplaces!Andthisis thankstopatienceandpersistencebycivilsocietythatdidnotoriginallystartwithan environmentopentoparticipation.Forexample,InMexico,the2009Amendmenttothe ProcurementLawincludedtheadoptionofthe"SocialWitnesses"program,craftedbythe NGOTransparenciaMexicana.Socialwitnesses,independentcivilsocietyobservers,are legallyrequiredtoobservesignificantlylargeprocurementsasspecifiedbythelaw.Inthe firstyearofintroduction,socialwitnessesparticipatedin67procurementsvaluedatatotal of109.651billionpesos(aboutUS$8.87billion).Initialreportingsuggeststhatthe programhasreducedpubliccontractingcostswhileincreasingcompetition.Similarlythe NigerianProcurementLawallowsforparticipationbyCSOsandprofessionalbody participationineveryprocurementprocess.InsomecountriessuchasColumbiaand Brazil,thereareotherlegalbasisthatallowcitizenstoparticipateinprojectsofpublic interestandthesecouldbereliedupontomonitorthetenderingprocessandtoaccess theinformationrequiredtomonitor.
Contract Execution
Duringthisphase,onebasicquestiontoaskiswhetherthecontractisavailable. Inordertogetthisinformation,youwouldneedto:
" " " " " "
Findoutwhichpublicentityisresponsibleforawardingthecontract. Checkthewebsiteofthepublicentityforcontractinformation. Makeaformalrequesttothepublicentityforthecontractdocument. Asmuchaspossible,getotherpeopleinvolvedcollectiveactionislikelytobemore effective. Whereyouhaveanaccesstoinformationlegislationoralegislationthatprovidesfor citizenparticipation,relyonsuchlegislationtorequestforinformation. Whereyouhavenotfoundalegalbasistomakeaformalrequestforthecontract document,makearequestanyway!Caution,itisadvisabletodoitwithotherpeople andcreatesomebuzzaroundtherequestinthemedialeveragingthepublic'sinterest andconnectiontopubliccontractingprocesses. WhereyouhavesignedanMOUwiththepublicentityaspartofaconstructive engagement,usethatavenuetotrytoaccessinformationonthecontract. Whereaccesstothecontractdocumentationislimited,youandotherpractitioners withinyourcommunityshouldmobilizetoperformsocialauditsamongbeneficiaries.
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TheResourcessectionofthisbookhashelpfulresourcesthatcontainguidelinesfor accessinginformationinanumberofscenariosandtemplatesonhowtomakearequest forinformation.
Possible Scenarios For Monitoring Contracts

CONTRACTISNOTAVAILABLE Intheabsenceofacontract,checklistscontainingstandardizedquestionscanbeyour bestfriend.Thesearethemostcommontoolsdevelopedbystakeholdersinvolvedinthe contractingprocesstoassistwithcomparativeanalysis.Thebasicutilityofchecklistsis thattheyserveasaguidetotheuser.Theycanrevealthelevelofcompliance, performanceoreffectiveness. Unlessdesignedtocollectresponsesonreasonswhyspecificsinthecontractingprocess havesucceededorfailed,checklistsareoftenverybasic,requiringtheuserstotick"yes" or"no"inresponsetowhathasbeenobserved.Inpractice,itwouldseemthatexisting practitionersinthecivilsocietysectormanuallyanalysethecontractinginformationthey gatherusingchecklists.Manualanalysisiscarriedoutbycomparingtheresponsesinthe checklisttotheexpectedstandardatthatparticularstageofthecontractingprocess. Forinstance,alawrequirespublicentitiestoadvertiseforbidsintwonational newspapersforaperiodofsixweeksbeforebidsubmission.Thechecklistwouldhave questionslike:Wasthecontractingprocessadvertised?Wasthecontractingprocess advertisedforaperiodofatleastsixweeks?Themonitorwouldcomparethefacts obtainedfromtheactualadvertisementtotherequirementsofthelawmanuallyandnote iftheyareanygapsordiscrepancies. Asabonus,usingthesamechecklistsovertimeinExcelspreadsheetsand/orusingIT solutionssuchasonlinedatabases,allowsyoutocomparedifferentcontractsmore systematicallyandyouwilleasilyexpandyouroperationtorevealtrendsacrossasector, region,agencyoramongcontractors!Howpowerful!Seemoreunder"Analysis". Fieldobservationsalsoplayakeyrole.Throughobjectivemeasurementsofquality,itis possibletomonitorcontractexecution.Let'ssaythatinyourcityabridgewassupposed tobebuilt,andafteralocalobservation,yourealizethatitisnotthere.Clearlythereis somethingwrongwiththecontract,beitonthepublicside,orthecontractorside,orboth. Photographsshouldbetakentoregisterandcorroboratetheclaim.Ifatleastone contractor'sreportsarebeingproduced,itispossibletousethisasreferencetocompare withtheobservationsontheground.
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Howtodoit?
Anotherpossiblestartingpointisapreliminaryversionofacontract.Sometimesthefinal oneisnotavailable,butpreviousonesare.Thiscanbealsouseful,butkeepinmindthat thisshouldnotbetheonlysource,sinceitisnotofficialdata. Inthecasesofcountriesormultinationalcompaniesthatapplytointernationalstandards, thiscoulddefinitelybeanoptionforcontractdisclosure.EquatorPrinciplesandOECD Guidelinesaretwogoodexamplesofcommitmentsthatshouldbereinforcedinan absenceofthecontract.Ifitdoesnotworkatnationallevel,contactsshouldbemadeto headquartersinthecaseofacompanyoraninternationalmultilateralorganizationfor countries.MostinternationaldevelopmentbanksincludingtheAfricanDevelopment Bank,theAsianDevelopmentBank,theInterAmericanDevelopmentBank,andtheWorld Bankhaveaccesstoinformationandcorruptioninvestigativepoliciesandprogramsthat empoweryoutoconductyourmonitoringandreportanyfindings.SeeeachBankfor instructionsonhowtousethesemechanismstoimproveopencontractingintheprojects thattheyfinance. Ausefulapproachformonitoringintheabsenceofacontractissocialaudits.The methodologyforsocialauditswaspioneeredbytheMazdoorKisanShaktiSangathan (MKSS),theAssociationfortheEmpowermentofWorkersandPeasantsinIndiaandhas beenreplicatedinvarioussettings,includingKenyaandPalestine.Thesevenstepsused intheMKSSsocialauditsinclude:definingthescopeofthesocialaudit,establishingan understandingofthemanagementoftheprojectorprogramtobeaudited,collectionof informationontheprojectaudited,organizingalldatacollectedandputtingitina summarizedformateasilyunderstoodbytheaveragecitizen,distributionofthedata findings,interviewingcitizensinthecommunityregardingtheinformationprovided,and holdingpublichearingsandfollowupofthepublichearings. Let'ssayyouwanttodoasocialauditofaschool.Evenwithoutthecontract,youcan gatherdocuments,suchastheprojectbudget,plansandthebillofquantity,visitthe physicalsiteoftheschooltocheckthespecifications,materialsusedandexecution,and surveytheaffectedcommunitytoseeiftheprojectiseffective.Technicalexperts,suchas engineersandsurveypractitioners,canhelpwiththephysicalassessmentatthesiteand thesamplingforthebeneficiarysurvey.Themonitorscanthencomparetheproject documentswithevidencefromthesitevisit,includingphotos,videosandtechnical assessments,andthecommunityfeedbacktodeterminetheproject'seffectiveness. Avariationoftheapproachistoholdajointworkinggrouporconveneamonitoring committee,ratherthanapublichearingwhichmaybemoreconfrontationalor intimidating.Theworkinggroupormultistakeholdercommitteecanreviewthefindings andjointlydevelopsolutionstoaddressidentifiedconcerns.
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CONTRACTANDCONTRACTINGINFORMATIONISAVAILABLE Soyouhavethedocument,whattodowithit?Afirstoptionwouldbetoactuallymonitor contractcompliance.Youneedtoknowwhetherthecontractingpartiesaremeetingtheir expectationsandcommitmentsstatedinthecontract,mainlyintermsofcosts,timeand work.Themainsourceofinformationtocomparewithwouldbeinterimreportsmadeby thepublicentity,thecontractorand/orthegovernmentauditbody. Therearecertainaspectsthatshouldalwaysbechecked.Regardingthepurposeofthe contract,itshouldbeclearlystatedwhatthecontractisabout.Thepurposeshouldbeas specificaspossibleandshouldnotleaveroomforambiguousinterpretation.Codessuch asUNSPSCcanbeveryusefulforthispurpose.Theobjectmustbelinkedwiththe missionandplansoftheentity.Furthermore,thescopeandspecificationsforeach contractmustbeclearandmustcomplywiththecorrespondingspecificstandards.Itis importanttocheckwhethercompetitionwasassuredorwhetheraspecificcontractorwas favoredbecauseoftechnicaldetailsputinthetender. Regardingtheparties,oneshouldestablishdetailsregardingthepublicentityinvolved.Is itoperatingatthecentrallevelandifso,doesithaveanyjurisdictionatstateorlocal levels?Isitalocalauthority?Differentpublicentitiesmayhavedifferentcontracting regimes.Theidentificationoftheentityresponsibleforthecontractisalsoimportantto serveasafirstpointofcontactwithinthegovernmenttoaskformoreinformationabout thecontract.Conversely,ifthepublicentityresponsibledoesnotcooperate,youmight contactthecentralprocurementagencytofacilitateyourmonitoringoftentimesthey serveasaregulatoryauthoritywhoconductsnoprocurement,butratheroverseesthe country'sprocurementpracticesandisthereforeacriticalpointofaccountability. Nextup,whoisthecontractor?IsitanSME,aninternationalsupplierorevenastate ownedenterprise?Isthecontractorpartofsomeregistryofsuppliers?Isitblacklisted?Is itlegallyregistered? Donotunderestimatetheimportanceofbeingpatientaswellasseizingthe moment,especiallywhencollaboratingwithpoliticiansthatneedtonavigatea webofinterestsandoftenhavenarrowwindowsofopportunitytointroduce reformSara
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Howtodoit?
Aspectsrelativetotheselectionmethod,thetimeandtheplacearealsoimportant.How wasthecontractorselected?Wasthereacompetitiveandtransparentprocessthatledto theawardofthecontract?Whenwasthecontractsignedandhowlongwillittaketobe completed?Arethereincentivestoeithercompletethecontractontime(orevenbefore theestablishedterm),orrisksassociatedwithdelays?Whereisthecontracttobecarried out?Doesitinvolveseveralmunicipalities,whichcommunitieswillitaffect? Continuingwiththeanalysis,akeyelementistheexactamountofpublicresourcesthat willbeallocatedforthecontract.Inaddition,itisimportanttoestablishexactlyhowthese resourcesaretobeinvested,wherethemoneyiscomingfrom,ifmultilateralagencies andorganismsareinvolved,howpaymentsaretobemadeandifpaymentsinadvance havebeenagreed.Itisalsovitaltoknowwhetherbudgetforfutureyearshasbeen committed,asusuallyhappenswithcertainpublicworksandPPPsbecauseoftheir complexity. Theactualcontractimplementationishardlyeverastraightforwardstory.Expectittobe messy.Alotofunpredictableeventstranspirethinkaboutbadweatherconditionsor politicalunrestorasuddenriseinthepriceofoilthatimpactstransport.Publicentities endeavortoprepareforthesesituations.Forinstance,somecountriesstipulatecostlimits tocontractrenegotiation,let'ssay25%.Inothers,theseconditionshavetobestipulated inthecontractitself.Thepointisthatyouneedtobepreparedforchangesalongtheway, keepinginmindthatlimitsshouldanddoexistaspartofnormal,healthycontracting practices. Fieldobservationtemplates,whichareoftenmoredescriptivethanchecklists,providethe opportunityfortheusertodescribewhatishappeningontheground.Observation templatesalsorequireguidingquestionsoftendraftedbasedonexpectedstandards withintheprocess,suchastheprocurementlaw.Likethechecklists,thesearealsooften analysedmanuallyandwouldbedifficulttoautomate.Theymay,however,providemore contexttoascenariothanchecklistswhichoftenjustanswerbasicquestions. Forexample,alawsaystheprocuringentityshallmaintainrecordsofallprocurement proceedingsaftertheawardofcontractsandmadeavailabletothepubliconrequestat thecostofphotocopying.Afieldobserverrequeststheprocurementplan,theminutesof evaluationmeetingsandmemorecommendingwinners.Noneofthisinformationis grantedtotheobserver.Uponrequestfromtherelevantpublicentityfortheprocurement plans,theobserverisinformedthattherecordsrequestedwerenotpreparedonaccount ofapplicationofspecialproceedings.Theobservernoticesthatthisjustificationishollow andreportsanissueofnoncompliancewithprovisionsofthelaw.
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Aspreviouslydiscussed,agoodcontractshouldcontaininformationaboutthescopeand specificationsofthework,includingthenecessarymaterials.Aprofessionalassociation couldtakealookandanalyseitasaqualitycheck.Theremightexistinvoicesforservices thatwerenotnecessaryfortheproject.Thereversecanalsohappen:1,000metersof cablethatthecontractorclaimedtohavespentonafacilitymaybe,inreality,only500 suggestingthatthecontractorcommittedfraudtopocketadditionalmoney.Thesame observationcouldbeappliedforthecommittedschedule.Ifaworkwassupposedtobe deliveredinoneyearanditisontracktofinishin3years,monitoringshouldevaluatethe factorsthatledtothedelaystodetermineiftheywerereasonableunderthespecific conditions. Foraccesstovariouscontractmonitoringtools,pleaseseetheResourcessectionatthe endofthebook.
Reporting
"...It's no longer just reporting the headlines of the day, but trying to put the headlines into some context and to add some perspective into what they mean"
BobSchieffer Nowthatwehavededicatedconsiderableefforttomonitoring,strategicallychanneling yourfindingstowardsanagentthatcouldaffectchangecannotbeneglected. Asyouwouldhavenoticed,theopencontractingcommunitysubscribestoadefault methodologyofworkingcollaboratively.Thatmeansreachingouttothosechangeagents closesttotheactionbeforemovingoutwardtoexertpressure.Thissectionofferstipson howtoreportfindings.Asyoureadalong,youmaynoticethatseveralofthesetipsare elementsofeachother,buthavebeenpresentedinthissequenceforbettercoherence. COORDINATEYOURINTERNALREPORTINGMECHANISM Beforeyoucanthinkaboutcommunicatingresultsofyoureffortstoyourtargetexternal changeagents,yourinternalcommunicationmustbesound.Haveyousetupa sustainablesystemforcollectingyourmonitoringinformation?Haveyouminedyourdata andconverteditintodigestibleandeasilyunderstoodinformation?Isthereapersonor peopleresponsibleforcollatinganddisseminatingthedatacollected?
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ForexampleinNigeria,thePublicandPrivateDevelopmentCentre(PPDC) operatesanonlineportalthatautomaticallycollatesandanalysesreportssubmitted byCSOsmonitoringcontractprocesses.Theanalysisfromcontractmonitoring whengeneratedhowever,couldbeupto500pagesandcounting.Clearly, providingthisbulkofgraphs,tablesandillustrationstootherpractitionersinthis formislikelytoyieldlittleornointerventionbecauseitwouldbedifficultforthe practitionertowhomthereporthasbeensubmittedtosiftthroughthistometopick outwhatisrelevant!PPDCwouldneedtoorganizewithinthemselveswhatpartof thefindingstosendtorelevantpractitioners,grouptheanalysesaccordingly,make recommendationstosuitthegroupedfindings,planhowtheinformationwouldbe disseminatedandtowhomthereportwillbedisseminatedto,alongwithaplanto followupondesiredactionsproposedbythereport. Awordofcautionpractitionersareoftenexcitedwhentheydevelopanddeploydata collationoranalyticmechanismsthatchurnoutanalysesfromtheirmonitoringexercises. Itiseasytooverlooktheneedforthesefindingstobebrokendown,tiedto recommendationsanddisseminatedinawaythatmakesthemrelevantanduserfriendly tothestakeholdertowhomthereportisbeingsent.Makeapledgetobemorestrategicin reporting. Akeylessontokeepinmindifyouleavethereportingprocesstotechnology,itwillbe leftundone. DEVELOPAREPORTINGSTRATEGY Indevelopingareportingstrategy,severalfactorscometobearanditmaybeimpossible toprovideafinitenumberoffactorsworthconsidering.Somehelpfultipsinclude:
" " " " "
Considerwhatyouwouldlikeyourreporttoachieve. Considerthechannelsthroughwhichthepurposeofyourreportcanbeachieved. Developatimingorreportingsequence. Bearinmindthatsometimes,youmayneedtocreateopportunitiesandatothertimes, youwouldneedtotakeadvantageofunexpectedopportunities. Putyourselfintheshoesofthestakeholdertowhomthereportwouldbesentand anticipatethereaction(s)thatmayfollowafterthereportisreceived.Thiswouldhelp youtobepreparedforfurtherstrategicengagement.
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Bearinginmindthevaluesofopencontractingforthepurposeofthepublicgood,Itis essentialtomaintainobjectivity,impartialityandfairnessincommunicatingtheresults ofreportingasthisisessentialtobuildingasystemthatcanbetrusted.
TIEYOURFINDINGSTOAREPORTINGPURPOSE Asyoudevelopyourreports,thebasicquestiontoaskiswhydoesthisneedtobe reported?Reportsoftenservevariouspurposes,including:
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Toincreaseawarenessorupdatestakeholdersaroundacertaincontractingprocess Forexample,PublicBodyAmaysendoutamediareportupdatingthepublicona publicmeetingheldinBodesacommunityconcerningtheprospectivelandacquisition byApecoOilforoilexplorationinthecommunity. AnindependentreportaimedatpresentinganotherviewForexample,Bodesa CommunityYouthGroup(BCYG)mayissueanindependentreportpresentingthe positiontakenbythecommunityregardingprospectiveoilexplorationbyApecoOil whichBCYGfeltwasnotsufficientlycoveredinthereportbyPublicBodyA. Topresentfindings,recommendandsolicittheactionofarelevantcontracting stakeholderforexample,asocialauditbeingcarriedoutbyanNGOcalled OpenLaosia,foranongoingcontractforthesupplyofwaterrevealsthatsomeofthe pipesareleakingandthereforerecommendsthattheLocalGovernmentCouncilverify thequalityofmaterialsbeingusedbythecontractorbecauseclearlyitisnotthe intentionfornewlyinstalledpipestobeleaking. Toprovideanotherstakeholdertheopportunitytodefendorrebutacertainfinding,etc. Toprovideinformationtostakeholdersforpurposesofadvocacyandpolicy engagement.
"
"
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Thepurposeandotherfactorsthatcouldmakeyourreportingmosteffectivecouldbe consideredanddevelopedwithintheframeworkofareportingstrategy.
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CHANNELYOURREPORTWHEREITMATTERS
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Documenttheobservationsandfindingsfromyouranalysisandwheregapsexist,write downrecommendationstoaddressthosegaps. Groupsimilarissueswithinyourreporttogetherinotherwords,findthemeswithinyour reportandstructurethereportaccordingtothosethemes. Lookwithinyourcoalitionornetworkorwithinthewidercommunityandlinkthethemes identifiedinyourreporttostakeholdergroupsaccordingtoareasofexpertise, experience,interest,practicalengagementandtheircapacitytointerveneinbringing abouttheexpectedchange.Itisquitepossiblethatonethemewouldbeofinterestto differentstakeholdersinvariousways.Itisimportanttoidentifythesesothatyour reportiseffectivelychanneledtowardsproducingchange. Drawupasimplecommunicationstrategythatlinkseachthemeinthereporttothese identifiedstakeholdergroup(s). Breakdownyourreportintominireportsaccordingtotheidentifiedthemesand relevantstakeholdergroups.Forseveralstakeholders,itislikelytobethecasethat theycannotgothroughtheentirereportsothatiswhyitisimportanttoimmediately bringoutwhatisrelevanttothemandrecommendtheactionthatyouwouldlikefrom theminthelightoftheirfunctionsandskills.
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SENDOUTYOURREPORTSINGOODTIME Striketheironwhenitishot!Partofagoodreportingstrategyismakingsureyourreports aredisseminatedtoidentifiedpractitionersinatimelymanner.Thisrequiresalevelof planningandalsowatchfuleyesthattakeadvantageofarisingopportunitiestoadvance theidealsofopencontracting.Sometimes,youmayhavetheopportunitytomakeyour reportsavailablewithinaperiodoftime,othertimes,aoneoffopportunitymayariseto haveyourreportsharedandfavorablyactedupon.Thelatterscenariomaybe unexpectedbutalsohasthepossibilityofbeinghighimpact. InBrazil,forexample,localelectionswereagreatopportunitytoenhancedisclosureof governmentcontracts.EthosInstitutehadtheideatoinvitecandidatesfromhostcitiesof theFIFAWorldCuptosignapubliccommitmentregardingdisclosureofcontractsofthe event.Allelectedmayorssignedthepactanditbecamevalidon2013,atthebeginningof theirmandate.Someimprovementscanalreadybeseenandthecommitmentswillbe monitoredduringthe4years.
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COLLABORATEWITHOTHERSTAKEHOLDERS Thevariousskillsetsamongopencontractingpractitionersmakescollaborationprofitable forreportfindingstobeeffectivelyactedupon.Itisdifficultforonepractitionertotakeup toomuchbecauseyoucouldveryeasilyexperienceburnout.TheNigerianContract MonitoringCoalitionisagoodexampleofascenariowherereportsindicatingtheinability ofCSOsandengineerstoaccesscontractinformationwastakenupbylegalpractitioners withinthecoalitionandthroughthisprocess,afavorablejudgementfromthecourtwas receivedandimmediatelyenforced.TheNigerianContractMonitoringCoalitionalsomade effectiveuseoftheirmediafocusedmemberstoorganizeamediacampaigninforming thepublicofprogresswiththeentireprocess.Similarly,throughcollaborationwithpublic bodies,theAfricanFreedomofInformationCentreinUgandasuccessfullysecuredthe cooperationofthePublicProcurementDisposalofAssetsAuthority. Awordofcautionalthoughcollaborationinopencontractingdoesbringresults,itisoften alongandarduousprocessandneedsaconsistentengagementwiththeprocess.Thisis whyyouneedtoleverageonthestrengthsofvariouspractitionerstoactwithintheirareas ofexpertise,experience,interestsandfieldsofinfluence. Akeylessontokeepinmindpractitionersshouldhelpeachotherbycollaboratingwithin theopencontractingprocess. FOLLOWUPONDISSEMINATEDREPORTS Thereportingprocessismosteffectivewhenyoufollowupandtrackyourreports.Afew usefultipsinclude:
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Whenyousendoutyourreportstotherelevantpractitioners,specificallyrequesttobe providedfeedbackonanyplansofaction. Followup,Followup,Followup!!!Acceptthefactthatthereportservesthepurposeof providinginformationwithoutrequiringanyaction,meaningthatconsistentfollowup withthepractitionersiskeyandkeytoadvancingtheidealofmultistakeholder participationinopencontracting.
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MAINTAINCREDIBILITYTHROUGHSTRATEGICREPORTING Trustbetweenopencontractingpractitionersisanessentialpartofthecontinuous contractingprocess.Sometimes,theburdenofbuildingtrustwithinthecontracting processiscontingentonthefeedbackmechanismsdevelopedwithinreporting.Asituation mayarisewhereyourreportcontainedamisrepresentationoffactsandevenwhenyou arenotnecessarilyatfault,itisimportanttoprovidefeedbackandcorrectfalse impressions.
Awhistleblowerinformsyouthataninfluentialpublicbodyhassoldalargenumber ofitspublicassetsinbreachofthecontractingpracticeandwithoutregardtothe "publicgoodpublicresourcespublicdisclosure"test.Consideringthatthepublic bodyislikelytoignoreanyrequestforinformationregardingthisprocess,you neverthelesswritetothepublicbodybutyoualsosendoutapressrelease informingthepublicthatyouhavemadearequestforinformationconcerningthe saleofcertainpublicassets.Asaresultofthemediacoverage,itbecomespublic knowledgethatPublicbodyXmayhavecarriedoutasaleofpublicassets.Inthe meantime,PublicbodyXreceivesyourletterandrespondsprovidingevidencethat thesaleofpublicassetswentthroughtheopencontractingprocess.Atthatpoint,it isimportantthatyoushowyourobjectivityandgothroughallthemediachannelsto makeknownthefeedbackyoureceivewasdoneinthefirstinstance.Afairand balancedactionsuchasthiswoulddemonstratethatyourinterestinthecontracting processisforthepublicgoodmakingyouacredibleandreliablesource.
SOCIALMEDIAALERT:CONTENTANDCONTEXTALWAYSMATTERS Socialmediahaschangedourlivessuddenlyinformationisviral.Clearlythispresentsa hugeopportunitytosharereportsfromthecontractingprocesswithothers.Awordof cautionmakesurethatthecontextofyourmessageisnotlost.Forexamplesocial medianetworkssuchastwitterhaveanalphabetcountof140characters.Inyourquestto makeyourmessagefit,youcouldmiscommunicate.Sometipstoavoidthisare:
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Planyourtweet(orothersocialmedia)messagesbeforehandandmakesurethatthe contextisnotlost. Ifyouaremonitoringandreportingfromaliveeventforexampleabidopening processoracommunityconsultationforprospectiveoillicensing,crosscheckyour messagecarefullybeforesendingout.Socialmediaarefluidandmisrepresented informationcouldgoviralinamatterofseconds.
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MAINTAINETHICALMEDIAREPORTINGSTANDARDS Asrecognizednationbuildersandfreedomofexpressionadvocates,themediaisan importantopencontractingstakeholder.Assuch,mediareportingneedstobefreefrom bias.Itisconsideredunethicalformediapractitionerswithintheopencontracting communitytocarryoutanypracticethatwouldcompromisetheindependenceofthe media.Thereforethemediaisgenerallynotsupposedtoacceptfees(orspecialfavors) andotherpractitionersarenotexpectedtopayfeesinexchangeformediacoverage.
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54
Closing The Loop

Alltoooften,practitionersstopatreportingwecollectevidencethroughresearchor monitoring,produceareportandassumeitwillmakeadifference.Wemayinvestalotof timeandeffortindevelopingfeedbackmechanisms,buttobeeffectivethesemustleadto concreteactionsthataddresstheidentifiedproblems.Closingtheloopmeansthat problemsareresolvedtothesatisfactionofaffectedstakeholders. Let'ssaywearemonitoringaroadproject.Afteraccessinginformationonthecontract, assessingperformanceagainstthecontractandparticularstandards,andconducting beneficiarysurveys,wehaveproducedareportwithrecommendations.Thisreport includesevidenceoftheuseofsubstandardmaterials,aswellasrecommendationsto changethematerials.Aspartofourcollaborativeapproach,weengagegovernment officials,thecontractorandcommunitymembersinacommitteetoaddressthefindingsof themonitoring.Togethertheparticipantsreviewthesefindingsandrecommendations, andthecontractorexplainsthathewasunabletosourcebettermaterials.The participantsagreetojointlymobilisebetterqualitymaterials,thecontractorreplacesthe materialsatthecompany'sexpensebutbenefitsfromreducedmaintenancecostsanda better,moresustainableroadisbuilt. Thisexampleshowshowtheproblemsubstandardmaterialsinaroadprojectwas addressedthroughcollaborativeengagementandultimatelyresolvedtothesatisfactionof affectedstakeholders.Thefeedbackmechanismreportingandmultistakeholder problemsolvinghasworkedandtheloophasbeenclosed. Aswithconstructiveengagement,closingthelooprequiresanunderstandingofthe incentivesandcapacityofthestakeholdersinvolved.Buildingrelationshipsoftrustatthe earlystagesofintervention,suchasinvitingparticipantsfromdifferentsectors (government,privatesectorandcivilsociety)toneedsassessmentsandcapacity developmentworkshops,canhelpfurtherdownthelinewhenproblemsareidentifiedand needtoberesolved. Inadditiontoensuringtheresolutionofparticularproblems,engagementoradvocacyfor policychangescanimprovestandardsforgreaterdevelopmentoutcomes. Changecanonlyhappenthroughcollaborativeworkandactingagainstall oddschangethroughopencontractingFlorence
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Advocacy For Changes In Policy

Advocacyreferstotheencouragement,promotionorlobbyingforpolitical,economicor socialchangeininstitutionsandstructurestowardsaparticulargoal,suchasopen contractingforthepublicgood. Variousmethodsorcommunicationchannelscanbeusedtoachieveadvocacy objectives,includingmeetingswithtargetaudiences,pressreleases,pressconferences andcampaigns.Foranexampleofapressreleasethathighlightsgoodpracticeandrisks, pleaseseetheResourcessection. Thecommunicationchannelsandproductsshouldbetailoredtothecontextand appropriatelysequencedorcarriedout.Forexample,itishelpfultoinvolvethetarget audiencesay,aparticularministryinvalidatingyourfindingsandrecommendations beforelaunchingamassmediacampaign. Itisalsoimportanttounderstandtheopportunitiesandconstraintsofthetargetaudience inordernottoraiseexpectationsbeyondtheachievable.Forinstance,notallcontracts acrossallsectorsmaybedisclosedifpublicentitiesdonothavesystemsinplaceto managesuchdisclosure. Finally,weshouldnotbombardourtargetaudience,butensureastrategicintervention thatoptimizesrelationships,includingwithjournalistsandadvocacyallies,andpresents ourmessageinaclear,consistentmanner. Succesfuladvocacystartswithastrategy,whichinvolvesthefollowing: CONTEXTANALYSIS
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Whatistheissueathand? Howdoesthisissuefitwithinthewiderdynamics(conflict,powerrelations,poverty)in yoursociety? Whatinformationisavailable(researchfindings,etc.)? Whatarethelessonslearnedfromwhathasbeentriedbefore?
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Closingtheloop
DEFINITIONOFOBJECTIVES
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Whatneedstochange? Why? Howcanchangebeachieved? Whocanaffectthischange? Whatisthetimelineforthechangetotakeplace?
DEFINITIONOFTARGETAUDIENCESANDSTAKEHOLDERS(STAKEHOLDER MAPPINGOFINTERESTANDINFLUENCE)
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Whoarewetargetingwithouradvocacy? Whowouldbeaffectedbyorinterestedinouradvocacy? Whocouldsupportus? Whocouldopposeus? Whoisneutralorundecided?
DESIGNOFMESSAGESCLARITYISKEY!
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Whatisourcoremessage? Whichkeymessagescanbedevelopedtosupportourcoremessage? Howshouldwetailorthemtobestreachourtargetaudience?(Packaging) Whatchannelsandmessengersshouldweuse?(Delivery)
DEVELOPAPLAN
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Whatshouldbedone? Whatresourcesdowehave? Whatisthetimeframe?
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EVALUATIONOFIMPACTANDADAPTATION
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Howdoweknowifwehaveachievedourdesiredresults? Whatindicatorsshouldbedeveloped? Howshouldwegoaboutmonitoringprogress? Whatareourlessonslearned? Howcanweadaptthestrategy?
Oncecompletingthisstrategy,we'vespreadtheword!Anysuccess? Astherearemanydriversofpolicyreform,attributioninferringthecauseofbehaviouror ascribingcredittoaparticularsourceisdifficult.'Success'willlikelybetheresultof collectiveactionwithlikemindedagentsofchange.Wewillhaveasenseofwhetherwe haveachievedresultsifpublicdebatechangestoreflecttheadvocacyaimsandifthere arereferencesmadeinthechangeinpolicyandpractice.
Inordertofacilitatetheaccessofcontractinformation,itcouldbeinterestingto advocatefor'contractsforthepeople'wherecitizensorCSOsareabletoeasily understandthecontentofthecontractanditsconsequencesontheirlives.Itwould alsobeinterestingtopromoteinitiativestocentralisecontractinformationfor industriessuchasmining,whichwouldallowforacomparisonofthecontentsof variouscontractsandwouldfacilitatebetteraccessforallinterestedparties.
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How Do We Know We Are Making A Difference?

Itisimportanttoestablishaframeworkthatreflectsthecollectivegoalsandobjectivesof ouropencontractingactivities.Werefertotheprocessoftrackingourownprogressand impactasMonitoringandEvaluation(M&E). Thegenericcontextforsuchanevaluationisaresultschain,aspresentedbelow.Though thepreciseterminologycanvarybetweencountriesandcontexts,itisconsideredgood practicetomonitorthecostofinputs,whetherornottheinputsledtooutputs(i.e. deliverables),andwhetherornotthoseoutputscontributedtotheintendedoutcomesand longtermimpacts.Suchanapproachprovidesthebasicinformationneededtoassess theeconomyandefficiency,andultimatelytheeffectivenessandvalueformoney,ofthe opencontractingactivity.
Abaselinehelpsusestablishthecontextanddefinetheelementsthatwewantto influenceorchange.Thoseelementswilltypicallyrelatetothedifferentpiecesoftheopen contractingtheoryofchangegraphic,whichisdescribedatthebeginningofthissection namely,issuesrelatedtocapacity,incentives,disclosure,participation,accountability, trust,performance,andlegitimacy.Wemaysetspecificobjectiveswithinthebroader enablingenvironment(macro),withinthecontractingprocessorevenwithinaparticular contract(moremicro).Understandingtheexistingstandards,accountabilitydynamics, currentqualityofcontracts,actualcostsandperformance,andexistinggrievance mechanismsorproblemsolvingchannelswillletusestablishourresultsframework. Thebaselineisoftennotconductedforavarietyofreasonsfinancial,capacityorjust becauseitisnotconsideredasapriority.Incertaincases,thebaselinecanshowthat opencontractingisnotnecessarilybringingpositiveconsequences,orcandistort competition.Theindicatorsusedtomeasureabaselineshouldremainmeasurableover time.Inadditiontheconstitutionofabaseline,datamightrequiretheuseofacontrol grouponethatisnotaffectedbythecontractinordertomeasuresomeofthesocio
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economicchangesthatresultdirectlyfromthecontract.Thistypeofmeasurementis complex. Opencontractingisthebestwaytoincreaseaccountabilityfortheendresult fortheenduserOtgoo
Determining A Results Framework

Awelldesignedresultsframeworkwillallowustodeterminenotonlywhetherthedesired changeshavebeenachieved,butalsowhetherthosechangescanreasonablybe attributedtoouropencontractingactivities.Whendefiningsuchaframeworkweshould collectivelydetermineorreviewourobjectivesandsetindicators(measuresofchange) thatareSMARTspecific,measurable,achievable,relevantandtimebound. Wethereforeneedtobeclearaboutthetargetagentsofchange(whoshouldtakethe action),thetargetlevel(e.g.district,country,ormultiplecountries)andthechangewe wanttoseewithinacertaintimeframe. Qualitativeindicators(e.g.qualityofcontracts)areparticularlychallengingtomeasure. Weneedtobeclearfromthebeginningaboutwhatwemeanby'quality'.Forexample, thereshouldbeclarityaroundthetermsandconditionsofexistingcontracts,andthe changewewanttosee. Theresultsframework(sometimesreferredtoasalogicalframework),aspresentedin genericformbelow,providesavaluablesummaryofthedesiredoutcomesandhowthey areexpectedtobeachievedbytheproposedactivity.Thisframeworkisanimportant documentthatshouldreflectacollectivevisionandbepopulatedinaparticipatory manner,sothatitisownedbythechangeagentscontributingtoitsimplementation. Theobjectivesandindicatorswesetfortheresultsframeworkshouldreflectwhatweare capableofdeliveringwithinacertainperiodoftime.Thereshouldbealogicalflowthat enablesustosay'ifthishappensthenthatwillhappen'untilweachieveourultimate goal.Weneedtoconsiderthefollowingfactors:baselinelevels,pasttrends,needsand gaps,andthecapacityandlogisticstoachievetargets. Thisframeworkshouldincludeourinputs(resourcesrequired),actionsoractivities, outputs(shorttermdeliverables),outcomes(mediumtermchanges)andimpact(long termgoal).
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HowDoWeKnowWeAreMakingaDifference?
Asanexampleofpreparingaresultsframework,letussaythatweareworkingwith particularpublicentitlestodisclosecontracts,whileworkingwithcommunitybased organisations,journalistsandparliamentarianstomonitororoverseethesecontracts. Wemaygothroughthefollowingprocesstodetermineourresultsframework:
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Ensurestakeholderconsultationandparticipationensureengagementofand orientationtointendedusers. Translateproblemstatement,programgoalsandobjectivesintoresultsframework. EstablishscopeoftheM&Eplan. Developresultsframework. Determineelementstobemonitoredandevaluated. Defineindicatorsandidentifydatasources. DetermineM&Emethodsfordataandinformationcollection. Developdatacollectionplanandresponsibilities. Settargetsandcollectbaselinedata. Definereportingsystem,useanddisseminationofresults. Planformidcourseadjustmentsandadaptationofstrategy.
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Setting Objectives And Making Them SMART

Asacommunityofpracticecommittedtoopencontracting,ouroverallobjectivespertain to:
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Strengthenedcapacityfordisclosureandparticipation,includingoversight. Greaterqualityanddisclosureofpubliccontractstopromoteaccountability. Enhancedopportunitiesforparticipationandoversightthroughoutthecontracting process. Improvedperformanceofcontracting.
Ifweagreeontheseobjectives,howcanwemakethemSMART?Howcanwemake themmoremeasurable?ThefollowingexamplesmaybeusefulSMARTindicators:
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AtleastXfunctioningonlineandofflineinformationsystemsfacilitatingregular disclosureandoversightinYdistrictorcountryby2015. IncreasebyX%inthenumberofcontractsdisclosedbyY(publicentity)inZdistrictsor countriesby2015. IncreasebyX%ofopportunitiesandmechanismsforparticipationofbothcitizensand oversightbodiesinY(districtorcountry)throughoutallstagesofcontractingby2015. ReductionbyX%intimeandcostoverrunsinYsectororresponsiblebodyby2015. IncreasebyX%insatisfactionlevelsofcommunitiesaffectedbyYcontract.
Itisimportantthatweareclearaboutourmeansofverification,thesourcesofdatathat willbeusedfortheindicators.Thesemayincludepublicentityrecords,financial managementreports,minutesofmeetings,assurancereports,evaluationsand stakeholdersurveys. Wealsoneedtobeclearaboutrisksandassumptions,theexternalfactorsthatcan influencetheprocess.Forexample,securityconditionsmaydictatewhethermonitoringis feasible,orwemayassumeincorrectlythatthecontractexistsinordertobeableto discloseandoverseeit.
Quantitative And Qualitative Methods

Weshouldusebothquantitativeandqualitativemethodstodemonstrateourlearningand impact,asdiscussedbelow.Whetherqualitativeorquantitative,ourmethodsshouldbe rigorousinorderforresultstobecredible.
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HowDoWeKnowWeAreMakingaDifference?
Whenwecancountthenumberofpeopletrained,toolsapplied,costandtimeoverruns, percentageofproblemssolved,andchangeinreportedsatisfactionlevels,quantitative methodscanthusbeapplied. Thechangeinthequalityofthecontractmayrequiremorequalitativemethods,suchas peerreviewsorassessments.Understandingtheprocessofchangemayrequiremore granularcasestudiesthathelpustofullyappreciatetheincentivesanddynamicsbehind particularresults. Weshouldcapturesuccessesandfailures.IfourM&Erevealsnegativeresultsor unintendedconsequences(e.g.increaseincostandtimeoverruns),weshouldtryto understandtheseresultsandadaptourstrategyandmethodology. Ultimately,wewillknowwehavemadeadifferenceifweseeachangecomparedtoour baselinedata.Thismeanswewillhaveadequatelycapturedthebaselinedata,thatwe areclearaboutthemethodologyandtheactorsinvolved,andunderstandtheincentives anddynamicsthatdeterminetheprocessofchange.
Practical Challenges
OneofthemostcommonpracticalchallengesinconductingM&Eistostrikean appropriatebalancebetweensimplicityandrigour.Atoneextreme,thereisverylimited valueinanM&Eframeworkwheretheobjectivesareimprovedparticipationand disclosure,ifthereisnoassociatedassessmentofwhetherthesehave,orarelikelyto, leadtoanyimprovementinperformance.Attheotherextreme,atotallyrigorousM&E frameworkmaybesoundintheory,butimpossibletouseinpracticeduetounrealistic expectationsoftheavailabilityof,andabilitytomanage,thedatarelatedtoalarge numberofindicators. Fortransparencyandaccountabilityinitiativessuchasopencontracting,itmaybe necessarytoconsiderthecausalchaininmoredetailthanastandardresultsframework offers.TheConstructionSectorTransparency(CoST)initiative,forinstance,recognises thatdisclosureandtransparencydonotnecessarilyleadtomoreaccountablepublic entities.Inordertopresentmoreclearlywhattheinitiativeisseekingtoachieve,and identifysuitableassociatedindicators,thefollowingcausalchainisused.Thisisfully consistentwith,butgoesintomoredetailthan,theresultsframeworkabove. FurtherinformationontheCoSTM&Eframework,includingdetailsofassociated indicators,canbefoundathttp://www.constructiontransparency.org.
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Reflections - Risks, Sustainability And Lessons

Overview Reality + Risks Open Contracting Dynamics Enabling Environment How Do We Keep It Going? What's Next?
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ReflectionsRisks,SustainabilityandLessons
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Overview
Inthelastsectionwehavesharedmanyofourexperiences,toolsandinsightsonhowto designandimplementopencontractingactivitiesandhowtotrackourprogress.Wehope thatyouhavefoundallthisinformationuseful!Wedecidedonpurposetoputallthis practicalinformationupfrontsothatyoucouldlearnfromourexperiencesandbeinspired byhowothershavedonethisworkelsewhere. Inthefollowingchapterswewilltakeastepbacktoreflectonadditionalelementsthat haveimpactedouropencontractingactivities.Wewillgothroughsomeofthemainrisks thataffectopencontractingactivities.Wewillalsoshareourreflectionsonthetheoryof changebehindopencontracting.Andbecauseitmatterssomuch,wereflectmoreonthe enablingenvironment.Finally,weraisesomeimportantquestionswithregardsto sustainability.Theoverarchinggoalistokeepopencontractinggoing,andattheendof thissectionwereflecthowwecanbestdothat.
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Reality + Risks
Stakeholderintentions(amongbothsupportersandnonsupportersofopencontracting) arenotalwaysclear,conflictinginterestsarenotalwaysexpressedandtherolesofthe differentactorsarenotalwaysclearcut.Thisrequirescriticalthinkingtodevelopa strategytohandlethesituation,andrisksmayevolvewhereyouleastexpectthem.A thoroughidentificationprocessalongwithpossiblewaystomitigatethoserisksarekey aspectsforconsiderationwhenengaginginopencontractingactivities.
Stakeholders
GOVERNMENT Buildingpoliticalwillofgovernmentactorsrequiresanunderstandingoftheirconstituents andofinternalpoliticalrealities.Thereare'powergames'withingovernmentsthatmay drivedifferenttypesofresponse,evenincaseswherethetopgovernmentofficials (presidents,ministers,governors,citymayors)expressexplicitinterestinopen contracting.Iftheseactorsarenotinvolvedintheoriginaldecisions,theymayfeelthata newpolicyorstrategyisbeingimposedwithoutthemhavingbeenpartytothediscussions ofitsaimsandbenefits.Thiscanleadtoresentment. Therearemanygovernmentofficialswhodefendtransparencywithpassionandare alwayswillingtogothatextramiletomakethingsworkastheyshould.Findingthese agentsandencouragingthemtorecruitotherswillcreateapositiveforceforopen contracting. PRIVATESECTOR Privatesectoractors,fromcontractorstosubcontractorstoassociations,willrequirea clearbusinesscasetoengageinopencontracting.Often,this"businesscase"relieson profitsthoughnotalways,aswithplayerswhoaremotivatedbytaxbenefitsorotherwise tohaveapresenceinaspecificmarketorcountry.Weshouldrememberthatallkindsof interestsarepresentinbusiness,fromlocalzoningissuestolaboursupplytopolicy changesthatimpactexportambitions.Manybusinessactorsareinterestedinmore informationandinstitutionalnormssotheycanmakedecisionswithcertaintythisisonly oneofmanyargumentsfortransparency! Privatesectoractorstakesignalsfromthemarketinwhichtheyoperate.Inmanyplaces wherecorruptionissystemic,itismucheasiertocontinuepayingbribesthantopioneer 'walkingaway'.Infact,thelattercouldevenbeconsideredirrational!Yet,thisviciouscycle
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canandhasbeenbrokenincontextswherecommunitiesandleadersbegindisclosing practicesandamendingregulationstomakecorruptbehaviormorecostlyand inconvenient.Therehavealsobeencasesofindustryagreementsofcleanbehavior,due tothefactthatcorruptionhasmadeoperatinginthoseenvironmentssoexpensiveand unsustainable. Ittakesacombinationofpioneersandcollectiveaction.Thereareplentyofstructured andseriouscontractorsorcompaniesthatwillbeinterestedinopencontractinginorder toimproveoperatingconditionsinthemarketandtodelivervalueforthepublicmoney. Thesearethecompaniesweneedtoidentifyandinvolve,engagingthemtodrivethe othersbyexampleandpeerpressuretopromoteopencontracting. CIVILSOCIETY Inordertoadvanceopencontracting,civilsocietygroupsneedtogatherarounda commoncause,whichoftenrequiresremovingobstaclesandovercomingmistrust. Traditionallymanyofthesegroupsareusedtoworkingindividually,competingfor resourcesandexposure,notrecognizingorgivingvaluetoeffortsmadebypeersinthe samethematicspace.Inmanycases,civilsocietygroupshavebecomeimplementorsof governmentpoliciesorprogrammes,whichblursthelinesofdifferentiatedroles,andin somecasesmayposechallengestoindependenceorraiseconflictsofinterest. Indeed,civilsocietyisaverybroadconceptandincludesmanykindsoforganisations supportedbyavarietyofdifferentiatedinterests.Theseorganisationsareoftencriticized forcloseassociationstopoliticians,politicalpartiesorcampaigns.Thisunderminesthe credibilityoftheirargumentthattheyaredefendingthepublicgood. Insomecountriesthemediaistotallycontrolledbygovernmentorprivatesectorgroups thatuseittopursueonlytheirpersonalinterests,notallowingjournaliststoplaytheir legitimateroleinoverseeingandreportingonmisbehaviorbygovernmentortheprivate sector.Elsewhere,organisationsmaydemandaccountabilityfromgovernmentsand privatesector,butarenotwillingtodisclosetheirinternalgovernancearrangementsor howtheyensuretheirownaccountabilityinpursuingtheirmission. However,weincreasinglyfindcasesofcivilsocietygroupsbenefitingfromcollective action.Byconstitutingcoalitionsornetworkstoworktogethertheyareabletoincrease theirimpact,makingtransparencyandaccountabilitypartoftheirownnetworkpractices. Thesearethetypesofgroupsthatweshouldapproach,conveneandjoininorderto successfullyengageinopencontracting.
What Could Go Wrong?

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Reality+Risks
What Could Go Wrong?

Whileopencontractingbringsaboutmanygoodthings,itspractitionersandadvocates mustpaycloseattentiontocertainrisks.Monitoringofpubliccontracts,afterall,isnota simpleundertaking.Itinvolvesacomplexwebofinterests,whichrequirescriticaland strategicthinkingtomanage.Itmayalsocreateunrealisticpublicexpectations. Thischapterbringstoforefourtypesofrisks,namelyoperational,relational,political,and guesswhat,the'ultimate'risk!Waysofaddressingthemarelikewisediscussed. Persevere!Inthemostcomplexandcorruptenvironmentswecanalwaysfind enthusiasticpartnerstochampionthequestformoneywellspentinbuildinga betterfutureMarcela
OPERATIONALRISKS Operationalrisksrefertofactorsthatmayaffecttheworkofpractitionersastheyconduct opencontractingactivities.Thesecouldincludethreatstothepersonalsafetyofa practitioner,exposuretolegalcases,oralackofresourcestocontinueoperations. Safetyofpractitioners.Practitionerscouldbecomeoverzealousinadvocatingopen contracting,eventothepointofendangeringtheirlives.Noonecanblamethemforthat, buttheycanatleastbeforewarnedoftheconsequences. Onethreattosafetycouldresembletheplotofacrimemoviewherepractitionersfind themselvesunknowinglyimplicatingacorruptgovernmentofficialorsyndicateinan anomaloustransaction.Thiscouldpotentiallyhappeninthecourseofscrutinizing contracts.It'scommon,forinstance,forwhistleblowerstohavepertinentdocuments, includingcopiesofsignedcontracts,whicharepartsofthepapertrailandconstitutesolid proofofcriminalactivity.The'badguys',ofcourse,wouldgoafterthemtogetthese documentsback,suppresstheircontentorothertryoutrighttopreventtheircomingout. Practitionersmaybeconfrontedwiththissituationiftheydonotknowhowtohandle sensitivecontractinformationproperly. Anothertypeofthreattosafetyisposedbydifficultordangeroussitesthatpractitioners mayhavetovisitforthemonitoringofcontractsthatarebeingimplemented.Forsome whoreallytakemonitoringseriously,theywouldbewillingtocrosstheriversandclimbthe mountainstofindthecontract'sprojectsite.Whosaysopencontractingisboring?!Safety,
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however,shouldnotgivewaytoadventure.Theobjectiveofmonitoringthroughactual sitevisitsisstillthebestoption,butappropriatesafetyandsecuritymeasuresshould alwaysbetakenbeforeproceeding. Courtcases.Contractsaregovernedbylawsandstatutes,andoftencontaincontentious aspectsthataresubjecttolegalinterpretation.Practitionersmayfindthemselvesina legalbattleatsomepointduringtheirmonitoring.Thiscouldoccurwhenaffectedparties decidetochallengeareportorafindingontheperformanceofcontractprovisions.For instance,losingbiddersmayaccusethethirdpartymonitorsoffailingtopointoutanerror inthereviewoftheeligibilitydocuments.Thegovernmentsupervisormayfindthecivil societymonitors'statusreportunfairorinaccurate.Andthepractitionersmayactually commitmistakesintheirreport,whichcouldresultinthewithholdingofpayments,or worse,blacklisting,ofcontractors. Someaggrievedpartiesmaypursuelegalcasesinthecourts,unwillingtoletthese reportspasswithoutachallenge.Thishappensrarely,butcouldcausealotofhassle.For example,whowillpayforthelegalservices?Traditionally,itistheindividualratherhis hostinstitutionthatpays,asprojectfundsdonotcoverthiskindofcost.Asidefromthe cost,thereisoftenfrustrationoverlonglegalbattles.Timeintendedforadvocacyis insteadspentincourt,andalegalconclusionisnotalwaysforthcoming.Thiscouldsap theenergyofpractitionersanddiverttheirfocusfromwhatreallymatterstotheircause, butthereisnorealchoicebuttocomply.Inthissense,awelloiledmechanismprotecting onegroup'sinterestcouldparalyzetheopencontractingadvocacywithevenatrivialcourt case.Somecompetencyinthelegalaspectofcontractingwillstrengthenthepractitioners' positionandhelpthemguardagainstpersonalrecklessness,ontheonehand,and possibleintimidationfromanoffendedgroup,ontheother. Runningoutofresources.Resourcesarefiniteandalwaysinsufficient.Whileopen contractingadvocacyshouldbedrivenbyitsmission,andnotbyfundsforitsoperations, theriskofslowingdownandeventuallyhaltingoperationsduetodrainedresourcesis real.ToparaphrasethephilosopherImmanuelKant:amissionwithoutresourcesisblind, butresourceswithoutmissionisempty. Resourceproblemscouldariseduringopencontractingwhenthescopeandscaleofthe challengeunexpectedlyexceedswhatwasexpected.Especiallywhenitgainstraction, importantworksuchasthiscouldincreasethedemandfromthepublic.Practitioners couldbeswayedeasilybysuchdemandanditistemptingtosuccumbwhensucha clamorpersistsbecauseitindicatestheeffectivenessoftheactivities.Incorrect prioritizationorthefailuretoappreciatethestrategicuseofresourcescouldexposethe worktounnecessaryrisks.
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Needlesstosay,itisbasicallyandultimatelyafunctionofmanagementtooptimizethe useofavailableresources. RELATIONALRISKS Relationalrisksinvolveseriouscompromisesrelatedtotheidentitiesandrolesofthekey players,whichnegativelyaffecttheoverallcredibilityoftheopencontractingactivities. Theseincludeconflictofinterest,collusionandcooption,andnetworkcollapse. Conflictofinterest.Therearecircumstancesinwhichpractitioners,whethergovernment, civilsocietyorprivatesector,couldpotentiallyinfluenceorhavecloudedjudgementona contractathand.Thesecircumstancesarelinkedtoone'sspecialorvestedinterestinthe contract.Thislinkaloneestablishestheconflictofinterest,andneednotbe consummated. Bloodrelationsareusuallycitedasasourceofconflictofinterest.Whenarelativeora familymemberhasaninterestinaparticularcontract,one'sfavorablejudgmentofitis immediatelysuspect.Organisationalorcompanyaffiliationhasasimilareffect.Whetherin government,businessorcivilsociety,practitionersshouldrefrainfromengagingin contractingprocessesinvolvingfamilymembers. Collusionandcooption.Collaborationforopencontractingsoundsniceandfriendly,but breedsfamiliarityinthelongrun.Overthecourseoftheprocessthismayproveunhealthy ifthepractitionerslosetheirsenseofautonomy.Theymaybecomeuncriticaland complacenttowardsthefocusofthecontractmonitoring.Inotherwords,itrendersthe entireexerciseuseless.Practitionersshouldbeawareofthispossibilityandperiodically revisetheirprocessestopreventoraddressit. Networkcollapse.Onlyanetworkofgroupsofpractitionerscaneffectivelydoopen contracting,duetothesheervolumeofcontractsthatmustbemonitored,theintricacies ofthecontractingprocessrequiringdifferentkindsofexpertisetocheckit,andthebroad spectrumofstakeholderswhowillbeaffected.Thisposesthechallengeofmanagingthe network,keepingitintact,andgettingeveryoneonthesamepageasfarastheopen contractingmissionisconcerned.Thenetworkcouldbeintrasectorali.e.,anetwork withinthecivilsocietysector,withintheprivatesector,orperhapswithinthegovernment. Itcouldalsobeintersectoral,whichcastsawidenettocoverallofthesesectors.Itis oftenextremelydifficulttogetallthreesectorstogetherunderoneumbrellanetwork,and evenmoredifficulttomaintainit.
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POLITICALRISKS Politicalriskshappenwhentheabilitytopushforchangeisstalledorweakened.These maybeencounteredduringelectionsorwhentheleaderdemonstratesnopoliticalwillto pushfortheopencontractingagenda. Elections.Politicaltransitionshavetheabilitytoaffectchangeinnegativeways.Often,in themidstofelectoralprocessesorregimetransitions,theenablingenvironmentforopen contractingactivitiescandramaticallychange.Typicallyinelectoralperiods,attentionwill betakenoffaccountabilityeffortsandallfocuswillbeputinthecampaign,makingitvery difficulttoengageinnewactivitiesthatrequirepoliticalleadership.Thiscanalsohappenif incumbentleadersareinpracticalterms"lameducks".Similarly,ifpractitionershavehad goodsupportfromincumbentleadersandthereisachangeofregime,thereishighrisk oflosingspacebecausethenewoneswillnotwanttobeassociatedwithflagship programsfromthepreviousgovernment.Alltheseelementsshouldbetakenintoaccount whendesigningyourstrategies. However,politicaltransitionscanalsobeusedtostrengthenopencontractingactivities andboostpoliticalwillifmanagedinastrategicway.ForexampleinColombia,atthetime oflocalgovernmentelectionsorpresidentialelections,networksofCSOshavechallenged candidatestocommitthemselvestoensuredisclosureofcontractinginformationonce theyareelectedandhavemanagedtoincludesuchcommitmentsinthepoliticalagendas ofmanycandidates.Whenthecandidateshavebeensuccessfullyelected,these commitmentshaveallowedcivilsocietytodemandcompliancefromtheleadersand strengthentheplatformsforopencontracting.Considerusingthesesituationsinyour favoraswell! Politicalwill.Undertheframeworkofconstructiveengagement,theroleandsupportof governmentchampionsiscrucial.Toacertainextent,theleaderorthetopexecutive could'makeorbreak'theopencontractingagenda,thoughheorsheisnotthesole determinantofitssuccess.Suchpoliticalsupport,however,maynotalwayscomeabout, mayslowlywither,ormayallofasuddenbedenied.Thisisquitecommonintheworldof politics.Openadvocacymaygarnergoodfavornowfrompoliticalleaders,butthatcould quicklychangeifitbeginstohurttheirpoliticalambitions.Theinterestswithinwhichopen contractingoperatesmakesitsusceptibletodifferentattacks,includingthosefrom unknownfronts.Thismakespoliticaldecisionmakinghighlyvolatile.
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Reality+Risks
THEULTIMATERISK Perhapsthescariestofallrisksistheriskoffailureornotachievingthepurposeofthe opencontractingactivities.Whilewealsolearnfromfailures,suchconditionsmaycause peopletoquestionthepointofdoingit. Anotherproblemisfranticactivismthatdoesnotdriveeffectivechangeafterengagingin monitoringactivities.Manyexamplesexistofcivilsocietyactivitiesandreportsthathave beenproducedbutexpresslyignoredbydecisionmakerswhohavethepowertotake correctiveaction. Often,thedecisionmakersarenotbeenincludedintheprocessfromthebeginning,and coordinationandfeedbackmechanismshavenotbeenagreedinadvance.Becauseof this,civilsocietymonitoringeffortsandcorrespondingfindingsmay'fallondeafears'and createnoimpactwhatsoeveronthesituationstowhichtheyrefer.Engagingallthe relevantpartiesfromtheoutsetanddefiningthemethodsofcollaborationinadvanceare criticalstepsthatwillhelpincreasethepossibilitiesoftheactivities'success.Thelastthing wewantistohaveacollectionofglossyreportsthatnobodyhasactuallyusedtocreate positivechange!
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Open Contracting Dynamics

Whatarethedynamicsbehindopencontracting?Ifyourecallthetheoryofchange diagramfrom'UnderstandingtheBasics',thereareeightkeyelementsthatunderpinthe process:incentives,capacity,disclosure,participation,accountability,trust,legitimacyand performance.Let'stalkmoreabouteachofthemnow.
Incentives
Therearemanyreasonswhydifferentstakeholderstakeaninterestinopencontracting. Typicalreasonsmayinclude:
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Financial Aprocuringentitymayconsiderittoprovideameans,overtime,ofimprovingthevalue formoneyforpublicprojects. Commercial Aresponsibleprivatecompanywishingtocompeteonalevelplayingfieldmayseeitas ameansofensuringthatthemarketrewardsgoodperformance. Political Politicalrepresentativesorprospectivecandidatesmayconsiderittobepartofa popularagendathatwillenhancetheirlegitimacyintheeyesofthepublic. Economic Acountrywithademonstrablecommitmenttoaprogressiveopencontractingpolicy mayhaveaccesstomorefavorablelendingconditionsoraidprogrammes.
Togetherwithabasiclevelofcapacity,suchincentivesformthestartingpointforanopen contractinginitiativeinanycountry,acrosssectors.Theycanexistevenindifficult operatingenvironmentssuchasconflictaffectedorfragilestates.Whateverthecontext, thoseadvocatingopencontractingshouldconsiderwhatincentivesarelikelytoprove mostrelevantforeachspecificstakeholder.
Capacity
Capacityisakeyperformancedriver.Foranystakeholderintheprocess,capacity buildingconsistsofoneorseveralofthefollowing:
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Increasingtheavailablehumanormaterialresources. Improvingthemanagementsystems,proceduresandassociatedtools.
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Providingpracticaltrainingintheuseofthosemanagementsystems,proceduresand tools.Suchtrainingshouldbetailoredtomeetspecificneedsexpressedintermsofthe knowledge,skillsandattitudesneededbythoseresponsibleforspecificfunctions.
Alongwithincentives,capacityisnecessaryforappropriatedisclosure,oversightand participationinthecontractingprocess,fortheimplementationofaccountability mechanisms,andtoallowallopencontractingstakeholderstomakeoptimumuseofthe prevailinglegislativeenvironment.
Disclosure
Disclosurereferstotheofficialreleaseofkeyinformationrelatedtoaspecificcontracting process,whichcaneitherbe:
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Proactive,whenaprocuringentitymakessuchinformationavailableinthepublic domainatvariousstagesofthecontractchainor Reactive,whenadditionalinformationisprovidedonrequest.
Alongsideparticipation,disclosureisoneofthecorefeaturesofopencontracting.Ithelps toenhancelevelsofaccountabilityandtrustbyallowingCSOsandcitizenstoaccessand useinformationandaskappropriatequestions. Theextent,timelinessandrelevanceofdisclosuretypicallydependson:
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Applicablelawsandregulationsthateitherrequire,orconstrain,thedisclosureof certaininformation. Thecapacityofprocuringentitiestomanagetheirinformationrecords. Theexistenceofdefinedprocessestofacilitateanymandateddisclosureand dissemination. Theextenttowhichthepublicentityandcontractorsprovidinggoodsandservicesare confidentthatdisclosedinformationwillbeusedinaresponsibleandconstructive manner.
Opencontractingdoesnotnecessarilyrequirethatcontractsaredisclosedinfull.Itis generallyacceptedthatsomeelementsofcontractsmaybecommerciallysensitiveand soshouldnotbedisclosed.Butthebasicprincipleremainsoneofdisclosurebeingthe default,andconfidentialitytheexception.
Participation
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OpenContractingDynamics
Participation
Togetherwithdisclosure,participationisacoreelementofopencontractingandideally coversallstagesofthecontractingprocess.Ittypicallyoccursattwolevels:
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Attheofficialoversightlevel,wherededicatedinstitutionsarelegallyresponsiblefor generatingandinsomecasesdisclosinginformationrelatedtothecreation, managementandfulfillmentofcontracts.Insuchcases,suitablyqualified(andtrained) representativesfromcivilsocietymayhaveamandateorpermissiontoparticipate, eitherasobserversoractiveparticipants,inspecificfunctionssuchasbidevaluationor progressreviews.Suchengagementwouldseektobeconstructive,butmayinsome cases,afterotheravenueshavebeenexhausted,resultinpublicairingofpotential concerns. Atthepubliclevel,whereindividualcitizenscanparticipateinallcontractingstages, fromplanningtoclosure. Planningengagementintheneedsassessment,feasibilitystudyandproject design,tomeetexpressedneeds. Tenderingandawardthirdpartycheckingoftheselectionprocess. Contractexecutionpresentingcontractfeaturesinanaccessibleway,monitoring contractdeliveryandaskingquestionsorraisingconcerns. Closurefollowinguptoensureproblemsareresolved.
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Suchparticipationcanconstituteanimportantsourceofscrutinyandinformationabout thecontractimplementation.Thecivilsocietyparticipationaspectsofopencontractingare dependentondisclosureofcontractdatathatareavailable,andthatthisdataarereliable andreadilyunderstood.Itisalsoessentialthatappropriatechannelsexistforconcernsor grievancestobeexpressed.
Accountability
Whilecapacityisneededtomakeperformancepossible,accountabilityisneededto ensurelegitimateperformance.Itoccurswhenanindividualororganisationisanswerable foritsactions,orthelackofthem.Beingaccountablemeansacceptingresponsibilityand beingpreparedifnecessarytoprovideevidenceofappropriateconduct.Shouldsuch evidencebelacking,thensanctionmechanismsmaybeappliedbytherelevantauthority. Forinstance,atthemostbasiclevel,sanctioningofacontractorconstituteswithholdingof payment.
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Atboththeindividualandorganisationallevel,andattheformalandinformallevel,each ofthestakeholdersinvolvedinopencontractingissubjecttoasetofaccountability mechanisms.Someareinternallyapplied,forexamplebycodesofethics,andothersare externallyimposed,includingthroughcontractsandtheapplicationoflawsand regulations.Withinorganisations,staffmembersareaccountabletotheirmanagement,to theiroperatingstandards,tofinancialreportingnorms,andrelevantenvironment regulations.
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Publicofficialsareheldaccountablethroughelections,andinternalandexternal controlmechanismswhichultimatelyconstituteaccountabilitytotaxpayers. Civilsocietyorganizationsareheldaccountablebytheirgoverningbodies,financial supporters,andultimatelybytheirbeneficiariesormembers. Privatecompaniesareheldaccountablebytheirclients,boardsofdirectors, shareholdersandaffectedcommunities. Individualprofessionalsareheldaccountabletotheirprofessions.Codesof professionalconducttypicallyincludemandatoryrequirementstoservethepublic interestandtoavoidbringingtheprofessionintodisrepute.
Opencontractingshouldseektoreinforceaccountabilitymechanisms.Itisparticularly importantinthisregardforcivilsocietyandwhistleblowerstounderstandandworkwith thespecificrelevantaccountabilitymechanismsintheircontext.Bymappingand understandingthem,itmaybepossibletoinitiatecorrectiveactionsthroughestablished institutions,ratherthaninisolation.
Trust
Trustiswhatallowsperformancetoflourish,aseachpartytoacontracthasconfidencein theintegrityandabilitiesofthosewithwhomtheyareworking. Bycontrast,alackoftrustisoneofthemostcommon,yetmostneglected,causesofpoor performanceandassociatedcorruptionrisksinpubliccontracting.Suchpoorperformance istypicallymanifestedastimedelaysandcostoverruns.Theeffectsoftrustdeficitsare corrosiveandprogressivelyadverse. Asadriverofgoodperformance,trustisnotblind,butisassociatedwithaccountability andlegitimacy.Disclosureandparticipationfacilitatetrustasinformationandopportunities forconstructiveengagementincreasetoinformandimprovethecontractingprocess.Asa result,consistenttrustworthyperformanceincentivizesfuturecontracts,bothfinancialand social.
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OpenContractingDynamics
Believeitornot,trustcanbemeasured,andappropriatecorrectiveactionreadilytaken. Thoughmorecommonlyusedintheprivateratherthanpublicsector,trustmetricsisan establishedpractice.Simpletrustauditscanreadilybedesignedandundertakento reliably,objectivelyandconsistentlyassessoveralllevelsoftrust,eitherwithinan organisation,orbetweenkeystakeholders.Thesameauditscanpinpointthekeycauses ofanytrustdeficits,sothattheycanthenbesystematicallyaddressed.
Legitimacy
Performancecanbeenhancedinalegitimatemannerwhenallstakeholdersareactingin accordancewithagreedprotocolsandapplicablecontractualorregulatoryprovisions.Any grievancesthatariseareaddressedinacarefullyconsideredmannermaintaining accountabilityandtrustintheprocess,whilethesourcesoftheimprovedperformanceare clearlyidentifiedandcloselymonitored. Bycontrast,anylackoflegitimacythatdistortstheproperfunctioningofanopen contractingprocesscanleadtoalienationofthepublicandthelossofleverageof monitoringactions.Shouldthatoccur,thewholeprocessriskscollapse.Itistherefore importanttomaintainahighleveloflegitimacyandtomanagestakeholderexpectations ofwhatcanrealisticallybeachieved.
Performance
Performanceistypicallyexpressedintermsofachievingtheintendedcontractoutputsto specifiedquantity,quality,responsiveness,timelinessandcost.Morebroadly,itaimsto dosoinamannerthatprovidessustainablesocialandeconomicbenefits. Disclosureofacontract,orkeypartsofit,providesaccesstodetaileddataonthe expectedperformanceofthecontractor.Opencontractingthusprovidesthebasisfor legitimatecivilsocietyassessmentofperformance. Performanceshouldbedefinedbyasetofmeasurableindicatorsrelateddirectlyor indirectlytocontractexecution.Suchindicatorsareusedtoassessmultipleaspectsofthe contractsuchas:
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Completionofpriorstudiesandothermandatoryactions. Thesourceandqualityofmaterialsused. Physicaldimensionsofinfrastructure. Compliancewithcontractagreementsconcerningtheengagementoflocallabour. Timingandprogrammingofimplementation.
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Socialandenvironmentalconsiderationsasspecifiedinthecontracts. Compliancewithapplicableinternationalornationalstandards.
Demonstrableimprovementsinperformanceareofcentralimportanceinbuildingthe legitimacynecessaryfortheopencontractingworktodevelop.Sotooisthetrustthatis establishedamongstakeholdersbydemonstratingthatallactorsinvolvedinthe contractingprocessareproperlytrained,behaveresponsibly,andarethemselvesheld accountablefortheiractions.
Enabling Environment
Theenablingenvironmentrelatestotheinstitutional,legal,technicalandculturalcontext inwhichgoodsorservicesareprocured.Thatcontextcaneitherenhanceorinhibitopen contracting.Itprovidesthemeansbywhichpubliccontractsareincreasinglyidentifiedas contributingtothepublicgood. Thesumofexperienceofmultiplecontractssubjectedtodisclosureitselfenrichesthe enablingenvironment.Thisallowshighlevelcomparisonstobemadeofthecontract performance,leadingtoanunderstandingofpotentialimprovementstothecontracting chain.Suchanexercisewoulddependonthedevelopmentandmaintenanceofarobust contractsdatabase. Inindividualcases,contractsthatareparticularlywellformulatedormanagedcan succeeddespitetheabsenceofasuitableenablingenvironment.Overtime,however, suchsuccessesareunlikelytobesustainedinthefaceoflegal,proceduralorother obstacles.Bycontrast,anenablingenvironmentthatisconducivetogoodpracticewill, overtime,haveanoverallpositiveeffectonpubliccontracting. Iamapartyofcontractsbeingmadeonmybehalf.AndIdidn'tevenknow. Adam
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Enabling Environment
Theinstitutional,legal,technicalandculturalcontextswithinwhichopencontracting activitiestakeplacehasasignificantimmediateeffectonitsprospectsforsuccess,andon thedegreetowhichitcanrealisticallybesustainedanddevelopedovertime.Thatiswhy opencontractingencouragespolicies,laws,andinstitutionalarrangementsthatpromote, facilitateorreinforcethebroaderadoptionandbetterimplementationofbasicprinciplesof accountableandresponsivegovernment.
Key Dimensions
Whatdoesanenablingenvironmentlooklike,andhowcanitbedevelopedovertime?To answerthisquestionwecanconsiderthisintermsofthreedimensions,representing:
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Thelegalandregulatorycontext Theinstitutionalandcollaborativecontextand Thedatamanagementanddisclosurecontext.
LEGALANDREGULATORYCONTEXT Thishasabearingon,andinsomecasescontrolover,theextenttowhichdataonpublic procurementmayormaynotbedisclosed.Italsogovernstheextenttowhichcivilsociety hasamandatetoparticipateinorcontributetooversightfunctions. Evenwhenthereisnolawspecificallypermittingorrequiringsuchdisclosureor participation,itcansometimesbeinferredthroughorganiclawintheformofgeneral principlesofanationalconstitution,orspecificguidelinesorprotocolsassociatedwith particularsectors.WherethepoliticalwillandCSOcapacityexists,thismaybesufficient toallowforaMemorandumofUnderstanding(MoU)betweenarepresentativeCSOand government.Thiswouldsetoutunderlyingprinciples,objectives,andresponsibilitiesof eachpartyeffectivelycreatingaspacetoact,butwithcertainlimitations.Becauseofits limitedscopeandduration,anditsunenforceablenature,anMoUisnotanideal arrangement.Neverthelessitrepresentsanimportantfirststep. Muchbetteristhecreationofaconciselegalandregulatoryframeworkforthirdparty monitoring.Suchprovisionsneedtobecarefullyformulatedtoreflectthefundamental featuresoftransparency,verifiability,integrityandaccountability,includingenforcement provisions.
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Evenwhenassociatedregulationsareinplace,thefactthatlawshavebeenpasseddoes notinitselfmeanthatcivilservantshavethecapacitytoimplementthem.Forthisto happen,wemayneedtheallocationoffinancialandhumanresources,andnecessarily entailsthedevelopmentofdetailedproceduresandassociatedguidelineswithpractical training. INSTITUTIONALANDCOLLABORATIVECONTEXT Thisrelatestothecommitment,cohesionandcapacityofcivilsocietytopromoteopen contractingwithinthebroadernationalcontext. Thestartingpointisthatasmallcivilsocietygroupdevelopsacommitmenttothe principlesofopencontracting,andpursuesactivitiesthatitiscapableofhandlingwithin thelimitedsectoralandgeographiccontextinwhichitoperates. Whenasufficientnumberofsuchinitiativesexist,theygroupmemberslearnfromeach others'experience,sharingideasandgrowinginexperience,confidence,andreputation. Ifsuchcollaborationissuccessfulitmaydevelopovertimeintoaninformalnetwork,and eventuallyamoreformalstructure. Evenwhenaformalstructureisdevelopedintheformofanumbrellaorganisationfor largenumbersofinterestedCSOs,therearelikelytobeseverecapacityconstraintsthat limititsmembers'abilitytoundertakeeffectivemonitoring.Forthatcapacitytobe enhanceditisnecessarytodevelop,test,refine,providetraininginandapplyagrowing libraryofsimpletoolsandprocedures.Ascivilsocietymonitoringdependsheavilyon volunteers,thisprocessshouldnotberushed.Expectationsshouldtobecarefully managedtoensurethathighstandardsaremaintained,therebyfurtherenhancingthe reputationofopencontractingandpotentiallygeneratingmoreinterestanddemand. Inthelongtermthiscouldleadtoahighlyorganisedcollaborativestructurewith considerablecapacity. Itisnotenoughtodisclosecontractinginformation,opencontractingtakesita stepfurtherandadvocatesforthatcontractdatatobepublishedinauser friendlywayforcitizenstoengageandparticipateinclosingtheloopNorma
p
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EnablingEnvironment
DATAMANAGEMENTANDDISCLOSURECONTEXT Effectivecollection,storageanduseofdataliesattheheartofperformancemanagement andrelatedmonitoring.Informationcannotbedisclosedifitcannotbefound,orifitwas nevercollectedinthefirstplace.Andtobeusefulininformingdecisionsithastobe accurate,reliable,andconsistentovertime.Obstaclestodisclosuremayincludecapacity constraintswithingovernment,aswellasanyreluctancebyofficialstopartwith information.Simplybypromotingimproveddatamanagementwithingovernment,open contractingisthusalsocontributingmoregenerallytoimprovedperformance management,creatingavirtuouscycle. Intermsofavailabilityofinformation,thestartingpointisthateverycountryhasabudget processandrelatedproceduresfordetailingplannedexpendituresandrecordingactual disbursementsatthenational,regionalandlocallevel.Thisprovidesanarrayofpossible initialentrypointsformodestopencontractingactivitiesunderwhichsomelimited informationmaybemadeavailabletothirdparties. Thenextstageisthemoreformaldisclosureofsuchdata.Wheredatadisclosureis mandatedbylaw,thoserequestinginformationarenotnecessarilyunderanyobligationto explainthereasonfororultimatepurposeoftherequest.However,inkeepingwiththe objectiveoftrustbuildingitisgoodtoexplainhowsuchdisclosurewouldhelptoimprove thequalityofpublicprocurement. Inpracticesuchdatacanbeproblematicintermsofitscompleteness,robustnessand clarity.ThenextstageofdataavailabilityisthereforeaManagementInformationSystem withunderlyingdatabasesthat,ifwelldesignedandimplemented,ensurehigherlevelsof consistency,reliabilityandtimelinessofaccurateinformation. Theultimateexpressionofdataavailabilityisachievedthroughegovernment,which entailsrealtimedigitalinteractionsinternallywithingovernment,betweengovernmentand itscivilservants,andexternallybetweengovernmentandtheprivatesectororthe citizens.
Mapping The Enabling Environment

Thesethreedimensionsorcontextscanreadilybemapped.Onthefigurebelowprogress alongeachofthethreeaxescorrespondstotheprogressivedevelopmentofanenabling environmentasdescribedabove.Thesmall,intermediateandlargecubesrepresent minimum,intermediateandoptimumstatesoftheenablingenvironment.
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Mappingtheenablingenvironmentofacountryorcommunityinthiswayservestoclarify itscurrentprofile,aswellasthenextstepsrequiredintermsofprogressively strengtheningeachofthethreedimensions.Thismayentailpilotingnewmonitoring activitiesaspartofaprocessofdemonstratingtheeffectivenessofopencontractingin buildingtrustandstrengtheningaccountability. Moredetailedguidanceisprovidedelsewhereinthisbookonstrengtheningthe collaborativecontextoftheinstitutionaldimension.
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How Do We Keep It Going?

Nowwhat?Whathappensafteropencontractingactivitiesarecompleted?Howdowe maintainmomentumandmakesurethatopencontractingbecomesthenorm? Thischapterlooksatwhatisneededforpractionerstosustainopencontractingintheir communities,countries,andonthegloballevel.Therearemanyingredientsthat contributetodeepeningandexpandingopencontracting,butherewewillfocuson institutionalizationandfunding.Webelievethatthesetwoissuescanmakeorbreakthe futureofopencontracting. Youneverknowwhereanideacango,giveitatryandmaybeanewsocial movementcancomeoutofitKathrin
Institutionalizing Open Contracting

Opencontractingisnotyetthenormaloracceptedwayofdoingbusiness.Asdescribedin earlierchapters,contractdisclosureandparticipationarestilltoooftensporadicefforts, drivenbysinglechampionsandwithlimitedornofollowupactiontomonitoring. Thislackofinstitutionalizationthreatensthesustainabilityofopencontracting.For example,itmakesopencontractingvulnerabletochangesinpoliticalwill,andalso createsariskthatalackofresultsmaylesseninterestinpromotingopencontracting.
What To Do?
Whilenocountryhasfullyinstitutionalizedopencontracting,thereareavarietyofwaysto makedisclosureandparticipationinpubliccontractingmoremainstream.Someofthese approachesrequirelegalaction,suchasincludingformalrequirementsforopen contractinginthelaworpolicies.Othermeansofinstitutionalizingopencontractingaim moreatbuildingasocialmovement,changingpeoples'valuesorincreasingcapacitiesof keystakeholderstoengage. Thereareseveralexamplesacrosstheworldofhowopencontractinghasbeen institutionalizedthroughvariouslegalmeasures:
"
TheMongolianPublicProcurementLawincludesaformalroleforcivilsocietyand professionalorganisationsinbidevaluationsandcontractmonitoring.
87
" " " " "
ThePhilippinesProcurementLawmandatescivilsocietyandprivatesectorparticipation atallstagesoftheprocurementprocess. Mexicohasalegallymandated'socialwitness'programtoallowCSOparticipationin procurement.In2010socialwitnessesparticipatedinover120publicprocurement processesvaluedatUS$14billion. TheIndianRighttoInformationAct(2005)specifiesthatcontractsaredisclosable (subjecttosomelimitations.) InAfghanistan,PresidentialDecree45requirestheMinistryofEconomytopublishall contractssignedintheprecedingthreeyears. Globalinitiatives,includingtheOpenGovernmentPartnership,theExtractiveIndustries TransparencyInitiativeortheConstructionSectorTransparencyInitiative,alsorequire thereleaseofcertaincontractinginformation.
Therearealsononlegalmeansthatcontributetoinstitutionalizingopencontracting.They aimtorecruitmorepeopletothecauseofopencontracting,buildingtheircapacitiesand changingbeliefsandbehaviorsaroundpubliccontracting.Examplesinclude:
"
Inseveralcountries,includingUgandaandKenya,networksofCSOshavesigned MemorandaofUnderstandingandotherformsofcooperationagreementswithvarious governmentagencies.Thesememorandahelptoformalizecooperationacross stakeholders.Theseagreementsarenotlegallybindingbutsignalacommitmentfrom allsidestoworktogether. Trainingandeducationprogramsforgroupswishingtoengageinthemonitoringof contractingactivitiescanhelptobuildmorecapacity.TheGovernmentProcurement PolicyBoardinthePhilippinesisanexampleofagovernmentagencythatorganizes trainingsformonitorsseekingabetterunderstandingoftheprocurementprocess,and therelatedlawsandregulations. Anewerapproachlookstoanewgenerationofopencontractingpractitionersforwhom disclosureandparticipationaredeeplyrootedvalues.Inthisspirit,several organisationsareworkingtobuildthecapacityofstudentstoengageinopen contracting.Forexample,theTeacherCreativityCenterinPalestineworkswith teachersandstudentsonsocialauditsofprojectsofpublicconcern,includinghospitals andwastemanagementinKenya,someelementaryschoolshaveestablishedIntegrity Clubstoeducatechildrenaboutethics,anticorruption,andinsomeinstancesopen contractingitself. Campaigningcanbeapowerfulwaytochangeperceptionsandattitudes.Civilsociety organisationspushingforimprovedtransparencyinextractiveindustriessuccessfully campaignedtomakecontractdisclosurearequirementintheIFCperformance standards.
"
"
"
88
HowDoWeKeepItGoing?
"
Tobetrulysustainableopencontractingneedstobecomeasocialmovementthat involvesmoreandmorepeople.Thereisalreadyanemergingcommunityof practitionersofopencontractingthatwearetryingtorapidlygrow.Findoutmoreabout thisexpandingcommunityatwww.opencontracting.org.
Financing Open Contracting

Oneofthebiggestchallengestothesustainabilityofopencontractingissecuring resourcesinthelongterm.Manyorganisationsstrugglewithlimitedfundingthatisoften dependentondonorsoravailableonlyforrelativelyshorttimeframes.Asopen contractinggrows,moreinnovativefinancingsolutionsareneededtoensurethe sustainabilityoftheeffort.Possiblewaysforwardmayinclude:
" " "
Thecreationofacoalitionrelatedtoopencontractingtogainleverageinobtaining fundingandsharingresources.Acoalitionalsohasagreaterleverageandstrengthto obtaincollectiveresults,whichisattractivetodonors. Workingwithvolunteermonitorscommittedtopublicservicehelpstokeepoverhead costslowandcanallowthecreationoflargenetworksoflocalmonitors. Dependingonthequalityofdataprovidedbycivilsociety,thestatemightbeinterested infinancingthedatacollectionandanalysis.Thisapproachrequiresveryhighquality outputandanddesign,andshouldrepresentarealbenefitforthepartiesusingthat service. CSOscouldalsocreatetoolsthatareusedbythestateorotherentitiestomanageand coordinatetheircontractingmanagement.Thestateorthecompanywouldthenpaya userfeeorgiveasubscriptiontousethetools. Civilsocietycouldlobbyforatax(e.g.<1%)onpubliccontractingdedicatedtofunding thirdpartymonitoring.Inordertomaintainindependence,thetaxshouldnotbe administeredbythestatebutbyatrustfundoranentitythatwouldguaranteeits impartialdisbursement. Anotheremergingideaistoengageadditionalselffundedorganisationsinopen contracting,suchasprofessionalassociationsormembershipclubs.Organisations, includingboyscouts,Rotaryclubsorprofessionalengineers,generatetheirown revenuesthroughmembershipfeesandarethusindependentofdonors. Somecountriesaresupportingnewdonorfundingmechanisms:Mongoliarecently optedintotheGlobalPartnershipforSocialAccountability(GPSA),adonorfunded grantsystemthatwillallowcivilsocietygroupstoapplyforcorefundingformonitoring activitiesformultipleyears.WhiletheGPSAisstilldonorfunded,itaddressesthe problemofshorttermfunding.
" "
"
"
89
ThePhilippinesisoneofthemoreadvancedopencontractingcountriesasithas formallegalrequirementsforCSOparticipationinprocurement.Untilnow,most procurementmonitoringhasbeenfundedbydonors,buttheyarebeginningto allocatefewerfundstothistypeofwork.Thegovernmentdoesprovidesome fundingforCSOs,mainlytocoverallowancesformonitors,butitisnotsufficient.In addition,manyCSOsarereluctanttoacceptmoneyfromthegovernment,striving topreservetheirroleasindependentwatchdogsandavoidanyconflictsof interest.Asaformofinnovativefinancing,agroupofcompaniesknownasthe MakatiBusinessClubcontributedtoafundtoprovidesmallgrantstolocalCSOs andcommunitiesforprocurementtrainingandmonitoring. Thesearejustafewexamplesofhowopencontractingisorcouldberesourced.More experimentingandtestingisnecessarytoestablishcreativeandsustainablesolutionsto financingopencontracting.
90
What's Next?
Seriously,howoftendoyoureadthe'termsandconditions'beforeyouagreeto somethingonline?Howcloselydoyoureadthe'legalese'beforesigningonthedotted line? Afterreadingthisbook,wehopethatyouatleasttakeatimeforreflectionbeforesigning, understandinghowcontractingmatters.Ifyoutakeonlyonemessageawayfromthis book,letitbethis:Contractsinvolvingtaxpayers'moneyareapublicgood,andyoucan makeadifferencebytakingpartinopencontractingprocesses. Thenexttimeyouseethisbook,thinkabouttheschoolinyourneighborhood, thinkabouttheprioritiesthatyouwouldlikeyourgovernmenttoaddressand howyoucanparticipateintheprocessSeember
p
Wewill:
Thisbookisjustthebeginning.Wearecommittedtocontinuingtogrowandcontinuously strengthenourcommunityofopencontractingpractitioners.
" "
Makethisbookpubliclyavailablefordownloadandsocialsharing.Youcanplayarole insharingitwithyourfriendsthroughourwebsiteandonlineCommunityofPractice: www.opencontracting.organdwww.proact.org. Continuetoshareourknowledge,developnewtoolsandcollectexistingopen contractingexperiences.Wewillalsotrytoofferadditionaltrainingandcapacity developmentopportunitiesforpractitioners.Thismightincludecomplementarybook sprintssuchasthisone.Inparticular,wewouldliketoexperimentwithgroundbreaking onlineapplicationsbasedonthisbook.Thinkaboutanappthatletsyoumapyour environmentanddesignyouradvocacystrategytoengagecitizensandgovernmentsto promoteaccountability. Growthecommunityofpractitioners.Opencontractingisonitswaytobecominga forcefulsocialmovement.Tocoordinate,fundandscaleupourinitialefforts,weneed todemonstratethebenefitsofopencontractingtomorepeople,andtoengagethemin themovement.
"
Mostimportantly,wehopethatyoujoinouropencontractingschooloffish.Togetherwe canmakeopencontractingareality.
91
Joinusatwww.opencontracting.org.YoucanalsofollowusonTwitterbyusing #OpenContractingandlikeourOpenContractingFacebook page(www.facebook.com/OpenContracting).
92
Conclusion
Sprinters Glossary Resources
93
Conclusion
94
Sprinters
Thisbookwouldnothavebeenpossiblewithoutthetirelesscontributionsofaveryspecial group.Comingtogetherfromcountriesacrosstheworld,theOpenContractingSprinters dedicatedfivefulldaystotheproductionofthiswork,sharingtheirknowledge, experiences,energy,andpatiencetocreateabookfromtitletoconclusionfromJune 10ththroughJune14th,2013. Theresultistrulyacollaborativeeffort,intermsofprocessandcontentincluding perspectivesfromrepresentativesofgovernment,civilsociety,privatesector,academia, andothersandwelookforwardtoseeingitscontinuedevolution.Ahugethankyou, gracias,merci,obrigado,bayarlalaa,tapadhleat,tashakkur,asante,tikahoki,webale, barka,medase,oshe,rahmat,grazie,danke,andsalamattoallthosewhojoined! SaraDanish isaMemberoftheOpenContractingteamattheWorldBankInstitute. LorenzoDelesguesisChairmanandFoundingMemberofIntegrityWatchAfghanistan. FlorenceDennisisExecutiveSecretaryoftheGhanaAntiCorruptionCoalition. KathrinFrauscherisaGovernanceSpecialistwiththeOpenContractingteamatthe WorldBankInstitute. NormaGarzaisaMemberoftheOpenContractingteamattheWorldBankInstitute. HamishGoldieScotisaConsultantfocusedonpropoorinternationaldevelopmentat URSInfrastructureandEnvironmentUKLtd. AdamHydeistheFounderoftheBookSprintsmethodologyandfacilitatesBookSprints forawidevarietyoforganisations. CareyKluttzisaMemberoftheOpenContractingteamattheWorldBankInstitute. CludioMendonaistheGraphicDesignerfortheOpenContractingteamattheWorld BankInstitute. SeemberNyageristheProgramOfficeratthePublicandPrivateDevelopmentCentreof Nigeria. NorovjavOtgonjargalor"Otgoo"isaProcurementExpertwiththePublicProcurement PartnershipNGOinMongolia.
95
Conclusion
RedemptoSantanderParafinaor"Dondon"istheExecutiveDirectoroftheAffiliated NetworkforSocialAccountabilityinEastAsiaandthePacific. NicolsPenagosisAdvisortotheGeneralDirectoratColombiaCompraEficiente,the NationalPublicProcurementAgencyofColombia. MarcelaRozo isTeamLeaderforOpenContractingandProcurementattheWorldBank Institute. FelipeSaboyaisProjectCoordinatorforPublicPoliciesattheInstitutoEthosinBrazil. ClaireSchouten isProgrammeDirectoroftheNetworkforIntegrityinReconstructionat IntegrityAction. GilbertSendugwaisCoordinatorandHeadofSectetariatfortheAfricaFreedomof InformationCentreinUganda.
96
Glossary
Accountabilityistheresponsibilityforsomethinganactororgroupofactorshavedone orareexpectedtodo,usuallydefinedbymandateorpublicexpectations.Itincludeswhen anindividualororganisationisanswerableforitsactions,orthelackofthem.Being accountablemeansacceptingresponsibilityandbeingprepared,ifnecessary,toprovide evidenceofappropriateconduct.Shouldsuchevidencebelacking,thensanction mechanismsmaybeappliedbytherelevantauthority. Advocacyisanyactionmeanttodiffuseamessageorapositionwiththegoalof influencingpolicy.Itcanbeasingleinterventionorcontinuousactivitywithshort,medium andlongtermobjectives.Itencompassesavarietyofactivities,suchaspress conferences,closedmeetings,articlepublication,publicdebates,townhallmeetingsand training.Inmanycontexts,advocacydiffersfromlobbyinginthatlobbyingisavery specifictypeofadvocacydirectedatinfluencingspecificlegislation.Inmanycontexts, lobbyingentitiesmustberegistered,whileadvocacyactivitiesneednotbe. Baselineisthestartingpointofanobservablevariable,priortoaspecificinterventionthat ismeanttobemeasuredforchangeovertime. Beneficiaryisanindividualwhoistheultimatetargetandrecipientofapublicgood. BillofQuantity(BoQ)isadocumentusedintenderingintheconstructionindustryin whichmaterialpartsandlabor(andtheircosts)areitemized.ABoQcanbeunpricedand indicaterequiredquantitiesofeachitem,orpricedbyindividualbidder,althoughthelatter mightbeconfidential. BookSprintisanintensecollaborativebookproductionprocessthatproducesabookin 3to5days.ASprintisstronglyfacilitated. Capacityistheavailabilityofresources,andtheefficiencyandeffectivenesswithwhich societiesdeploytheseresourcestoidentifyandpursuetheirdevelopmentgoalsona sustainablebasis. CapacityDevelopmentisalocallydrivenprocessoflearningbychangeagentsthatlead tochangesinlocalownership,policy,andorganisationalfactorsthataffectinstitutional capacityforbetterdevelopmentgoals. CivilSocietyreferstothewidearrayofnongovernmentalandnotforprofit organisationsandactiviststhathaveapresenceinpubliclife,expressingtheinterestsand valuesoftheirmembers.
97
Conclusion
CivilSocietyOrganisations(CSOs)refertoawideofarrayoforganisations:community groups,nongovernmentalorganisations(NGOs),labourunions,indigenousgroups, charitableorganisations,faithbasedorganisations,professionalassociations,and foundations. CoalitionBuilding isaprocessofengagementamongkeystakeholders,withacommon viewtoachievesharedobjectivesandplayatransformationalroleforaparticularsetof issues. Coalitionsrefertothecomingtogetherofindividuals,groups,organisations,oreven nations,toachieveacommonpurpose. Collusion isasecretagreementbetweentwoormorepartiesforafraudulent,illegal,or deceitfulpurpose. CommunityBuilding referstotheactivitiesofpublicmobilisationthroughinformation sharing,elections,organisationofpublicforaoranyotheractivities,withthegoalofthe organisationofcommunitiessotheycanplayacollaborativeroletopressureorhavetheir voicetakenintoaccountinadecisionmakingprocess.Thecommunitybuildingprocess shouldaimatbecomingselfmaintainedandsustainable. CommunityofPracticeisagroupofpeoplewhoshareacommoninterestorexperience andsupporteachotherthroughlearningandsharing. ConflictofInterestisasituationthathasthepotentialtounderminetheimpartialityofa personduetothepossibilityofaclashbetweentheperson'sselfinterestand professionalorpublicinterest. ConstructiveEngagementisarangeofprocessesthatbringstakeholderstogetherto achievepositivechangeandreformsingovernance.Constructiveengagementinvolves dialoguebetweenandamongallstakeholders.Approachescandifferamonggroups,soit isimportantthattrustisestablishedbetweenandamongallstakeholders. Contractisunderstoodinthisbookasaformalagreementinvolvingapublicentity. ContractingProcessisthesequenceofeventsrelatedtothelifespanofacontract, beginningwithplanningandculminatingincontractclosure.Itiscontestedwhetherthisis achainorinfactacycle,astheresultsreportedthroughouttheprocessshouldbeused toinformsubsequentcontractingpractices. Contractorisanorganisationorindividualthatcontractswithanotherorganisationor individual(theownerofthecontract)fortheconstructionofabuilding,roadorother facilityorthedeliveryofservices.Whenanindividualorbusinessthatsignsacontractto
98
Glossary
performpartoralloftheobligationsofanother'scontract,weusethetermof Subcontractor. Corruption istheabuseofofficeforprivategain. CoST standsfortheConstructionSectorTransparencyInitiative. DemandSidereferstonongovernmentalactorsinthecontextofgovernance. Disclosurereferstotheofficialreleaseofalimitedamountofkeyinformationrelatedtoa specificcontractingprocess. Effectivenessisthedegreetowhichobjectivesareachieved,andtheextenttowhich targetedproblemsaresolved. Efficiencydescribestheextenttowhichtime,effortorcostiswellusedfortheintended taskorpurpose. EITIstandsforExtractiveIndustriesTransparencyInitiative. EnablingEnvironmentreferstothepolicies,laws,regulations,externalinstitutional arrangements,andotherfactorsthatestablishthebroadersettingwithinwhich procurementisundertaken,andoverwhichithasnodirectcontrol. EquityConsideration usuallyreferstofairnessforallpartiesinvolvedinaprocess. Governanceencompassestheroleofpublicauthoritiesinestablishingtheenvironmentin whicheconomicoperatorsfunctionandindeterminingthedistributionofbenefitsaswell astherelationshipbetweentherulerandtheruled. Incentivesarethereasonsfordifferentstakeholderstotakeaninterestinopen contracting.Thesearemanyandvaried,buttypicallyarecomposedoffinancial, commercial,political,legalandeconomicaldimensions. Legitimacyexistswhenallstakeholdersareactinginaccordancewithagreedprotocols andapplicablecontractualorregulatoryprovisions,andgivesrisetotrust. Lobbying istheactofattemptingtoinfluencespecificlegislationordecisionsmadeby officialsinthegovernment,mostoftenlegislatorsormembersofregulatoryagencies. MemorandumofUnderstanding(MoU)isadocumentdescribingabilateralor multilateralagreementbetweentwoormoreparties.Itexpressesaconvergenceofwill betweentheparties,indicatinganintendedcommonlineofaction.Itisoftenusedin caseswherepartieseitherdonotimplyalegalcommitmentorinsituationswherethe
99
Conclusion
partiescannotcreatealegallyenforceableagreement. Monitoring istheprocessofcomparingwhatishappeningwithwhatshouldbe happening. MultiStakeholderApproach referstoaprocessallowingmultipleactorstoprovide legitimateinputsandtoexertaleverageintakingdecisions. NonStateActorreferstoalltheactorsdifferentandindependentfromthestate structures.TheseincluderepresentativesofCSOs,privatecompanies,individualcitizens, media,etc. OpenBudgetsreferstomoretransparent,participatoryandaccountablebudgeting. OpenContracting referstonormsandpracticesforincreaseddisclosureand participationinpubliccontracting.Itcoverstheentirecontractingprocessfromplanningto fulfillmentofcontractobligations,includingtendering,performanceandassetdisposal.It includesthevarietyofcontracttypes,frommorebasiccontractsfortheprocurementof goodstocomplexcontracts,jointventureagreements,licensesandproductionsharing agreements.Opencontractingencompassesallpubliccontracting,includingcontracts fundedbycombinationsofpublic,privateanddonorsources. OpenGovernmentreferstotransparent,effectiveandaccountablegovernmentswith institutionsthatempowercitizensandareresponsivetocitizensaspiration. Oversightreferstothereview,monitoring,andsupervisionofagencies,programmes, activities,andpolicyimplementation. OversightAuthorityisagovernmentorganisation,sometimesindependent,that overseesandregulatesagencies,programs,activities,andpolicyimplementation. Participation ideallycoversallstagesofthecontractingcycleandtypicallyoccursattwo levels:1)attheofficialoversightlevelwherededicatedinstitutionsarelegallyresponsible forgeneratingandinsomecasesdisclosinginformationand2)atthepubliclevelwhere individualcitizenshaveaccesstodetailsoncontractsinvolvingpublicmoney.Such participationcanconstituteanimportantsourceforthirdpartymonitoring. ParticipatoryEngagementreferstothemeasuresensuringallstakeholdersareableto interveneatvariousdegreesinthedecisionmakingprocess. Performanceistypicallyexpressedintermsofachievingtheintendedcontractoutputsto thespecifiedquantity,quality,responsiveness,timeliness,economicandsocialspillover, andcost.Morebroadlyitaimstodosoinamannerthatprovidessustainablesocialand
100
Glossary
economicbenefits. Planning ,intermsofcontracting,referstoanearlystageofpreparation.Morebroadlyit meanslookingaheadandgettingreadyforanactivity. Practitionerisapersonactivelyengagedinopencontracting,governance,orrelated efforts. Procurementistheprocesswhichcreates,managesandfulfillscontracts. PublicPrivatePartnership(PPP)isagovernmentserviceorprivatebusinessventure whichisfundedandoperatedthroughapartnershipofgovernmentandoneormore privatesectorcompanies. Riskisthepotentialthatagivenactivityoraction(includingthechoiceofinaction)will leadtoaloss(anundesirableoutcome). Resultisaconsequence,effect,oroutcomeofanactivityorintervention. SMART standsforSpecific,Measurable,Achievable,RelevantandTimebound,andisa mnemotechnicwaytodefineanindicator. Stakeholdersreferstoalltheactors(institutionalorindividuals)involveddirectlyor indirectlyinagivenprocess.Stakeholdersandtheirinteractionswithoneanothercanbe mapped. SupplySidereferstorequestsemanatingfromgovernmentactorsinthecontextof governance. Surveyisatoolandamethodologytocollectquantitativedataonagivensubject.For example,itcanbeappliedtomeasurethedegreeofcitizen'sparticipationinagiven consultationprocess. TheoryofChangeisapropositioncontainingthesequenceofeventsandchangeagents thatleadtoadefinedend. ThirdPartyMonitoring referstothemonitoringofgivenelementsalongthecontracting processbyanactororagroupofactors(the'thirdparty')notrelatedtotheparties involvedintheimplementationofthecontract. Transparencyisoperatinginsuchawaythatitiseasyforotherstoseewhatactionsare performed.
101
Conclusion
Trustiswhatallowseachpartyofacontracttohaveconfidenceintheintegrityand abilitiesofthosewithwhomtheyareworkingtomakeitperform. ValueforMoneyisautilityderivedfromacontractwhereresourcesarespent.Valueof moneyistheoptimalbalanceofeconomy,efficiencyandeffectivenessofthepurchase.
102
Resources
TheresourcesbelowhavebeencompiledthroughoutourSprint,andareintendedtobe usefultoolsandreferencesforfurtheropencontractingactivities.Weacknowledgethat thisiscertainlynotacomprehensivelist,andlookforwardtoitscontinuedexpansionas opencontractingeffortscontinuetomoveforward.
Resource Compendia
TheAffiliatedNetworkforSocialAccountabilityinEastAsiaandPacificwebsite, whichprovidesalibraryofresources"www.ansaeap.net/resources"thatapplythroughout thecontractingprocessandtomanydifferentsectors. TheOpenContractingonlineCommunityofPractice"www.proact.org",whichincludesa ResourcesPage"www.proact.org/page/monitoringtools"withlinkstoavarietyof resources. InternationalBudgetPartnershipwebsite,whichincludesa library"www.internationalbudget.org/library"ofusefultoolsrelevanttopublicfinancial managementingeneral. ThePublicPrivateDevelopmentCentrewebsite,whichincludesa library"www.library.procurementmonitor.org"ofusefultools. TheGlobalInfrastructureAntiCorruptionCenterwebsite"www.giaccentre.org"contains toolsandresourcesrelevanttotheinfrastructuresectorinparticular. TheU4anticorruptionresourcecenterprovidesallsortsofcasesstudiesand methodologies.U4"www.u4.no". TheTransparencyInternationalwebsitehasresourcesonIntegrityPacts,atoolto promotetransparencyandintegrityinpubliccontractingprocesses.See http://www.transparency.org/whatwedo/tools/resources_about_integrity_pacts
Individual Resources
CommunityBasedMonitoringToolkit"www.communitymonitoring.org"developedby IntegrityWatchAfghanistan. ConstructionSectorTransparencyInitiative'sM&Eframework "www.constructiontransparency.org",includeddetailsofassociatedindicators.
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Conclusion
ContractMonitoringRoadmap"www.contractroadmap.org"developedbytheWorldBank Instituteisparticularlyrelevantforextractiveindustries. DevelopmentCheck"www.developmentcheck.org"anditsUser Guide"www.developmentcheck.org/kb/node/1",developedbyIntegrityAction. TheFixRate:AKeyMetricforTransparencyandAccountability "www.integrityaction.org/sites/www.integrityaction.org/files/TheFixRate_Report_May%202013.pdf". ICTforOpenContractinginFragileStates Report"www.bit.ly/ICT4OpenContractinginFCS". IntegrityWatchAfghansitan"www.iwaweb.org/reports.html"containsresearchmaterial. IntegrityManualforPractitioners"www.iwaweb.org/Reports/PDF/IntegrityManual.pdf", developedbyIntegrityWatchAfghanistan.
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Open Contracting A Guide For Practitioners by Practitioners-V2

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Open Contracting

Introduction And Framing

" " "

Throughoutthisbook,youwillfindoneinsightfromeachofuswhojoinedtheSprint.Our lessonsonlybegintoscratchthesurfaceofthevastknowledgethatexistsaroundopen contracting.Wehopeyouwillbeinspiredtoaddtoit.

How Do We Go About It?

Understanding The Basics

The Contracting Process

placeswithnoelectricpower?Thishasadirecteffectonthepopulation,asgoodsand servicesarenotwelldelivered.Citizensshouldaskwhethertheresultofthecontracting processhasbeenachieved.

Contracts,includinglicenses,concessions,permits,grantsoranyotherdocument exchangingpublicgoods,assets,orresources(includingallannexes,schedulesand documentsincorporatedbyreference)andanyamendmentsthereto

" " " "

Anyconflictsofinterestuncoveredordebarmentissued Theresultsoftheevaluation,includingthejustificationfortheawardand Theidentityofthecontractrecipientandanystatementsofbeneficialownership provided

Be Aware Of Confidentiality Issues

" " "

Whatisthelegalenvironment(forcontractdisclosureandparticipation)? Whoareyourkeystakeholders? Whatareotherissuestoconsider?

What Is The Legal Environment?

Who Are The Key Stakeholders?

What Are Other Issues To Consider?

" " " " " " "

Examples Of Constructive Engagement

Examples Of Constructive Engagement

Monitoring, Analysis And Reporting

Monitoring At The Contract Planning Stage

" " "

Wasanassessmentofpublicneedsundertaken? Weretheidentifiedpublicneedsprioritized? Wasthereanidentificationofresourcesrequiredtomeettheidentifiedpublicneeds?

" " " " " "

Itseemsobviousthatmonitoringatthestageofplanningisarigorousprocessand requiresaccesstoalotofinformation. ACCESSTOINFORMATIONTIPS Inordertoaccesscontractplanninginformation,considerthefollowingtips:

Conductregularinformationharvestsfromwebsites,newspapers,noticeboards,theradio andtelevision.The"regular"partiscriticalgiventhatsuchinformationappearsforlimited amountsoftimebeforebeingremovedordisplacedbynewcontent.

" " "

Monitoring At The Stage Of Tendering Through Contract Award

" " " " " " "

" " " " " "

TheResourcessectionofthisbookhashelpfulresourcesthatcontainguidelinesfor accessinginformationinanumberofscenariosandtemplatesonhowtomakearequest forinformation.

Possible Scenarios For Monitoring Contracts

" " " " "

Bearinginmindthevaluesofopencontractingforthepurposeofthepublicgood,Itis essentialtomaintainobjectivity,impartialityandfairnessincommunicatingtheresults ofreportingasthisisessentialtobuildingasystemthatcanbetrusted.

TIEYOURFINDINGSTOAREPORTINGPURPOSE Asyoudevelopyourreports,thebasicquestiontoaskiswhydoesthisneedtobe reported?Reportsoftenservevariouspurposes,including:

" " "

Closing The Loop

Advocacy For Changes In Policy

" " " "

Whatistheissueathand? Howdoesthisissuefitwithinthewiderdynamics(conflict,powerrelations,poverty)in yoursociety? Whatinformationisavailable(researchfindings,etc.)? Whatarethelessonslearnedfromwhathasbeentriedbefore?

" " " " "

Whatneedstochange? Why? Howcanchangebeachieved? Whocanaffectthischange? Whatisthetimelineforthechangetotakeplace?

" " " " "

Whoarewetargetingwithouradvocacy? Whowouldbeaffectedbyorinterestedinouradvocacy? Whocouldsupportus? Whocouldopposeus? Whoisneutralorundecided?

" " " "

Whatisourcoremessage? Whichkeymessagescanbedevelopedtosupportourcoremessage? Howshouldwetailorthemtobestreachourtargetaudience?(Packaging) Whatchannelsandmessengersshouldweuse?(Delivery)

" " "

Whatshouldbedone? Whatresourcesdowehave? Whatisthetimeframe?

" " " " "

Howdoweknowifwehaveachievedourdesiredresults? Whatindicatorsshouldbedeveloped? Howshouldwegoaboutmonitoringprogress? Whatareourlessonslearned? Howcanweadaptthestrategy?

How Do We Know We Are Making A Difference?

economicchangesthatresultdirectlyfromthecontract.Thistypeofmeasurementis complex. Opencontractingisthebestwaytoincreaseaccountabilityfortheendresult fortheenduserOtgoo

Determining A Results Framework

Asanexampleofpreparingaresultsframework,letussaythatweareworkingwith particularpublicentitlestodisclosecontracts,whileworkingwithcommunitybased organisations,journalistsandparliamentarianstomonitororoverseethesecontracts. Wemaygothroughthefollowingprocesstodetermineourresultsframework:

Setting Objectives And Making Them SMART

" " " "

Strengthenedcapacityfordisclosureandparticipation,includingoversight. Greaterqualityanddisclosureofpubliccontractstopromoteaccountability. Enhancedopportunitiesforparticipationandoversightthroughoutthecontracting process. Improvedperformanceofcontracting.

" " " " "

Quantitative And Qualitative Methods

Reflections - Risks, Sustainability And Lessons

What Could Go Wrong?