Corruption and innovation in the Albanian public procurement system

Abstract

This paper examines the measures and means used to fight against corruption in public procurement in Albania. Because public procurement is one of the key areas where the public sector and the private sector interact financially and this interaction is based on public money, it is a prime candidate for corrupt activity, cronyism and favoritism as well as outright bribery. The question marks that this paper raises are: what are the means used in the war against corruption in the public procurement field in Albania? Did they had any real impact or they just reshaped the ways of doing corruption? The main finding of this paper is that introduction of e-procurement system was one of the most appropriate means to fight corruption in Albania, because this system fixed one of the biggest problems of the Albanian Public Procurement system; lack of transparency. The electronic system is transparent, since it provides the increasing of information passing through it, and the most important, it enhances the responsibility in relations between the contracting authorities and economic operators, enabling a more effective and efficient use of the tax payers’ money.