Government overhauling public procurement system: Anand Sharma

NEW DELHI: Against the backdrop of demand from the US that India should join a multilateral agreement on government procurement, the government today said it is "overhauling" its public procurement system which will have a statutory backing.

The issue came up for discussion during Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma's meeting with American Commerce Secretary John Bryson, who is leading a 16-member business delegation to New Delhi, Jaipur and Mumbai.

"The public procurement system is being overhauled and a statutory basis is proposed to be given to it," Sharma said.

The Government Procurement Agreement (GPA), which was launched in 1996 under the aegis of the WTO, is a plurilateral pact whose members open their markets only to other signatories - rather than the whole WTO membership.

Bryson said India should join the GPA to allow more competition.

"Allow more competition by joining WTO agreement on government procurement. This agreement has important provisions that support greater openness", he said.

India has a big market in which foreign companies are willing to offer their goods and services.

At present, India has an observer status in the GPA, but it does not mean that India is under an obligation to subject its approximately USD 125 billion government purchases to the WTO rules.

There are about 42 WTO members who have access to the GPA, including developed economies and emerging economies.