FACILITATIONS INTRODUCED: How to collect and submit tender documentation during the coronavirus pandemic?

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - The Public Procurement Agency of BiH, in line with its capabilities and the laws binding it in extraordinary circumstances during the coronavirus pandemic, is doing everything in its power to facilitate business and various procurements of goods, confirmed the institution for the Patria News Agency.

Many individuals involved in the realization of tenders and negotiation procedures are forced to certify many documents and directly expose themselves to possible infection. We asked what can be done in this case.

"Regarding your inquiry about the difficulty of certifying documents with competent authorities under the current circumstances, we emphasize that in accordance with the conditions from Article 56, Paragraph (3) of the Law, contracting authorities may amend tender documentation and reduce the requirement for certified documents (except for those strictly required by the Law). Therefore, to reduce the burden on bidders, unnecessary documentation should not be requested beyond what the Law explicitly states, depending on the procedure," the Public Procurement Agency told Patria.

For a competitive request for proposals, if it is appropriate for the specific procurement, no qualification documents may be required (thus eliminating the need for document certification by competent authorities).

"In open, restricted, and negotiated procedures, with or without a prior notice, the Law clearly states that only the statement from Articles 45 and 52 of the Law needs to be certified. Only the most favorable bidder must submit all certified documentation from Article 45 of the Law.

Therefore, even in this situation, we must continue to respect the provisions concerning document certification, as these relate not only to the Public Procurement Law but also to material regulations on document certification. However, contracting authorities certainly have the option to adapt to the newly arisen emergency situation and reduce the request for documents," they note.

Authorities responsible for certification (municipalities, courts, notaries) are operating and available to clients, albeit with reduced capacity, in accordance with the orders issued by the competent authorities.

Regarding the submission of bids, Article 11 of the Instructions for the Preparation of Tender Documentation stipulates that bids must be submitted in a sealed envelope to the address of the contracting authority specified in the tender documentation. The contracting authority determines the method of bid submission and communication with bidders in the tender documentation.

"Bids have always been sent by mail, much more often than they were delivered 'in person' to the premises of the contracting authority. In this emergency situation, it is certainly recommended for bidders to deliver bids in person to the premises of the contracting authority as little as possible and to send them by mail.

Furthermore, it is impossible to allow bids to be submitted by fax, as this could lead to abuse of the procedure in terms of premature disclosure of information, the bid cannot be bound, thus allowing for the possible removal or addition of pages, which would call the entire procurement procedure into question," the Agency told Patria.

In this situation, the Agency also appeals to contracting authorities not to initiate procurements that are not truly necessary at this moment, as this will also relieve the burden on the bodies that issue and certify documents.