Open Government Initiative Project 

April 3, 2007   

Working with Bulgarian counterparts over the last five years, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Open Government Initiative (OGI) helped to shape current public procurement legislation, created the web-based Public Procurement Register, trained more than 300 officials in procurement practices, and published materials on EU public procurement rules. 

To commemorate the completion of its work in the public procurement sector, OGI will host a National Conference, “Bulgarian Public Procurement System Integrity,” on Wednesday, April 4, 10:00am – 5:00pm at the Grand Hotel Sofia’s Sofia Hall.  Minister of Regional Development and Public Works, Mr. Asen Gagauzov, Deputy Minister of Health, Mr. Emil Rajnov, Chairman of the Commission for Protection of Competition, Mr. Petko Nikolov, Executive Director of the Public Procurement Agency, Ms. Miglena Pavlova, and Chairman of the Bulgarian Industrial Association, Mr. Bojidar Danev, will be the keynote speakers.  U.S. Ambassador John Beyrle will open the conference.  Invitees include high-level officials from eighteen ministries, energy utility sector representatives, hospitals, business associations and municipalities.

The conference will mark the successful completion of the USAID/OGI project on procurement.  For more than five years the OGI has helped strengthen the institutional capacity of the Bulgarian Government, enhance transparency and accountability, and promote the rule of law in the area of public procurement and public auditing. 

The Conference will focus on the achievements in public procurement in Bulgaria so far, as well as new challenges to achieving better transparency, integrity and efficiency of the system and preventing opportunities for mismanagement and public corruption.

The Conference will establish an experts’ network in public procurement and facilitate discussions on current issues and practices.

The USAID Open Government Initiative is a five-year project launched in 2002 with total funding of almost $10 million. The project provided technical assistance and training to strengthen the institutional capacity of the Bulgarian Government to prevent corruption, enhance transparency and accountability, and promote the rule of law. OGI’s primary focus is on government procurement and auditing.