The brief “How Reforming the European Union’s Public Procurement Directive Can Help Drive a Green Transition” by International Institute for Sustainable Development concludes that the current EU Public Procurement Directives create challenges due to the fragmented legal landscape, the voluntary nature of GPP, and the lack of legal certainty. This hinders progress toward the EU’s climate and competitiveness goals. Given that public procurement represents about 14% of the EU’s GDP and 10% of its GHG emissions, a stronger framework is critical to fully leverage public procurement for strategic objectives.
The upcoming reform offers key opportunities: moving toward mandatory GPP to simplify procedures and reduce legal uncertainty, aligning procurement with environmental requirements to boost EU competitiveness in green markets, and establishing better monitoring systems to track progress and improve accountability.
By addressing these areas, the reform can transform public procurement into a strategic lever for driving innovation, reducing emissions, and promoting sustainability. Procurers can put the principle of sustainability into practice in myriad ways. The task ahead is to provide them with clear requirements and guidance for GPP, as well as the necessary skills and flexibility to make GPP work across member states and regions.
Access the brief here
