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DiscussionDocument:UgandaOpenContracting&ProcurementDataUseScopingStudyReport

Date:January,2017Preparedby:DevelopmentGateway&AfricaFreedomofInformationCentre

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TableofContents

Listoffigures 3

Listoftables 3

1.ExecutiveSummary 4UseCaseAnalysis 4TechnicalAnalysisRecommendations 6DataPublicationAnalysisRecommendations 8ContextforEnhancedOpenContractingImplementationRecommendations 10NextSteps 11

2.Introduction&Background Error!Bookmarknotdefined.ScopingStudyVisit 13

2.UseCaseAnalysis Error!Bookmarknotdefined.

3.TechnicalAssessment Error!Bookmarknotdefined.TheGovernmentProcurementPortal 22

GPPdataretrievalchallenges 23OvercomingchallengesinretrievingdatafromtheGPP 23DataIntegration 25OCDSande-ProcurementinUganda 26TechnicalCapacitywithinthePPDAandthePEs 27Recommendations 28

4.DataPublication Error!Bookmarknotdefined.GPPalignmenttoOCDS(RevisitingPreviousworkdonebyAFIC) 30InitialReviewofOCDSDataQuality 34

Completeness&ValidityofIndividualDataFields 34MergingidentifiedUseCaseswithOCDSData 36GapsinAnalysis 38

Recommendations 38

5.ContextforEnhancedOpenContractingImplementation Error!Bookmarknotdefined.I.DataPublicationLawandPolicy 40

AccessingDatainPractice 41Adoptionofanopendatalicense 41Technicalanddatausecapacity 42

II.CitizenEngagementinProcurement 43III.CSO&PrivateSectorEngagement 44IV.GovernmentReportingonProcurementPerformance 46

Recommendations 47

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6.NextSteps Error!Bookmarknotdefined.

7.AboutUs 52DevelopmentGateway 52AfricaFreedomofInformationCentre(AFIC) 52

Annex1:ListofInterviews 54

Annex3:GPPOCDSDataFields 57

Annex4:ProcurementPerformanceIndicatorsList 60

Annex5:RedFlaggingIndicatorsList 60

Annex6:ConceptNote:SupportingGovernmentProcurementRegulationthroughOpenContracting&ProcurementAnalytics 61

LISTOFFIGURESFigure1:Screenshotofgraphicalpresentationof“Averagenumberofbiddersfortenders,disaggregatedbycontractvalue”fromtheZambiae-ProcurementsystemdevelopedbyEuropeanDynamicsFigure2:Commonproblemsinpubliccontracting

LISTOFTABLESTable1:IdentificationofusecasesandkeymetricsTable2:SummaryofDataRetrievalProcessTable3:SummaryofDataRetrievalResultsTable4:AFICMappingReportfindingsandrecommendationsondatagapsTable5:InconsistenciesintheGPPontheOCDSTable6:NumberofdistinctprocurementsbyphaseandnumberoftotalelementsTable7:GPPOCDSDataFields,FrequencyandNotableCharacteristicsTable8:AdditionaldatarequiredforadequatecoverageofelicitedusecasesTable9:OpendatalicensesusedbyprominentOCDSpublishers

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1.EXECUTIVESUMMARYOpenContracting(OC)isgainingwidespreadinterestaroundtheworldasapromisingtooltoincreasetheefficiencyandeffectivenessofgovernmentservicedelivery,andtoreducethe lossofgovernmentfunds1throughwasteandmisuse.ThePublicProcurementDisposalofPublicAssetsAuthority(PPDA)isleading the way in OC adoption in Uganda. Through a partnership with the Africa Freedom ofInformationCentre(AFIC),thePPDAhascommencedpublicationofprocurementdatausingtheOpenContractingDataStandard2 (OCDS),astandardized,open-formatdatamodel that facilitatesdisclosureofprocurementdataandrelevantdocumentsatallstagesofthecontractingprocess.ThePPDAisintheprocess of adopting an e-Procurement systemwith potential to improve data collection, compliancewithprocurementregulations,andenhancedatapublicationefforts.DevelopmentGateway(DG),anon-profittechnologyorganization,hasbeenawardedatwo-yeargrantbytheHewlettFoundationtosupportcollaborationbetweenthePPDAandAFICinthecontextoftheirongoing efforts to advance OC and to engage in data use. The goal of this grant is to support theGovernmentofUgandaandotherkeystakeholders(includingfromcivilsocietyandtheprivatesector)in using procurement data to enhance procurement results. DG has a variety of experience indevelopingopensourcetechnologiestofosteruseofOCDSdata,andhasworkedforseveralyearswiththeGovernmentofUgandainimplementationofanaidmanagementportal.3In line with the PPDA’s objective to realize excellence in public procurement through leveragingtechnologyapplications,thisreportpositsthatthecontinuedsuccessofOCinUgandadependsontheabilityofstakeholderstousethatdatatoimproveprocurementperformanceintheformof increasedefficiency and reducedwaste, and procurement results, including through increased value formoneyandenhancedservicedelivery.This document aims to establish a baseline understanding of views on procurement data needs inUganda, as well as the technical, legal, policy and practical issues that affect open contractingimplementationandresults.Itisourhopethattheinformationcontainedwithinwillhelptoprovideafoundation for future discussion among key procurement stakeholders and forge consensus on theprioritiesforanalyticsusetofosterimprovedprocurementperformanceanddecisionmakinginUganda.UseCaseAnalysisTofacilitatediscussiononhowstakeholderscanmoreeffectivelyusedataintheireffortstoimproveprocurementresults,DGandAFICsoughttoidentifykeygeneralizedusecasesbasedoninterviewswithkeystakeholders.Whilethisprocessisongoing,avarietyofuses(categorizedbypotentialuser)wereidentified,assummarizedbelow:

1SomeliteratureindicatesthatacrossAfrica,asmuchasapproximatelyhalfofgovernmentspendingisonpubliccontracts(See:OpenContractingPartnership2016BriefforAfrica.Availableat:https://www.open-contracting.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/OCP2016-Africa-brief-web.pdf.)2ThiswasoneofthekeytechnicalrecommendationsfromtheOpenContractinginUganda:Scopingstudy,November2016.MoreinformationaboutOCDScanbefoundhere:http://standard.open-contracting.org/latest/en/.3Moreinformationontheseinitiativesareavailableinsection7ofthisreport,andathttp://www.developmentgateway.org.

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PotentialUser

UseCase

PPDA Monitoring Procurement Efficiency: Increasing efficiency is essential to the PPDA’sefforts to strengthen public markets, improve competitiveness, and reducemismanagement.ThePPDAcouldadoptatoolthatwouldenable itsstafftoparsethenumber of bidders by PE, as well as by procurementmethod, tender value, item, orlocation.

PPDAProcuringEntities(PEs)

Early warning on contracts implementation: Identifying problems in the procurementprocesspriortocontractawardisessentialforensuringarobustandfairprocurementmarket.

PPDA Selecting cases for audit: The PPDA monitors approximately 350 agencies and hasundertaken between 107 and 121 procurement audits annually over the past 3 years(thePPDAdidnotmeetits2015-16target4).Auditsamplingmaybenefitfromtheuseofdata analytics to more effectively identify high risk procurements, as well as micro-procurementsthatareingreatestneedofaudit.

AllStakeholders

Budget absorption: The PPDA presently monitors budget absorption to ensure thatfundingprioritiesarebeingmet.Adeeperanalysisofbudgetabsorptioncouldseektounderstand the procurement methods used for monies spent within and beyondprocurement plans, and the consistency of PE behavior nationwide, among otherindicators.

PPDAPEsMoFPED

Improving value for money: Interviewees within government raised a challenge theyoftenencounter: that of conducting research to ensure the government is purchasinggoods,works,andservicesatafairmarketprice.Effectiveutilizationofanalyticswouldprovidecrucialinformationtosupportthegovernment’seffortstoimprovethevalueofitsspending,includinganalysisofitempricesacrossdistricts.

PPDAMoFPEDPEs

Collusion: Collusion poses problems in public procurement because citizens may notultimately be getting value formoney for public goods/services. A variety of analyticscanhelptohighlightwhencollusionissuspected,includingthroughanalysisofwinsandlossesbetweenfrequentco-biddersandidentificationofotherbiddingpatterns.

PPDAPEs

PEcompliancewithprocurementregulations:Thechallengeofensuring thatPEscarryouttheprocurementprocessincompliancewiththelegalandregulatoryframeworkisexacerbatedbythe lackofadequatestaffingandresources,bothwithinthePPDAandPEs.AsmorePEsuse theGPPandothersadopt thee-Procurement system, there isaneed to measure compliance to demonstrate the impact of e-Procurement and toencouragelaggingPEstoimproveperformance.

CivilSociety

Monitoring Service Delivery: Several CSOs aremonitoring contract implementation inlocal districts to ensure that procurement has the intended results on the ground.

4PPDA,AnnualReport2015-2016.

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PPDAMoFPED

Developing a tool that enables CSOs to mix data collected on the ground with thatpublishedbytheGPPmayfacilitateimprovedanalyticscoverageandpublicationresults.

CivilSocietyPrivateSector

Alertstoreducetheburdenondatausers:Procurementdatauserswithincivilsocietyandtheprivatesectorspendsignificanttimeandresourcesaccessingdata,ratherthanresponding to or using it. Alerts would help private sector actors to identifyprocurement opportunities, while they could enable CSOs to conduct real-timemonitoring.

CivilSociety

Monitoring Extractives & Infrastructure Contracts: CSOs are conducting a number ofinitiatives targeting specific sectors, including infrastructure projects and extractiveindustries. Ensuring that data can be easily filtered to focus on extractives and oninfrastructure isonewaytofacilitatetheeffortsofthosefocusedonmonitoringthesesectors.

PrivateSector

Improving the business climate: The private sector can affect positive change to theprocurementmarket bymonitoring the business environment - including on paymentdelays and adherence to procurement plans - and providing feedback to PPDA andMoFPED.

PPDAPrivateSector

Ensuring compliance with the Local Content Policy Guidelines: Uganda has adoptedLocal Content PolicyGuidelines5 that set forth specific criteria for the participation ofUgandan suppliers in procurement opportunities. Effective monitoring of such willrequireavarietyofextensionstoOCDS,andhaspotential tobringsignificantvaluetoUgandancitizens.

AllStakeholders

Monitoring at-risk procurements: Some interviewees suggested a strong correlationbetween mismanagement and corruption, and the PPDA’s Strategic Plan identifiescorruption as a key challenge to address. Monitoring at-risk procurements wouldcombine metrics on procurement efficiency with those for competitiveness, andsupplierandPEperformancethroughaflaggingmethodology.

AllStakeholders

Improving searchability of procurement data: Improving data searchability, throughimproved filtering and alerts,would enablemore effective participation by the publicandenableprivatesectorsupplierstofocusmoretimeonpreparingbids.

TechnicalAnalysisRecommendationsDGandAFIChavenothadtheopportunitytoreviewanytechnicalsystem,database,orcodeaspartofthisscopingeffort.Consequently,onceapathforengagementhasbeenagreedupon,andappropriateaccess provided, DG and AFIC can develop a concrete implementation plan in support of therecommendationsprovidedherein.

1. OptimizetheApplicationProgrammingInterface(API).TheAPIwouldbenefitfromoptimization,as the API is currently unable to respond timely or effectively to persistent querying. For anexternalusertobenefitfromtheAPIatpresent,heorshewouldneedtodownloadtheentiredatasetintoanexternaldatabase(asDGhasdone).GivenaccesstotheAPIsourcecode,DGand

5See:http://www.mtic.go.ug/images/policies/bubu.pdf.

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AFICcansupportthePPDAinimprovingtheAPI.Thefollowingaresomeoftheimprovementsthatcanbemade:

a. Fix"Undefinedoffset:0"bug.SomeAPIpagescannotbefetchedbecauseofthisissue.b. Allowfetchingofdatawithoutpagination.c. Analyzeandfixperformanceissues.d. Supportadditionalfilters(e.g.filteringbypublicationdate,PE,etc.).e. EnabletheAPItoreturnalldata.Atpresent,theAPIwithnofiltersreturnsonlyplanning

elements,butwithdifferenttotalresultsthanwiththeplanningtagfilter.2. CreateAPIdocumentation.TorenderthepublicAPIusable,documentationmustbeprovided.

UsingSwagger6wasanoptiondiscussedwithNewWaveTechnologies,theAPIdeveloper.3. Improve the OCDS publication. Several measures can be taken to stabilize and improve the

OCDSpublication:a. Releasesandrecords.OCDSprovidesaspecificmechanismofdatapublicationthrough

releases and records.7DG canprovide guidance toNewWave toensure thatOCDS ispublishedinaccordancewiththestandard.

b. AdoptanongoingOCDSvalidationprocess.Adoptionofadatavalidationprocess-suchasDG’s jOCDSValidator,8whichwas designed to be integrated intoOCDSpublicationtools like the GPP - can ensure data validates against the standard. It can be easilymodifiedtohelp identifydataquality issues,suchaspossiblebugs, includinginstanceswherethesameOCID9isusedtoidentifymultiplecontractingprocesses(theOCIDusedforallsuchinstancesis“_OCID_”)orinstanceswheretheawarddatebeginsbeforetheendofthetenderperiod.

c. EnableURLpersistence.Thiswill ensure thatusers canaccess thedata in thepresentandinthefuture.

4. ImprovetheGPP-RoPlinkage.ByexportingthekeyRoPdatafieldstoanexternaldatabase(viaAPIor routinespreadsheetdownload), theRoPdatacouldbeconvertedtoOCSDandmergedwiththeotherOCDSdata.ThiscombineddatasetcouldbedrawnuponbytheGPPorexportedthroughtheGPPAPI.

5. Supportadditionalintegrations.AsDGhaspreviouslydevelopedatechnicallinkagebetweentheGovernment’s Uganda Aid Management Platform (UAMP) and its Debt Management andFinancialAnalysisSystem(DMFAS),10DGwouldbewillingtoprovidefurtheranalysistofacilitatelinkagesbetweentheGPPandoneormoreoftheseothersystems.WiththePPDA’spermissionandengagement,DGcouldalsoimplementalinkageifitwouldaidthePPDA’sabilitytoconductdataanalysis.

6. Facilitate data sharing between the GPP and e-Procurement system. Because the PPDA hasbegunpublishingdatainOCDS,thereisapossibilitythatthemostefficientmeansofexportingthe GPP data to the e-Procurement system may be to use the OCDS API. The PPDA shoulddiscussthiswiththee-ProcurementsupplierandconsiderconvertingallofthenecessarydatafieldstoOCDSforthispurpose(doingsowouldnotrequirepublishingallofthisdatapublicly).

6Swaggerisanopensourcesoftwareframeworkbackedbyalargeecosystemoftoolsthathelpsdevelopersdesign,build,document,andconsumeRESTfulWebservices7See:http://standard.open-contracting.org/latest/en/getting_started/releases_and_records/.8See:http://www.developmentgateway.org/blog/your-data-ocds-compliant-introducing-jocds-validator.9See:http://gpp.ppda.go.ug/api/v1/releases?tag=planning.10See:http://www.developmentgateway.org/blog/strengthening-public-financial-management-uganda-connecting-dmfas-and-amp

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7. EnsureOCDS1.1implementationine-Procurement.Giventhatthee-Procurementsupplierhasimplemented OCDS 1.0 in Zambia,11 the PPDA should be sure to request implementation ofOCDS 1.1 in Uganda. Because the OCDS API may be the most efficient mechanism fortransferringGPPdata to the e-Procurement system, the PPDA should consider publishing theentireGPPdatabaseinOCDS(evenifsomeofthedataremainsconfidential).

8. Consider strengthening technical capacity within the PPDA. The PPDA is at a technicaldisadvantagevis-a-visthee-Procurementsupplierduetothe lackoftechnicalexpertisewithinthePPDA.Oncethesuppliercontracthasended,thePPDArisksnothavingtheinternalcapacityto troubleshoot challenges that may arise. By that stage, it may be difficult for an externalsupplier that is not already familiar with the system to provide support, creating an over-relianceonthesupplier.ThePPDAshouldconsiderhiring internaldevelopers tohelpmitigatethesechallengesbeforetheyarise.

9. Continue to bring PEs onto the GPP. Even though the e-Procurement system will shortly becomingintouse,themajorityofPEsarenotscheduledfore-Procurementaccessfor3-4years.Consequently, bringing PEs online and training themon theGPP remains a priority, andmayserveasasteppingstonefore-Procurementthatimprovesdatacaptureandleadstoimproveddataqualityinboththenear-andmid-term.

DataPublicationAnalysisRecommendations

1. IncreaseOCDSdatatoincludeallpublicdatasets.ThePPDAshouldpublishallpublicdatafieldsinOCDS,creatingextensions for thosethatarenotOCDScompliant, so thatuserscanbenefitfromthefullscopeofpublisheddata.Datathat ispublishedforashorttimeperiodshouldbeincluded,andpublishedpermanently.AdditionaldatatopublishinOCDSincludes:

a. Bidderinfo(Losingbidders,reasonsforloss);b. Suspendedbidderslist(name,suspensiondate);c. Numberofitemspurchased;d. Complaintsinformation(procurementID,date,subject,response);e. Investigations(procurementID,date,subject,result);f. Additionalsuppliersdata(size,registrationdate,etc.);g. Linkstokeydocuments.

2. Considerpublishingdata collected thathasnot yetbeenpublished.Eachadditionaldata fieldpublishedhaspotential tobring value todatausers. Someunpublisheddata collectedby thePPDA-or thathasnotyetbeencollected,butcouldbewiththeadoptionofe-Procurement-haspublicbenefit thatmayoverrideany restrictionson itspublication.Thesedata fieldsmayinclude:

a. Bidderinfo(Bidamounts,technicalandfinancialresponsiveness);b. Suspendedbidderslist(supplierID,suspensionduration,etc.);c. Itemprices;d. Subcontractorinfo;e. Frameworkagreements(usingrecommendedapproachbyOCDSHelpDesk);f. Beneficialownershipdata;g. Contractamendments;h. Advertisements(time/dateofpublication,publicationlocation,etc.);i. Amendmentsdata(tenders,awardsandcontracts);j. Procurementmethodrationale;

11See:https://www.zppa.org.zm/ocds-data.

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k. ThePPDAappliesgoodpractice in releasingallGPPdata ina structured format (XLS).However,thePPDAshouldalsoconsiderpermanentlypublishingdatacontainedinthebestevaluatedbiddernotices,andconvertingittoOCDS;

l. Beyond individualdata fields,OCDScontainsamechanismforpublishingprocurementdocuments. Because the GPP does not enable uploading of documents, there are noGPP links to critical contracts, needs assessments, or other key documents producedduringtheprocurementprocess.

3. The PPDA website contains valuable information about procurements that have receivedcomplaints, been investigated or audited, and the suppliers involved in those processes havebeen investigated as well. Linking this data to the OCDS output would bring additional high-value informationto lightforcitizens.Alternatively,PEscouldberequiredtoprovidenotice intheGPPwhenacomplainthasbeenfiled,orauditorinvestigationconducted.

4. Study unique identifiers to ensure common use. A crucial advantage of OCDS is the use ofuniqueidentifiersforprocurementprocesses,suppliers,PEs,buyers,anditems.Tobenefitfromtheintegrationofdatasystemsandfromdataanalytics,anapproachmustbeadoptedtomatchunique identifiers across government systems, and to create unique identifiers that meetcurrentandfutureneeds.DGiswillingtosupporteffortsbythePPDAtodevelopastrategyformatchinguniqueidentifiersacrosskeysystems.

5. Publish all data permanently. The PPDA should also consider permanently publishing datacontainedinthebestevaluatedbiddernotices,andincorporatingitintoOCDS.

6. ImprovetheOCDSdatapublication.OurinitialanalysisshowsavarietyofareaswheretheOCDSpublicationmaybeimproved.Suggestionsinclude:

a. Reorganize tags to ensure that no releases include appropriate data for the taggedphase (e.g. no tender data in the planning release). While tender data may beincorporatedintheawardreleasesandviceversa,thecreationofredundantdatafieldsshouldbeinfrequentandserveaclearpurpose.Therearenumerousinstancesinwhichdatafromonephaseappears indownloadstaggedwithanotherphase.Therearealsoinstances in which data affiliatedwith one phase is published only under a tag for adifferentphase(e.g.tender/tenderersdataappearsundertheawardstag).

b. Ensurethatallpartiesareincludedinthepartiesarray,andisconsistentwithOCDS1.1and future versions (which will remove the arrays for tender/tenderers andawards/suppliers).

c. Converttender/tenderersandrelatedinformationtousethebidextension.d. Ensure that all data fields contain appropriate information (e.g.

parties/address/postalCodeshouldnotcontainafulladdress).e. ConsideradoptinguniquetenderandcontractIDsthatdifferfromtheOCID,particularly

iftherearepossibilitiesofconflict.7. Take measures to improve data quality. Data quality can be improved through the use of

validators,increasedtraining,andadoptionoftoolsthatrequiredatastandardization.OurinitialreviewoftheOCDSdatarevealedseveralerrorsthatrequiretakingthefollowingactions:

a. ResolveOCIDerrors.A falseOCID,“_OCID_”was found inover6,500cells in thedatareviewed. As these appear to be related to legitimate procurements, theseprocurements can be excluded from the published data and resolved before beingrepublished.

b. Improvedatavalidation.Theuseofstrictervalidationtoolsmaypreventthepublicationof procurement information that contain data errors. For instance, a number of testprocurements were published, including the field “TESTPDE (Please Do not Bid or

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Respond).”DGandAFIC canworkwith thePPDA todefine criteria for validation thatmaybeusedintheGPPande-Procurementsystem.

c. CreatebusinessrulesthatrequirePEstousespecifiedformats.ThePPDAmayconsiderrequesting NewWave to implement stricter format specifications with the GPP (e.g.August 7, 2018 vs. 07/08/2018). As the e-Procurement system is developed, the GPPshould determine its approach to data formats, focusing ondeveloping rules that arealreadyinpracticebymanyPEs.

ContextforEnhancedOpenContractingImplementationRecommendations1. Clarifythelegalframeworktoenableproactivedisclosureofprocurementdata.AsthePPDAAct

isupdatedtoenableelectronicbidsubmissionandsupporte-Procurementuse,thereisaneedtoupdatetransparencymeasurestofacilitatedatauseintheelectronicage,aswellasimprovecompliancewithOpenContractingPrinciples.This includesproactivepublicationofdataonallfive stages of the procurement process, including procurement plans, tender notices, awardnotices,contracts,and implementation information,and thedatacontainedwithineach.Thisshould also include complaints information, sanctioned suppliers lists, and sufficient supplierinformation to ensure that public accountingmay be conducted in compliancewith requiredpolicies(includingtheLocalContentPolicyGuidelines).

2. Adoptanopendatalicense.Adoptionofanopenlicense-inaccordancewiththegovernment’sdraft policy - is required to ensure citizens’ rights to use the data in question, including torepublishandmixthedataat theuser’sdiscretion.A licensesets forthusageterms, includingwhether or not attribution is required, and whether the data can be used for commercialpurposes.Thisreportprovidesavarietyofoptionsforopendatalicenses.ThePPDAActshouldbeamendedtorequirethepublicationofprocurementdatainOCDSusinganopenlicense.

3. Publishperformanceindicatordataanddeepenanalysis.ThePPDA’spublicationofperformanceresultsiscommendable.Tofurtheritscommitmenttotransparencyintheprocurementprocess,thePPDAshouldconsiderreleasingtherawdatathatsupportstheseindicators,particularlyasthis informationhas thepotential to affect supplierbiddingdecisions.By reporting resultsonthePE level, thePPDAmayencourage improvedperformance.Lastly,visualizingthisdata inauserfriendlyformatwillcatalyzeusebymultiplestakeholders.

4. Takecreativeapproachesto improvingsupplieraccesstoprocurementopportunities.Becausejust20percentofUgandanshaveinternetaccess,thePPDAandPEsshouldconsiderdevelopingadditionalmechanismsforfacilitatingaccesstoprocurementopportunitiesbysuppliers.Thesecould includemaking computers available to suppliers to register and apply for procurementopportunities. It couldalso includeconductingmore frequentsupplierworkshops (particularlyby PEs). In light of the lack of internet access, e-Procurement adoption may not leadautomaticallytoimprovementsinthenumbersofbiddersandparticipantsintheprocurementprocess (as has been seen in other contexts). The PPDA, civil society, and private sectorassociationsshouldbrainstormapproachestoimprovingsupplierparticipation.

5. Improveaccesstotechnicalanddatacapacity.Accordingtointerviews,CSOsandprivatesectorassociationslackinternaldevelopmentcapabilityandhavelimiteddataexpertiseandresources,particularlywithintheprocurementdomain.Thelackofsoftwaredevelopersanddataanalystswithin civil society impacts the sustainability of technology projects. Therefore, CSOs and theprivatesectorshouldthinkcreativelyabouthowtoaddressthischallenge.Forinstance,asmanyCSOshave coalesced aroundprocurement, infrastructure, andother domain issues, theymayconsidercreatingmechanisms forhiringandsharingexpertisewith respect to technologyanddataissues.Ifsufficientdemandexists,theycouldperhapsnegotiaterateswithaprivatesectoragencythatispartialtotheseessentialissues.Asmuchaspossible,DGandAFICwillseektouse

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opportunities available through this project to strengthen capacity to use data tools. Anopportunitytotraindeveloperstotroubleshootchallengesandcontinuedevelopmentoftoolscreatedthroughthisprojectisalsoavailable.

6. Increaseadvocacyinadvanceofe-Procurementadoption.Adoptionofe-ProcurementrequireslegalreformstothePPDAAct.Thisprovidesanopeningforcivilsocietyandtheprivatesectortolobby for changes that would improve the procurement process. Recommendations couldincludespecifyingwhichdataaretobemadeavailabletothepublic,and inwhichformats. InadditiontolobbyingthePPDA,stakeholdersshouldadvocatetotheMoFPED,theOfficeofthePrimeMinister,theParliament,andotherkeyministries.

7. ContinuedsupportforGPProllout.EnsuringthatallPEscaninputdatatotheGPPisessentialforfacilitatinglegalcompliancewiththePPDAActreportingrequirements,enhancingtheutilityofmonitoring activities, and building capacity for the forthcoming e-Procurement era. GPPtrainings/rollout couldbeconductedsimultaneouslywithdatause trainings tohelpPEs tracktheirownperformance.Also,thelackoftechnicalanddatacapacitywithinthePPDAcreatesanopeningforcivilsocietytoprovidesupportonrelatedpolicyand implementation.Recognizingthebenefitsofcivilsocietysupportwithrespecttotechnicalchallenges,thePPDAhasrequestedAFIC’s support in ensuring that OCDS is effectively implemented through the e-Procurementsystem.

8. Continuetomonitorlocallevelcontractimplementation.CSOsareplayinganimportantroleinmonitoringlocallevelcontractimplementation,fillingagapthatsupportsthePPDAandhelpstoinform theMoFPED. CSOs should continue to engage PEs and collect data on local contracts(includingcontractdocuments)andimplementationresults.ThisdatacouldbeintegratedwiththeGPPdatatopaintamorecompleteprocurementpicture.

NextStepsThisdiscussionreportconcludeswithsuggestednextstepsforcontinuingcollaborationondatause.Adual-track approach is presented, aimed to: 1) Facilitatemulti-stakeholder engagement to refine usecasesandfostertoolsusedintheco-creationprocess,and;2)SupporteffortstooptimizetheGPPOCDSoutputanddataintegrationtoimproveaccesstoOCDS.

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2.INTRODUCTION&BACKGROUNDOpenContractingandtheOpenContractingDataStandardinUgandaOpenContracting(OC)isgainingwidespreadinterestaroundtheworldasapromisingtooltoincreasetheefficiencyandeffectivenessofgovernmentservicedelivery,andtoreducethe lossofgovernmentfunds12 throughwaste andmisuse. In Uganda, the adoption of OC principles can be detected in theemergenceofa legalandpolicyenvironmentthatencouragestransparencyandcitizenengagement,13and the political willingness to engage in initiatives that place emphasis on transparency andaccountability(suchastheStandardGaugeRailway,OilRefineryConstructionandUgandaTeacherandEducationalInstitutionsEffectivenessProject).14Leveragingtechnologyinpublicprocurementhasbeenfeaturedasakeythemeofthe10thEastAfricanProcurementForum,15whichwashostedbyUganda’sPublic Procurement Disposal of Public Assets Authority (PPDA) in November 2017. During theconference,OCwasa topicof focus -exploringcasestudiesaroundtheAfricancontinent (inUganda,Nigeria, andMalawi, among others) on how to enhance disclosure and citizen participation in publicprocurement.

Ensuringtransparency indeliveryofpublicly fundedprojectsdependsonusefulpartnershipsbetweengovernment, theprivate sectorandcivil society.ThePPDAhasestablished itself a leader inproactivetransparencythroughthepublicationofdatathroughtheGovernmentProcurementPortal(GPP),andincitizen engagement through signing of memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with civil societyorganizations (CSOs), and through working collaboratively to advance value for money in publiccontractingandimplementationopencontracting.ApartnershipwiththeAfricaFreedomofInformationCentre (AFIC)has ledtothepublicationofanOCscopingstudyandpublicationofGPPdatausingtheOpen Contracting Data Standard16 (OCDS), a standardized, open-format data model that facilitatesdisclosure of procurement data and relevant documents at all stages of contracting. Through itsengagement with civil society, introduction of OCDS and e-Procurement, and regional leadership onprocurement reform, the PPDAhas demonstrated clear intent to ensuremore effective procurementdeliveryforUgandans.

In line with the PPDA’s objective to realize excellence in public procurement through leveragingtechnologyapplications, this reportposits thatcontinuedsuccessofOC inUgandawilldependontheabilityofstakeholderstoenhancetheuseofprocurementdatatoimproveperformanceand,ultimately,results. The adoption of OCDS is an effective tool for facilitating data use, but it has myriad other

12SomeliteratureindicatesthatacrossAfrica,asmuchasapproximatelyhalfofgovernmentspendingisonpubliccontracts(OpenContractingPartnership2016BriefforAfrica).https://www.open-contracting.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/OCP2016-Africa-brief-web.pdf.TheWorldTradeOrganisationpointsoutthatglobally,governmentprocurementaccountsfor10-15%ofGDPoftheeconomyonaveragehttp://blogs.worldbank.org/governance/public-procurement-rich-country-s-policy.13TheconstitutionandtheAccesstoInformationAct2005recognizetherightofcitizenstoaccessinformation.Atpolicylevel,theUgandaNationalDevelopmentPlanII,2016–2020providesforaccesstoinformationonpublicdebtmanagementthroughtheannualpublicationofafinancingplan.TheGovernmentofUgandaisalsocommittedtostrengtheningthepolicy,legal,andinstitutionalframeworktopromotetransparencyandaccountabilityasoutlinedinVision2040.14(Hivos,OpenContractingPartnership,AFIC).OpenContractinginUganda:Scopingstudy,November2016.https://east-africa.hivos.org/sites/default/files/uganda_0.pdf15SeemoreaboutEAPFhere:http://eapf.ppda.go.ug/index.html16ThiswasoneofthekeytechnicalrecommendationsfromtheOpenContractinginUganda:Scopingstudy,November2016.MoreinformationaboutOCDScanbefoundhere:http://standard.open-contracting.org/latest/en/.

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potentialbenefits:

1. Avarietyofopensourcetools17thatcanbeusedwithOCDSdataexist,sousersarenotlefttorelyonproprietarytoolsbuiltfromscratch;

2. OCDSenablesefficientanalysisoflargequantitiesofdata.Forinstance,DG’sOpenContractingbackendeasilyprocessesmillionsofprocurements, includingundertakingcomplexcalculationsthat enable red flagging in real time. Doing so provides a clear pathmoving from point A topoint B -- frommeasurement of outputs to achievement of largermonitoring objectives thatensurevalueforgovernmentfunds;

3. OCDSiseasyfordeveloperstounderstandandiswelldocumented,soOCDSdataischeaperandeasier to integrate with other government systems. The JSON Structure is also simple andextensible,dependingonwhatdataiscurrentlyavailable;

4. There isawealthofknowledgearoundmonitoringtheprocurementprocessthatexistswithintheOCcommunity.Accessingthisknowledgecanimproveprocurementdatacollectionanduse,whileeasingthemonitoringburdenofpublicservantsand leadingtomoreeffectivereportingandbetterpolicyoutcomes.

BeyondthePPDA,whichisresponsibleforoversightoftheprocurementprocess,thereareanumberofgovernmentagencieswithaninterestandstakeinOC.TheMinistryofFinance,PlanningandEconomicDevelopment (MoFPED) is the primary policy-making body on procurement, while the Office of thePrimeMinisteriskeyinsettingpolicydirectionandcoordinatingimplementation.TheAuditorGeneral(AG)conductsauditsofprocuringentities(PEs)inadditiontoindividualprocurementauditsconductedbyPPDA.TheMinistryofLocalGovernment(MoLG)hasbeenakeyactorinsupportinglocalgovernmentimplementation of procurement regulations and overseeing service delivery in line with theDecentralisation Policy and the LocalGovernmentAct. TheMinistry ofWorks and Transport (MoWT)and Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) are key actors in the procurement of high valueinfrastructureprojects,while still other agencies are responsible for implementation andoversight ofextractive industries (oil,gas,mining,etc.).Whilethisreport focusesprimarilyondatausebyandtheneedsofthePPDA,MoFPED,andPEs,wewelcomeadditionalinputfromotherministriesandagenciesinvolvedinprocurement.Civil society and the private sector have been essential to Uganda’s adoption of OC and othertransparencyandaccountabilityinitiativestodate.InadditiontoAFIC,theUgandaContractsMonitoringCoalition (UCMC), amulti-stakeholder and non-partisan coalition of public and private sector groups,hasengagedinmonitoringofprocurementprocessesandpromotionoftransparencywiththesupportof the PPDA. Transparency International Uganda, which participates in UCMC (along with AFIC), hasconductedtrainingswiththePPDAand,withAFIC,monitorscontractimplementationonthelocallevel.The robust efforts of these and other organizations stand to benefit from enhanced efforts to turnprocurementdataintouseableinformationthatstrengthensprocurementperformance.ScopingStudyVisitTo launch theproject,DGandAFIC conductedan initial scopingvisit toKampala,Uganda tobegin tounderstand the needs of the various stakeholders, to identify key datasets for usewith procurementdata, and to understand the institutional, legal, and policy contexts for open contracting. During theweekofDec.11-15,2017,DGandAFICmetwithavarietyofstakeholders(seethelistofinterviewsinthe Annex), including sit-down interviews with 13 government entities (PPDA, Ministry of Finance,

17SeesomeoftheavailabletoolsthatuseOCDSandOCgenerallyfromaroundtheworld:https://ogptoolbox.org/lt/collections/10.

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Planning and Economic Development (MoFPED), PEs, civil society organizations, and private sectorassociations. Brief introductory meetings were also held with local actors from a local district’sProcurementandDisposalUnit,aswellaswiththeWorldBank.ThemissioncoincidedwithamissionbyCoST in thesameweek,whichprovidedadditional context to this scoping study.TheattendanceofalocalBaraza,supportedbyCoST,sawlocalstakeholdersprovidefeedbacktolocal,regional,andnationalgovernmententitiesontheconstructionofaroad inWakisoDistrict-whichpartlyencirclesKampala,Uganda’s capital city. This report also draws on desk research, including legal documents andpublicationsbythePPDA,andanOpenContractingScopingStudyconductedbyAFICwiththesupportofHivosandtheOpenContractingPartnership.18DGandAFICplantocontinuetheprocessofrequirementsgatheringforthiseffortthroughconductingadditional sit-down interviews hosting multi-stakeholder meetings designed to facilitate dialogue onprocurement data use. This document aims to establish a baseline understanding of views onprocurement data needs and the legal, policy and practical issues affecting understanding ofprocurementperformanceandresults.It isourhopethattheinformationcontainedwithinthisreportwill help to provide a foundation for future discussions and forge consensus on the priorities foranalytics use to foster improved procurement performance and decision making in Uganda. Theproposedprocessforcontinueddialogueisdescribedinsection6.Thisreportisorganizedasfollows:

- Section 1. Introduction and Background: This section introduces this project outlining theinceptionvisit,ongoingOCDSinitiatives’progress,aswellasintendedscopeevenastheprojectkicksoff.

- Section2.UseCaseAnalysis:Thissectionaimstounderstanddatauserneeds,bothwithinandoutsideofgovernment.Thisunderstandingwillserveasthestartingpointforfuturediscussionsabouttheanalyticsnecessaryandanytoolsthatmaybedevelopedthroughthisproject.

- Section 3. Technical Assessment: Here, we aim to understand the systems in use by thegovernment for collection, management, and publishing of procurement data. We focusprimarilyontheGPP,whilenotingcertainfindingsaboutthechangestothedataprocessthatwilltakeplaceasanewe-Procurementsystemisadoptedoverthenextfouryears.

- Section4.Dataanalysis:Inthissection,wesharetheresultsofourinitialanalysisoftheOCDSAPI published on the GPPwebsite.We review the data categories published,make an initialassessmentof thedata availablewithin these fields, anddescribewhat analytics canbeusedbasedonthisdata.

- Section5.ContextforEnhancedOpenContractingImplementation:Thissectionfocusesonthelegal and policy framework for open contracting, including disclosure, reporting, citizenengagement, and the efforts of civil society andprivate sector to engage in theprocurementprocess.

- Section 6. Next steps: In this section, a suggested approach and timeline are elaborated forcontinued discussion among stakeholders to refine use cases and foster tools through a co-creationprocess.SupporteffortstooptimizetheGPPOCDSoutputanddataintegrationarealsoprovided.

- Section7.Aboutus:AdescriptionofbothDGandAFIC.Whythisinitiative

18Hivos,AFICandOpenContractingPartnership.OpenContractinginUganda:Scopingstudy,November2016.See:https://hivos.org/open-contracting-uganda.

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Development Gateway (DG) has been awarded a two-year grant by the Hewlett Foundation toworkwiththePPDAandAFICtosupporttheircontinuedprogressonOCandtoengage indatauseefforts.Thegoalof this grant is to support theGovernmentofUgandaandother key stakeholders (includingfromcivil society and theprivate sector) in usingprocurementdata to enhanceprocurement results.OurtheoryofchangearguesthatthepublicationofOCdata,combinedwitheffectiveimplementationsupport,includingco-createdtoolscenteredonhigh-valueusecases;provisionoftrainingandresourcesto key stakeholders; and facilitated engagement between government, citizens, and the privatesector,will result in the sustainable use ofOCdata for improvedpublic procurement decision-makingandservicedelivery.AdditionalinformationabouttheprojectcanbefoundintheAnnex5.

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2.USECASEANALYSISIndeveloping technology,DG focusesonpracticalday-to-dayuserneeds.Tobuilda startingpoint fordiscussion of user needs in Uganda, DG and AFIC conducted interviews seeking to understand howindividuals currently use procurement data and the challenges they face in using data tomeet theirobjectives. The use cases identified and expanded upon below aim to serve as a basis for continueddiscussionswithkeystakeholdersandhavebeendrawndirectlyfromtheinterviewsconductedthusfar.These general use caseswill be further developed and refined through further discussionwith thoseinterviewed,aswellaswithadditionalstakeholdersfromgovernment,civilsociety,academia,andtheprivatesector.Table1:Identificationofusecasesandkeymetrics

PotentialUser

UseCase

PPDA Monitoring Procurement Efficiency: Increasing efficiency is essential to the PPDA’sefforts to strengthen public markets, improve competitiveness, and reducemismanagement. ThePPDA instituted theProcurementPerformanceMeasurementSystem(PPMS)in2009totracktheefficiency,effectivenessandtransparencyoftheprocurementprocess.While8indicators(Seediscussioninsection5)arereportedinthePPMS,anumberofadditional indicatorsarepublishedinthemostrecentPPDAAnnual Report. A more robust system could enable the PPDA to monitor thesestatisticsasdataisentered,andenableittomonitortheseindicatorsusingavarietyof filters that would lead to more nuanced results. For instance, the PPDA couldadoptatoolthatwouldenableitsstafftoparsethenumberofbiddersbyPE,aswellasbyprocurementmethod,tendervalue,item,orlocation.Itcouldalsoconductananalysis to identifywhichPEs aremost inneedof training, basedonadherence toguidelinesonthetimelineoftheprocurementprocess.

PPDAPEs

Earlywarningoncontractsimplementation:Identifyingproblemsintheprocurementprocess prior to contract award is essential for ensuring a robust and fairprocurementmarket.Insuchascenario,atoolcouldidentifyprocessesinwhichthetenderperiod is cut short, or extendsbeyond theprescribed timeline. It could flagcompetitive procurements in which an evaluation process is underway, but only asinglequalifiedbidderhassubmitted(priortoaward).Whilethesescenariosarenotachievableatpresent (data is typicallyuploaded intotheGovernmentProcurementPortal(GPP)onceaprocess iscomplete),theadoptionofane-Procurementsystemwould typically allow for such robustmonitoring capabilities. Real-time compliancemonitoringfunctionalitiestriggeringflagsorauditalertsisafeaturerequestedoftheselectedsupplierforthee-Procurementsystem.19

PPDA Selecting cases for audit: The PPDAmonitors approximately 350 agencies and has

19Accordingtothebiddingdocuments:“Thesystemshouldhavereal-timecompliancemonitoringfunctionalitythathaspre-definedriskfactorswhichtriggersystemflagsandauditalertstoboththePDEandthecompliancemonitoringunitatPPDAtoreviewtheprocurementprocess.”(p.223)

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undertakenbetween107and121procurementauditsannuallyoverthepast3years(thePPDAdidnotmeetits2015-16target20).AstheneedforprocurementauditsfarexceedstheresourcesofthePPDAtoconductthem,thePPDAmustbeeffective inselecting which procurements to audit. At present, the PPDA undertakes a“purposive sampling” approach thatweighs a varietyof key factors (budget sizeofthe PE, amount of the procurement, extent to which the procurement is in thenationalinterest,etc.)andselectsrandomlyfromatargetedlist.Auditsamplingmaybenefit from the use of data analytics to more effectively identify high riskprocurements.Theseanalyticscouldalsoassistinidentifyingasmallgroupofmicro-procurements that are in greatest need of audit, as these procurements are notpresentlysubjecttoprocurementaudits.

AllStakeholders

Budgetabsorption:ThePPDApresentlymonitorsbudgetabsorptionfocusingonthepercentage of expenditures by PEs that have been included their respectiveprocurement plans. In line with the Right to Information Law, Ugandans have aninterest inensuringthatspendingisattachedtoprocurementplans.Fortheprivatesector, procurement plans can help forecast potential opportunities. Citizens andgovernment rely on procurement plans to ensure that critical needs are met. Adeeperanalysisofbudgetabsorptioncouldseektounderstand:

● The procurement methods used for monies spent within and beyondprocurementplans;

● TheconsistencyofPEbehaviornationwide;● Thepercentageoffundingwithinprocurementplansthatiscancelledand/or

diverted;● Theextent towhich spendingbeyondprocurementplans complies (ornot)

withreporting,publicationandotherregulatoryrequirements.

PPDAPEsMoFPED

Improvingvalueformoney:Intervieweeswithingovernmentraisedachallengetheyoftenencounter:thatofconductingresearchtoensurethegovernmentispurchasinggoods,works,andservicesatafairmarketprice.21PracticesappeartodifferbetweenPEs when it comes to determining fair market values, with the user departmentplayingabiggerroleinprovisionofspecificationsinsomeinstances,andleavingthisandotherprocurementprocessestobedrivenbytheAccountingOfficersinothers.As an example, one suspected opportunity for corruption is in the design of aspecification for a high quality laptop and the selection of an inferiormodel at aninflated price. Additionally, there currently appears to be minimal sharing ofinformationacrossPEswheremarketpricesareconcerned.WhilethePPDAhasbeenworkingwith a university to provide support to PEs on fairmarket pricing and theMoFPED raised thepossibility of creating aunit solely focusedon value formoneywithintheministry,effectiveutilizationofanalyticswouldprovidecrucialinformationtosupporttheseefforts.Somekeyvalue-focussedmetricsinclude:

● Thegapbetweenprocurementplansandactualprocurements;

20PPDA,AnnualReport2015-2016.21AnexampleofPPDArecentguidanceonprocurementpricesisavailablehere:https://www.ppda.go.ug/download/common_user_items/common_user_items/LIST-OF-COMMON-USER-ITEMS-AVERAGE-PRICES-Oct2015-2016.pdf.

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● Complianceofactualspecificationstotenderedandplannedspecifications;● Use/reportingofitemidentifiersbyPEstaff;● Analysisofpricedifferencesofsimilaritemswithinandbetweendistricts;● Analysis of price differences of similar items by national, district and local

PEs.

PPDAMoFPEDPEs

Collusion:Collusionposesproblemsinpublicprocurementbecausecitizensmaynotultimatelybegettingvalueformoneyforpublicgoods/services.Viewsontheimpactof collusion differ subtly among PEs. One interviewee suggested that his PE’sprocurementmarketwastoocompetitiveforsuppliercollusiontotakehold.Anotherinterviewee expressed concern about collusion within the micro procurementmarket, noting that in the case of limited procurements (below 100m USh), oneinvited bidder would often neglect to bid in order to improve the chances of acompetitor.Totheextentthatcollusionisaproblem,avarietyofanalyticscanhelptohighlightwhenthisissueissuspected,forinstance:

● Analysisofwinsandlossesbetweenfrequentco-bidders;● Identification of patterns in the timing of bid submission and amounts by

variousbidders,and;● Analysisofbidpricestoidentifythepossiblecorrelationbetweenbids.

PPDAPEs

PE compliance with procurement regulations: The challenge of ensuring that PEscarry out the procurement process in compliance with the legal and regulatoryframeworkisexacerbatedbythelackofadequatestaffingandresources,bothwithinthe PPDA and PEs. Many PEs do not report all procurements (particularly microprocurements, which, although small, account for a substantial portion of thenational budget) to the PPDA. Although the GPP facilitates reporting compliance,different PEs appear to use the systemdifferently. Additionally, because the PPDAdoes not receive data in real time, its ability to ensure regulatory compliance islimitedtoposthocevaluation,ratherthanrealtimeinterjection.Thee-Procurementsystemwillfosterrealtimecompliancemonitoring.Asmore PEs use the GPP and others adopt the e-Procurement system, there is aneed tomeasure compliance to demonstrate the impact of e-Procurement and toencouragelaggingPEstoimproveperformance.ThiscouldincludemonitoringofPEcompliancealongthefollowing:

● Publication:Procurementplans,tenderdocuments,andotherrequireddatapublicly;

● Reporting: Frequency of reporting of key data points within GPP and e-Procurementsystem;Completenessofreportingofmicroprocurements;

● Regulations: Existenceof non-competitiveprocurements above competitivethreshold;Conductingofprocurementswithinscheduledtimeframes,etc.

CivilSocietyPPDAMoFPED

MonitoringServiceDelivery:SeveralCSOsaremonitoringcontractimplementationinlocal districts to ensure that procurement has the intended results on the ground.TheseeffortsprovidevaluetothePPDA,MoFPED,andlocalauthorities,whichdonotalwayshavethefinancialandhumanresourcestomonitorandassessprocurementimplementation.Theseorganizationstypicallyrequestcontractsandanyunpublished

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procurementplansfromPEs,suchaslocalmunicipalitiesdirectly,withmixedresults.Improved access to contracts and other information, such as item identifiers andprices,would facilitate thiswork. Developing a tool that enables CSOs tomix datacollected on the ground with that published by the GPP may facilitate improvedanalytics coverage andpublication results. Some specific issues theseCSOs seek toraiseinclude:

● Theextenttowhichprocurementsstemfromprocurementplans;● Whetherornotprocurementswerecompletedinatimelyfashionandwithin

budget,and;● The extent to which the contracted specifications match tender

specifications.● Also,atpresent,data is sharedmostly inPDFor inhardcopywhichmakes

monitoringdifficult.It’snoteworthythatenhancingdataanalysisanddataadvocacycapacitywouldgoalongwaytosupportthisusecase.

CivilSocietyPrivateSector

Alerts to reduce the burden on data users: Procurement data users within civilsociety and theprivate sector spend significant time and resources accessingdata,rather thanresponding toorusing it.For instance,privatesectoruserscouldmoreeffectively search for opportunities related to their fields of expertise throughimplementationofanalertsystemwitheffectivefilteringoptions.Civilsocietywouldbenefitfromanalertsystemthatsignalswhenprocurementsarepublishedwithoutalink toprocurementplans.AnotherusefulalertwouldenableCSOs toseewhenanextractivesprocurementhasbegunpriortopublicationofcontractinformation.

CivilSociety MonitoringExtractives&InfrastructureContracts:CSOsareconductinganumberofinitiatives targeting specific sectors, including infrastructure projects and extractiveindustries. These two sectors, in particular, have their own challenges. Largeinfrastructure projects often use more complicated contracting processes. TheConstruction Sector Transparency Initiative (CoST) has developed a datamodel forsuch projects which can be integrated with OCDS. In the extractives sector, manycriticalmonitoringpoints,suchasproductionsharingarrangementsandresettlementactionplans,maynotbewithinthescopeofprocurementauthorities(theyarenotinthe Uganda case). However, some state agencies (e.g. National Oil Company,PetroleumAuthority)shouldbereportingcontractstothePPDA.Ensuringthatdatacan be easily filtered to focus on extractives and on infrastructure is one way tofacilitatetheeffortsofthosefocusedonmonitoringthesesectors.

PrivateSector Improvingthebusinessclimate:Theprivatesectorcanaffectpositivechangetotheprocurement market by monitoring the business environment and providingfeedback to PPDA andMoFPED. There are a number of factors that influence theprocurement climate for suppliers that can be monitored using analytics. KeystatisticsfocusonPEperformance,includingadherencetoprocurementplans,ratesofprocurementcancellations,andpaymentdelays.

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PPDAPrivateSector

Ensuringcompliancewith theLocalContentPolicyGuidelines:UgandahasadoptedLocalContentPolicyGuidelines22thatsetforthspecificcriteriafortheparticipationofUgandan suppliers in procurement opportunities. These guidelines, which areexpected to be adopted into law, establish thresholds under which certain goods,works,orservicesmayonlygotoUgandansuppliers.Theyalsocreaterequirementsfor large procurements to include local expertise, goods and services; as well asbusinesses,financing,andlabor.Infact,accordingtothePPDA’sAnnualPerformancereport for the 2016 Financial Year, PPMS and GPP findings reveal that the localproviders account (on average) for 99% of the contracts by number and 58% ofcontractsbyvalue.23EffectivemonitoringofsuchwillrequireavarietyofextensionstoOCDS,andhaspotentialtobringsignificantvaluetoUgandancitizens.While Uganda is expected to commit to monitoring such procurements, doing sowithoutthebenefitsofstrongdataanalyticswillinevitablyimpedeoversightefforts.Analytics aimed atmonitoring compliancewith the Local Content PolicyGuidelineswould require detailed information about items, suppliers and their staffing, andpaymentsbeneficialownershipinformation.

AllStakeholders

Monitoringat-riskprocurements:Someintervieweessuggestedastrongcorrelationbetweenmismanagement and corruption, and the PPDA’s Strategic Plan identifiescorruptionasakeychallengetoaddress.24Inoneexample,delaysinpaymentsweretiedtoeffortsbyindividualswithinthepaymentsprocesstoobtainbribes.Whilethepayment of a bribe itself cannot be detected using procurement data, proxyindicatorscanbeusedtoidentifyindividualprocurementsatriskformalfeasanceorpatternsthatmayrevealmarketdistortions.Beyondquestionsofefficiency,thereisapublicbenefit to flaggingwhichPEsandsuppliersarecomplyingwithregulations,andwhichmaybedisplayingbehaviorsthatmaybeworthinvestigating.The e-Procurement system is almost guaranteed to reduce the space created byprocurement inefficiency that enables corrupt practices. However, there is nomechanismpresentlyavailabletotrackprogressoncorruptionreductionwithintheprocurement process. This presents a potentially valuable missed opportunity todemonstratetothepublicthatthePPDAandUgandanGovernmentarerespondingdirectly tocitizens’concernsaboutcorruption. Itwouldalsorespondto thePPDA’sstrategic objectiveof “[strengthening] the skills of its audit andmonitoring staff to

22See:http://www.mtic.go.ug/images/policies/bubu.pdf.23ThenumberoflocalprovidersishighpartlyduetothefactthatthelowvalueProcurementswhicharemostcommonareawardedtolocalproviders;andwhodon’thavecapacitytodeliveronhighvalueprojects.24AsurveyconductedbythePPDAshowsthatcitizensareconcernedwithcorruptioninprocurement:“54%ofrespondentsreportedthatbribeswereover10percentofthecontractedvalueandsometimesthekick-backissohighthatthecontractorwasleftwithlessthanadequatefundstodoqualitywork”(PPDAAnnualReport,2015-2016).

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closely scrutinise the stages of procurement most prone to corruption andsystematicallyintegratethiswithintheauditprocess.”25Monitoringat-riskprocurementswouldcombinemetricsonprocurementefficiencywiththoseforcompetitiveness,andsupplierandPEperformancethroughaflaggingmethodology.Issuesraisedwouldinclude:

● Doestheprocurementtimelinecreatelagsthatmayallowforillicitbehaviortothrive?

● Doprocurementshavemultiplebidanddo theprocurementmethodsusedpromotecompetitiveness?

● Arecompetingsupplierslegitimateandaretheyprovidinglegitimatebids?● DosomePEshavecharacteristicallyworseprocurementsthanothers?

AllStakeholders

Improving searchability of procurement data: Open contracting initiatives do notlimit themselves to improve public disclosure but also to encourage publicparticipation especially in using the information generated to hold responsibleentitiesaccountable.26SomeprocurementstakeholdersmaynotusetheGPPduetodifficultiesconductingsearches and a lack of data about PEs of interest. Improving data searchability,through improved filteringandalerts,wouldenablemoreeffectiveparticipationbythepublicandenableprivatesectorsupplierstofocusmoretimeonpreparingbids.

25PPDA.StrategicPlan.1.4.Availableat:https://www.ppda.go.ug/download/ppda_strategic_plan/strategic_plan/PPDA-Strategic-Plan-FY-2014-15-to-2018-19.pdf.26AFIC.2016.OpenContractingDataStandard(OCDS)-MappingReportforUgandaGovernmentProcurementPortal

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3.TECHNICALASSESSMENTThe primary data system used for procurement data collection,management, and publication is theGovernment Procurement Portal (GPP).While other systems that are valuable and relevant for opencontractingdatausersexist,only theRegisterofProviders (RoP),whichcontainsdataaboutsuppliersthatareregisteredtoparticipate inthepublicprocurementmarket, is linkedtotheGPP.Uganda is intheprocessofdevelopingane-Procurementsystem,whichwillalsohaveanOCDSoutput.Thissectionreviews these systems, focusing largely on the GPP and its current OCDS data output, with an eyetowardOCDSdatapublicationthroughthee-Procurementsystem.27TheGovernmentProcurementPortalPPDAhasprovidedleadershipinproactivedisclosureofcontractingdatathroughtheGPP.28TheGPPisthe primary system in use by the PPDA for collecting, managing and publishing procurementinformation. It isaweb-basedportal thatenablesPEs topost tenders,procurementplans,andawardinformationtothepublicthroughauniqueportal.29ItalsoreducesthereportingburdenofPEs,whocansendanautomaticallygeneratedmonthlyreport tothePPDA,andtoenablebasicmonitoringof theirownperformance.ForthePPDA,theGPPhasenhanceddatacollection,whichisnowmoreconsistent.IthasalsohelpedthePPDAtoensurethatitmeetsdatapublicationstandardsrequiredbylaw.In the 2016 financial year, PPDA rolled out theGPP to 97 PEs (out of 167, 58%);30 though no officialfiguresarepresentlypublished, it isanticipatedthatthis figurehasnowrisen.Bytheendofthe2016financialyear,therewere13,767invitationsforbids,118,362bestevaluatedbiddernoticesand18,607contractsworthUGX2,661,628,423putontheGPP.31Data isentered into theGPPby individualPEsat variouspoints in theprocurementprocess, typicallybeginningwiththeuploadingofprocurementplans.TheaccountingofficerineachPEisresponsibleforupdatingthesystemasaprocurementmovesthroughtheprocess.TheonboardedPEsareabletopostprocurementopportunities,BestEvaluatedBiddersandtosubmitmonthlyreportsusingthePortal.Nevertheless,changemanagementchallenges (fromPPMStoGPP)havemeant thatsomePEsupdatedatamorefrequentlythanothers;sincethePPMSkepthistoricaldataandtheGPPcontainsmorereal-time data.32 Consequently, it is probable that the GPP cannot be 100% relied upon for real time

27Somelocaldistrictshavetheirownwebsiteswheretheypublishprocurementinformation,themostadvancedofwhichisthatoftheKampalaCapitalCityAuthority,whichwasdevelopedwiththesupportofinternationaldonorsandcivilsociety.See:http://user.ug/.Thisreportdoesnotassesstheselocalinitiatives.28ThisisenshrinedinArticle38and41oftheconstitution29TheGPPispresentlyimplementedastwoseparateapplicationsthataccessthesamedatabase:awebapplicationthatisusedforenteringandviewingprocurementdata,andapubliclyaccessibleAPIapplication.TheGPPwebapplicationisdevelopedusingCodeIgniterPHPframework.TheGPPAPIisdevelopedusingLaravelPHPframework.ThedataisstoredinaMySQLdatabase;hostingisbythecloud-basedBluehostservice.AvalidationprocessisbuiltinthatcleansdatawhentransformedintoOCDS.TheOCDSdatawasinitiallyvalidatedusingtheOCDSvalidator.30PPDAAnnualPerformanceReportJuly2015-June2016.https://www.ppda.go.ug/download/ppda_annual_reports/ppda_annual_reports/PPDA-ANNUAL-REPORT-2015-2016.pdf31ibid32ibid

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informationontheprocurementprocesswhenthere isneedto intercede inordertocourse-correctaprocurementthatisnotbeingeffectivelyimplementedbasedoninformationprovidedbythesystem.The GPP’s “open data” page features data that has been converted to OCDS. PPDA embraced thealignment of GPP data to OCDS following AFIC's successful advocacy. In May 2017, PPDA, incollaborationwithAFIC,startedtheprocessofaligningtheportaltoOCDS.Bythetimeofthescopingmission,testingwasunderway.

GPPdataretrievalchallengesSomePEsareunabletoaccesstheGPPduetolimitedinternetaccess(forexampleinWakisoDistrict)orinsufficienttechnicalresourcestouploaddata.Becauseroll-outisstillongoingbyPPDA,somePEshavenotbeentrainedonhowtouseoftheGPP,preventingincreasedsaturation.Moretechnically,theGPP’s“OpenData”pagecontainslinkstoanOCDSpublicationaccessibleviaXLSandAPI.ThispagealsocontainsanHTMLrepresentationofthedatathatseekstoenableuserstoparsethedatausingavarietyofcriteria.Duetolonglagtimes,actionsrequestedbyusersappeartotimeout.Avisualizationatthetopofthepageappearstodelaypageloadingandthepageisoftenunabletofetchdatarequestedbytheuser.Accordingtointerviews,thesechallengesappeartoderive-atleastinpart-fromthesizeandstructureoftheGPPandRoPdatabases.PullinganindividualdatafieldintheGPPdatabaserequiresavarietyofcalculations tooccur, causingdelayson theuser end. Thesedelaysmaybe compoundedby a similarprocesstogainaccesstospecificdatawithintheRoPdatabase.TheRoPdatabaseishostedonanotherserver,henceaccesstothedataisslow.TheAPI,whichrunsseparatelyonthesameserver,interfaceswiththedatabaseandproducesJSONincompliancewithOCDS(inaccordancewithAFIC’srecommendations).AninitialchallengefacedbyNewWaveTechnologies(NewWave)indevelopingtheAPIwastolinkprocurementsacrossthephasesoftheprocurement process. By adopting the OCID and OCDS tagging feature, NewWave was able to linkindividualprocurements.AnotherchallengewastoenableaccesstotheAPIwithoutcausingittotimeoutduetothemanycalculationsrequiredtofetchdata.NewWave’ssolutionwastopaginatetheAPIsothat it callsup30 recordsat a time.APIpagesaregroupedby theOCDS ‘tag’ field (that is, by stage:planning,tender,etc.).Inordertogainaccesstothefulldataset,ausermustscrapetheentireAPIandcopythedataintoanexternaldatabase.NewWaveplanstodevelopappropriateAPIdocumentation.Asitpresentlystands,thedatacannotbeaccessedwithoutcontactingNewWaveforguidance.Ofnote,theGPPwasunavailablefor3-4daysduringthemission,allegedlyduetodelayedweb-hostingpayments(thePPDApaysmonthly).BecausetheGPPdoesnothavein-housedevelopers,itisreliantonNewWave for maintenance and improvements. The instability of this resource and lack of internaldevelopmentcapacityareachallengetothetool’ssustainability.

OvercomingchallengesinretrievingdatafromtheGPPInordertoovercomethelimitationsoftheGPPAPI,DGhasdevelopedatoolforscrapingdatafromtheAPI.ThetoolisdevelopedusingNodeJS.DatascrapedisfetchediterativelyperpageviaAJAXcallstotheAPI,andissavedinaMongoDBdatabase.Thetablesbelowprovideasummaryofthescrapingprocess:

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Table2:SummaryofDataRetrievalProcess

Phase(Usingthegeneral/tagfield)

Totalnumberofpages Pagesthatfailed

Planning 2196 0

Tender 267 0

Award 703 325

Contract 703 325

Implementation 703 325

Table3:SummaryofDataRetrievalResults

Phase(Usingthegeneral/tagfield)

Totalnumberofrecords(asperAPImetadata)

Number(and%)ofrecordsfetchedsuccessfully

Planning 65856 65860(+100%)33

Tender 8004 7987(99.79%)

Award 21065 11280(53.5%)

Contract 21069 11280(53.5%)

Implementation 21069 11280(53.5%)

Theresultsofthescrappingprocess(showninthetablesabove)showthatasignificantnumberofAPIrequestsfailed.AlltheAPIrequeststhatfailedreturnedan"Undefinedoffset:0"error.Itisnotclearwhatthiserrormessagemeans.Itisimportanttocarryoutfurtherinvestigationaboutthisproblemandidentifyasolution.ResolvingthisissuewillimprovetheusabilityoftheAPIinprocurementanalyticsanddecisionsupporttools.Also,CSOs,includingAFIC,havebeensupportiveoftheGPProllout,whichhasincludedsupportingtrainingsforPEs.ThroughNationalInformationTechnologyAuthorityofUganda(NITA-U),thegovernmentisworkingtoensurethemajortownsthroughoutthecountryareconnectedtotheinternetandthatallMinistries,DepartmentsandAgencies(MDAs)haverelevanthardware(computers,VideoconferencingandVoIPequipment)toboostconnectivityandaccesstoinformation.34Furtheractionsbythegovernmentwouldalsoincludeloweringthecostofaccesstointernet.

33Pleasenotethatforplanning,thenumberofrecordsreturnedbytheAPIisslightlyhigherthanwhatisinthemetadataoftheAPIresponse.34ThemainaimoftheNationalDataTransmissionBackboneInfrastructureande-GovernmentInfrastructureProjectistoaimsaretoconnectallmajortownswithinthecountryontoanOpticalFibreCablebasedNetworkandtoconnectMinistriesandGovernmentDepartmentsontothee-GovernmentNetwork

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DataIntegrationIntegratingprocurementdatawithotherdatasetshaspotential to increase thevalueofprocurementdata and enhance the performance of government and implementation of key policies. Linkingprocurement data with beneficial ownership data can help ensure that Ugandan companies benefitfrom the Local Policy Content Guidelines, while helping to ensure that government officials do notillicitlybenefitfromgovernmentprocurement.AsitisplannedthattheGPPwillbeintegratedwiththee-Procurementsystem,andbephasedoutoverthecomingfouryears.Consequently,itmaybeworthwhiletoconsiderusingtheOCDSAPIforimportingGPPdata into thee-Procurement system,which is tobe linkedwith at least threeother governmentsystems.Whiledoing sowould require furtherdevelopmentof theGPPAPI, itmaybemoreefficientthancreatinganewAPIfromthedatabase.The GPP will remain an important tool for procurement data collection for at least three years,integrating this data with other datasets may still represent value for citizens. At present, the onlyexternallinkageoftheGPPistothe(RoP),whichisqueriedforsupplierinformation.DuetothenatureoftheRoP,thisisaninefficientprocessthatrequiresavarietyofoperationstooccur,slowingdowntheGPP’sresponsiveness.Otherhighvaluesystemsthatcouldbeintegratedwithprocurementdataincludethefollowing(thefirstthreearetobelinkedtothee-Procurementsystem):

- Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB): The URSB database contains additionalinformationaboutcompaniesbiddingonprocurementopportunities.TheURSBdatasetcontainssupplier registration information, liquidation and bankruptcy information, information aboutintellectualpropertyrights,industrialdesign,civilregistration,andnon-taxrevenue;35

- e-Taxsystem:TheUgandaRevenueAuthoritycollects taxesprovidedbysuppliers.Linking thisdatadoprocurementinformationwouldenablebetteroversightoftaxcomplianceofthePEs;

- Integrated FinancialManagement System (IFMS): A system of theMoFPED, the IFMS systemcontains payment transactions between government entities and suppliers. Linking thisinformation to procurement data would add significant value, particularly with respect toanalysesfocusedonefficiencyandcorruptionriskrelatedtoprocurementpayments(anareaofimportancehighlightedbyallstakeholdergroups).

- Uganda Legal Information Institute (ULII): The ULII hosts data online for all cases held inUgandan courts.36 Flagging procurements and suppliers involved in court cases could aid redflaggingeffortsundertakenbythePPDAorotheragencies.

- GovernmentOfficials’AssetDisclosures:TheIGGisresponsibleforcollectingandmonitoringtheassets of government officials. Although not publicly available, linking these datasets wouldimproveeffortstoensurethatgovernmentofficials(andpossiblytheirfamilymembers)donotbenefitillicitlyfromgovernmentprocurement.

- PPMS and GPP for key analytics: It is clear that these 2 systems (though PPMS has morehistoricaldata)areused regularly inprocurement reportingbyPPDA.Several referenceshavebeenmadetodataobtainedfromthetwosystemsinthe2016financialyearPPDAperformancereportandthePPMSreportforthesameperiod.Forexample,averagetimetakentocompletethe procurement cycle, proportion of contracts by value awarded to local providers, among

35Formoreinformation,see:http://ursb.go.ug/about-us/ursb-mandate/.36See:https://ulii.org/.

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others.Dataderivedfromeachofthesystemscouldbefurtherstreamlinedtohastenreportingandimproveanalyticssuchasthoseprovided.

- Infrastructure data: With respect to infrastructure projects, the Construction SectorTransparency Initiative (CoST) has identified 12 legally recognized data points in Uganda.37Ensuring these data are fully integrated with procurement data using OCDS and the relatedInfrastructureDataStandardwouldbringtransparencytoinfrastructureprojectsandhelpmeettheneedsofUgandansupplierstobetterpreparetoorganizeforbidsforsuchopportunities.

Overall,tomaximizethebenefitsoflinkingthesedatasets,thegovernmentmustensurethatcommonuniqueidentifiers(forsuppliers,governmentagencies,items,etc.)areusedacrossgovernmentsystems.

OCDSande-ProcurementinUgandaUganda recently tendered for an e-Procurement (also known as e-GP) system. It is anticipated thatsystemimplementationwillbegininearly2018andthat,within2018,17PEswillpilotthesystem.Overthefollowingthreeyears,PEswillgraduallymigratefromtheGPPtoe-Procurement,with20movinginyeartwo,50inyearthree,and80inyearfour.Itispresumedthatatthattime,theGPPwillbephasedoutandalloftheGPPdatawillbemigratedtothee-Procurementsystem.OCDSisafeatureofthee-Procurementsystem,andthePPDAandAFIChaveagreedforAFICtoprovideguidancetoensureeffectiveOCDSimplementation.Accordingtothebiddingdocuments,OCDSistobepartofthe“designandimplementation”ofthee-Procurementsystem.38ThebiddingdocumentsdonotspecifywhichversionofOCDSistobeused.Additionally,UgandahasprudentlyrequiredincorporationofGIS-basedgeotaggingsothatprocurementauthoritiescanmoreeffectivelytrackphysicalprogressonprocurementsusingmappingtechnology(GoogleMaps).39 Integratingthisdata intoOCDSthroughthelocationextensionwillenablecitizenstohelpthePPDAtovisuallyandspatiallymonitortheseprojects,making the Government of Uganda a leader and innovator in the use of mapping technology inprocurement.Relevant to this project, the e-Procurement bidding documents require the implementation of datavisualizationsusinggraphicaltools,whilea listof35analytics isprovided.40Figure1showsagraphicalpresentationof the averagenumberof bidders for each tender, disaggregatedbyprocurement valuefrom the Zambia e-Procurement system, created by the vendor selected by the PPDA.41 This image,whichmayprovideamodeloftheintendedimplementationforUganda,hasauniquefilterforreleasedate.Thedatacanbeshownasagraphorrepresentedonatable,anddownloaded in .CSVand .PDFformats.WhiletheseanalyticsprovidesomeinsightintoprocurementperformanceinZambia,thelackofflexibilityinthedatamaypreventusers-includingtheGovernmentofUganda-fromidentifyingkeytrendsthatimpacttheprocurementmarketmorebroadly.Forinstance,theaveragenumberofbidders

37CoSTUgandaMulti-StakeholderGroup.CountryScopingStudyonInfrastructureDataStandard.July,2017.Thesearesummarizedas:multi-yearprogramandbudget,projectbriefandfeasibilitystudy,environmentalandsocialimpactassessment,resettlementandcompensationplan,projectofficialsandroles,financialagreement,procurementplan,projectapprovaldecision,implementationprogressreports,projectcompletionreports,projectevaluationreports,technicalauditreports.38GovernmentofUganda.InvitationforBids:BiddingDocumentforSupply,Installation,CommissioningandMaintenanceofane-GovermentProcurementSystemforGovernmentofUganda.15June,2016.P.228.39GovernmentofUganda.2016.P.24640GovernmentofUganda.2016.P.249-250.41See:https://www.zppa.org.zm/average-number-of-bidders-for-tenders-disaggregated-by-contract-value

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is disaggregatedby contract value.However, additional disaggregation, such asbyPE, preventsusersfromlearningwhicharethebestandworstperformingPEsonthiscrucialindicator.

Figure1:Screenshotofgraphicalpresentationof“Averagenumberofbiddersfortenders,disaggregatedby

contractvalue”fromtheZambiae-ProcurementsystemdevelopedbyEuropeanDynamics42The e-Procurement system is also to comewith a real-time alerts system for contractmanagement,which will raise flags when pre-determined risk factors are triggered. Several integrations of the e-Procurementsystemwithothergovernmentsystemsareexpected,asdescribedabove.

TechnicalCapacitywithinthePPDAandthePEsThe PPDA does not have developers on staff. In the PPDA’s experience, spending resources ondevelopershasoftenbeenineffectivesincetechnologiesarenotdevelopedin-house.ThegovernmentestablishedtheNationalInformationTechnologyAuthority-Uganda(NITA-U)in2009,withthepurposeof coordinating and regulating information technology across the government, and which has beenquite involved in thee-Procurementsystemprocess.Nevertheless, the lackof in-houseexpertisemayimpact decision making about long term technology requirements/investments as well as otherimplementationissuesthathaveshort-and-longtermconsequencesontheinternaltechnicalcapacityofthe PPDA to procure and sustain technologies. As a result, in recognizing the need for support ontechnicalissues,thePPDAandAFIChaveagreedforAFICtosupporttheprocessofOCDSintegrationinthee-ProcurementsysteminordertoensureeffectivepublicationofOCDS.AdditionalICTandtechnologychallengeswithinPPDAhighlightedintheICTstrategytobeaddressedinthe period 2016/17 and 2018/19 and which are relevant to e-procurement (and data use) include:

42See:https://www.zppa.org.zm/average-number-of-bidders-for-tenders-disaggregated-by-contract-value

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recruitmentofnewstaff and capacitybuilt to supporte-Procurement implementation for2016/17 to2018/19financialyears;implementationofanICTsecurityandbusinesscontinuityplan.Additionally,althoughanumberofPEsreportedlylackstronginternetaccess(orinternetaccessofanykind), the report’s authors did not find any mention of plans within the e-Procurement biddingdocuments to facilitateofflineuseof thee-Procurement system.43As internet penetration inUgandahas reached just 19% of the population,44 the challenge of internet access will impact users fromgovernment and the private sector. While e-Procurement is an important investment for Uganda,procurementopportunitiesmustalsoexistwheresuppliersare.

RecommendationsDGandAFIChavenothadtheopportunitytoreviewanytechnicalsystem,database,orcodeaspartofthisscopingeffort.Consequently,onceapathforengagementhasbeenagreedupon,andappropriateaccess provided, DG and AFIC can develop a concrete implementation plan in support of therecommendationsprovidedherein.

1. Optimize the API. The APIwould benefit from optimization, as the API is currently unable torespondtimelyoreffectivelytopersistentquerying.ForanexternalusertobenefitfromtheAPIatpresent,heorshewouldneedtodownloadtheentiredatasetintoanexternaldatabase(asDG has done). Given access to the API source code, DG and AFIC can support the PPDA inimprovingtheAPI.Thefollowingaresomeoftheimprovementsthatcanbemade:

a. Fix"Undefinedoffset:0"bug.SomeAPIpagescannotbefetchedbecauseofthisissue.b. Allowfetchingofdatawithoutpagination.c. Analyzeandfixperformanceissues.d. Supportadditionalfilters(e.g.filteringbypublicationdate,PE,etc.).e. EnabletheAPItoreturnalldata.Atpresent,theAPIwithnofiltersreturnsonlyplanning

elements,butwithdifferenttotalresultsthanwiththeplanningtagfilter.2. CreateAPIdocumentation.TorenderthepublicAPIusable,documentationmustbeprovided.

UsingSwagger45wasanoptiondiscussedwithNewWave.3. Improve the OCDS publication. Several measures can be taken to stabilize and improve the

OCDSpublication:a. Releasesandrecords.OCDSprovidesaspecificmechanismofdatapublicationthrough

releasesandrecords.46DGcanprovideguidancetoNewWavetoensurethatOCDS ispublishedinaccordancewiththestandard.

b. AdoptanongoingOCDSvalidationprocess.Adoptionofadatavalidationprocess-suchasDG’s jOCDSValidator,47whichwasdesignedtobe integrated intoOCDSpublicationtools like the GPP - can ensure data validates against the standard. It can be easilymodifiedtohelp identifydataquality issues,suchaspossiblebugs, includinginstanceswherethesameOCID48isusedtoidentifymultiplecontractingprocesses(theOCIDused

43LackofbasicITinfrastructureandinternetconnectivityisanidentifiedissueinthe2015-2016PPMSReportwithrecommendationthatacquisitionoftoolsbeprioritised.44See:http://www.internetlivestats.com/internet-users/uganda/45Swaggerisanopensourcesoftwareframeworkbackedbyalargeecosystemoftoolsthathelpsdevelopersdesign,build,document,andconsumeRESTfulWebservices46See:http://standard.open-contracting.org/latest/en/getting_started/releases_and_records/.47See:http://www.developmentgateway.org/blog/your-data-ocds-compliant-introducing-jocds-validator.48See:http://gpp.ppda.go.ug/api/v1/releases?tag=planning.

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forallsuchinstancesis“_OCID_”)orinstanceswheretheawarddatebeginsbeforetheendofthetenderperiod.

c. EnableURLpersistence.Thiswill ensure thatusers canaccess thedata in thepresentandinthefuture.

4. ImprovetheGPP-RoPlinkage.ByexportingthekeyRoPdatafieldstoanexternaldatabase(viaAPIor routinespreadsheetdownload), theRoPdatacouldbeconvertedtoOCSDandmergedwiththeotherOCDSdata.ThiscombineddatasetcouldbedrawnuponbytheGPPorexportedthroughtheGPPAPI.

5. Supportadditionalintegrations.AsDGhaspreviouslydevelopedatechnicallinkagebetweentheGovernment’s Uganda Aid Management Platform (UAMP) and its Debt Management andFinancialAnalysisSystem(DMFAS),49DGwouldbewillingtoprovidefurtheranalysistofacilitatelinkagesbetweentheGPPandoneormoreoftheseothersystems.WiththePPDA’spermissionandengagement,DGcouldalsoimplementalinkageifitwouldaidthePPDA’sabilitytoconductdataanalysis.

6. Facilitate data sharing between the GPP and e-Procurement system. Because the PPDA hasbegunpublishingdatainOCDS,thereisapossibilitythatthemostefficientmeansofexportingthe GPP data to the e-Procurement system may be to use the OCDS API. The PPDA shoulddiscussthiswiththee-ProcurementsupplierandconsiderconvertingallofthenecessarydatafieldstoOCDSforthispurpose(doingsowouldnotrequirepublishingallofthisdatapublicly).

7. EnsureOCDS1.1implementationine-Procurement.Giventhatthee-Procurementsupplierhasimplemented OCDS 1.0 in Zambia,50 the PPDA should be sure to request implementation ofOCDS 1.1 in Uganda. Because the OCDS API may be the most efficient mechanism fortransferringGPPdata to the e-Procurement system, the PPDA should consider publishing theentireGPPdatabaseinOCDS(evenifsomeofthedataremainsconfidential).

8. Consider strengthening technical capacity within the PPDA. The PPDA is at a technicaldisadvantagevis-a-visthee-Procurementsupplierduetothe lackoftechnicalexpertisewithinthePPDA.Oncethesuppliercontracthasended,thePPDArisksnothavingtheinternalcapacityto troubleshoot challenges that may arise. By that stage, it may be difficult for an externalsupplier that is not already familiar with the system to provide support, creating an over-relianceonthesupplier.ThePPDAshouldconsiderhiring internaldevelopers tohelpmitigatethesechallengesbeforetheyarise.

9. Continue to bring PEs onto the GPP. Even though the e-Procurement system will shortly becomingintouse,themajorityofPEsarenotscheduledfore-Procurementaccessfor3-4years.Consequently, bringing PEs online and training themon theGPP remains a priority, andmayserveasasteppingstonefore-Procurementthatimprovesdatacaptureandleadstoimproveddataqualityinboththenear-andmid-term.

49See:http://www.developmentgateway.org/blog/strengthening-public-financial-management-uganda-connecting-dmfas-and-amp50See:https://www.zppa.org.zm/ocds-data.

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4.DATAPUBLICATIONGPPalignmenttoOCDS(RevisitingPreviousworkdonebyAFIC)TheneedtoalignGPPwithOCDSisoneoftheareassuggestedforfurtheractioninareportbyAFICinNovember2016.ThisreportspecificallydelvedintothetechnicalmappingofavailableGPPdatatotheOCDSSchema.TheinitialmappingwasdonetoOCDSSchemaforversion1-butatthetimeofwriting,wepresentlyhaveOCDSversion1.1.Thetablebelowsummarizesthemainfindingsfromthepreviousmappingforpropercontext:Table4:AFICMappingReportfindingsandrecommendationsondatagaps

Finding Recommendation IstherecommendationImplemented?(y/n)

GPPhasdataonprocurementplans,tender,awardandstatusofthecontract.

Thereportrecommendedthataconsistentidentifiernumberisgiventoeachcontractingprocessandusedconsistentlyacrosseachstageofthecontractingprocess.

Y

ProcurementplansintheGPPcontain:namesofprocuringentitiesanddisposingunitsareprovided,aswellasquantityoftheitems,subjectofprocurement,procurementtype,procurementmethod,sourceoffunds,andestimatedcosts.Theformatofthedocumentuploadediseasilyeditableandaccessible.

Theamendments,themostrecentknownvalue,couldbeincludedinthecompiledrecordsbecauseit'snotpossibletoindicatealltheformervalues.Thisalsoappliestothedatethedocumentwaslastmodified.

N

GPPdisclosesinformationondisposalplansandnoticeswithproperinstructionsonwheretoobtain/deliverthedifferentdocuments.

N/A N/A

TheGPPgivesinformationontheavailabletenders,theprocuremententities,andthedeadlineforapplication.

Rationaleofprocurementshouldbeprovidedastoenableunderstandingofthechoiceoftheprocurementmethod.AwardCriteriadetailsshouldbeprovidedinafreetextdescriptiontounderstandhowthesuccessfulsupplierwillbeselected.

NN-theOCDSawardscriteriacodelistshouldalsobeused.

GPPlistsawardinformation--thatis,thesuppliersthathave

GPPshouldbeenhancedtoshowofficialcompanyregistrationnumbers

N

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beenawardedthedifferentlots,thestartingdate,andthedatewhentheyareexpectedtofinish.

forbiddersandcompaniesawardedcontractstoassistinknowingifthecompaniesareregisteredornot.Itshouldalsolistthename,address,region,postalcode,contact,emailaddress,etc.Milestonesshouldbeprovidedanddescribethekeydeliverablesofacontract,orkeypointsduringthelifetimeofthecontract.

N

TheGPPlistsprovidersthathavebeensuspended,thedaysremainingtorecoverfromthesuspension,andthereasonfortheirsuspension.

N/A N/A

GPPshouldclassifyline-itemsagainstgoodsandservicesclassifications.

N

Therefore, they have been largely responsible for ensuring that enhancements of the GPP are OCDScompliant.ThisTechnicalAssessmentsectionbuildsfurtheruponthepreviousdatamappingdoneandrecognizesthatalotoftechnicalworkhasbeenundertakentodatetomaketheGPPoutputOCDSdata.TheGPPenhancementtoOCDSwasdevelopedbyNewWave,withsupportofthePPDAandAFIC.ThisSection4ofthereporthasundertakenthedetailedanalysisofGPPdataadherencetoOCDS.Annex2summarisestheachievementstodateasfarasaddressingthegapsofGPP’sOCDSalignmentidentifiedin2016-toensuredisclosureforeffectivepublicparticipationincontracting.CurrentmappingofGPPtoOCDSThe GPP collects data from all five phases of the procurement process (planning, tender, award,contract, and implementation).Data is publishedon theGPP inHTML andPDF, through spreadsheetdownload (XLS),and throughapublicAPI thatusesOCDS. Itappears thatalldatapublished inHTML,includingdatafromfourphasesoftheprocurementprocess,isavailableforspreadsheetdownload.51ThetablebelowcomparesdatapublishedontheGPPinOCDSandnon-OCDSformats,withapurposeofunderstandingtheextenttowhichadditionalpublicdatacouldbeconvertedtoOCDS.TheGPP’sOCDSpublication includesdata fields fromall fivephasesof theprocurementprocess,while thenon-OCDSportionofthewebsiteincludesdatafromthreephases(thoughitisfour,the“SignedContract”sectionwasnotfunctioningthroughouttheassessmentandwritingperiod-hencereferencetothreephases).Wheredata isbeingpublished inOCDSandnon-OCDS, fulloverlaphasnotbeenachieved,withsomefieldsonlybeingpublishedinOCDS,andothersonlybeingpublishedinnon-OCDSformats.

51Inadditiontoprocuringitems,PEsandthePPDAareresponsiblefordisposalofitems,whichreferstosellingitemsnolongerinusebythegovernment.Forthisassessment,wearefocusingonprocurementdata.

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Table5:InconsistenciesintheGPPontheOCDS

GPPDataPublishedDirectlyfromDatabase(NotUsingOCDS)

Phase DocumentType(No.DataFields)

Format OCDS TotalDataFieldsCombined

Planning -ProcurementPlans(6fields)

-HTML,XLS -ProcurementPlans(4fields;2overlappingwithHTML)

-8fields

Non-OCDSdatafieldsincludequantity,procurementdescription,type,method,sourceoffunds,estimatedamount;OCDSdatacontainsjustthedescriptionandamountfromamongthesedatafields.ItalsocontainsabudgetIDandcurrencyused.

Tender -TendersList(4fields)-Tenders(Approximately20fields)

-HTML,XLS-HTML,PDF

-Tenders(25fields;14overlappingwithHTML52

-Approx.27fields

IndividualtenderspublishedinHTMLmaycontaininformationaboutlots,lotdetails,severaladdressesforprocuringentitiesandotherentitiesinvolvedinbiddingprocess,bidsecurityinformation,andtendermilestones.KeycategoriespublishedinOCDSincludeitemIDsanddescriptions,tenderernamesandidentifiers,tenderamountsandkeydates,andafieldforwhetherornotatenderhasreceivedanenquiry.

Award -LettersofBidAcceptanceList(4fields)-BestEvaluatedBidderNotices(9fields)-SuspendedSuppliersList(5fields)

-HTML,XLS-HTML,XLSforlimitedtimeperiod.-3fields(unsuccessfulbiddername,reasonunsuccessful,serialnumberarepublishedinHTMLpop-uponly)-HTML,XLS

-Awardsinfo(13datafields)-These3fieldsnotpublishedinOCDS-SuspendedsuppliersnotinOCDS

-11fields

OCDScontainssomecriticaldatafields,includingamount,suppliernameandID,awardstatus,anddate,andthenameofwinningtenderers.However,unsuccessfulbiddername,reasonunsuccessful,andsuspendedsuppliersinfoarenotincluded.

Contract -“SignedContract”sectionunavailable

-Contractdata(10fields)

-10fields

ContractsectionofGPPunavailable;AllcontractdatapresentlyavailableispublishedinOCDS.

52Datafieldsavailableintenderdocumentswereidentifiedbasedonareviewofthesedocuments.Itispossiblethatthereisgreateroverlapthannotedhere.

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Implemen-tation

-Transactions(1field)

-1field

ThepaymentsfieldwasrecentlyincludedintheGPPandincorporatedinOCDSpublication.

Global -Partiesnames,IDs,addresses

-Metadata,partiesinformation,(18fields)

-Approx.18fields(partiesinfo)-OCDSmetadatafieldslikelyunavailableinGPP

AlldatafieldsrelevanttoeachfullprocurementprocessthatarepublishedareinOCDS,includingtheOCDSmetadata,andkeypartiesinformation.53

This analysis shows thatmore GPP data fields are published through non-OCDS formats in the earlyphasesoftheprocurementprocess(planning,tender,andaward),whilemoredatafieldsareavailablethroughtheOCDSpublicationinthelaterphases(contractandimplementation).54Thereremainatleast13datafields(andlikelymore)publishedontheGPPthatcouldbeconvertedtoOCDS.SomeofthesedatafieldswouldrequiredevelopmentofOCDSextensions;nevertheless,theirinclusionbenefiteffortsto improve understanding of key procurement use cases. For instance, including the procurementmethodfield intheplanningphasewouldenableanalysisto identifywhetherornotPEsareusingtheplannedprocurementmethod,particularly ifanopenmethodwasreplacedwitha limitedorselectivemethod. Inclusionof identitiesof losingbidderswouldenabledeeperanalysisofbiddingpatternsandprocurementcompetitiveness.Beyond the GPP, some critical procurement information is published on the PPDA’s website. Thisincludes: procurement laws and regulations; annual performance reports, support information forbidders; informationaboutinvestigationsandauditreports;strategicplansandannualreports;acodeof ethics, and; a variety of other useful information for procurement process governance.55 In someinstances,errorspreventaccesstosomecrucialdocuments,suchasamendmentstothePPDAActandthecomplaintsprocedure.56Key informationrelatedto thePPDA’soversight role isnot linkedto theGPPportal.For instance, theresultsofadministrativereviews(whichstemfromcomplaints),investigations,andauditsarepublishedas distinct Word Documents on the PPDA’s website.57 The PPDA already publishes the names ofcomplainants,thereasonfortheircomplaint,andtheoutcome.IncorporatingthisdataintoOCDSwouldbehelpfulformonitoringat-riskprocurements.

53Partiesinformationintheglobalfieldsisonlyforbuyersatpresent.DataforsuppliersandPEsiscontainedinotherphases,inaccordancewithOCDS1.0.54Notethatthisanalysisfocusesondatafields,butitdoesnotaddressthequantityorqualityofdatawithinthosefields.55See:https://www.ppda.go.ug/.56Thewebpagecontainingthecomplaintsprocedureisunavailableattimeofwriting:https://www.ppda.go.ug/download-reports/resource-center/complaints-procedure/.January5,2018.57See,forinstance:https://www.ppda.go.ug/download-reports/reports/administrative-review/.

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InitialReviewofOCDSDataQualityTheGPP’sOCDSpublicationcontainsapproximately65datafields.DGconductedabasicanalysisofthedataextractedfromtheGPPaimedatunderstandingthecoverageofthedataacrossthepublisheddatafields, theconsistencyofdata formats,andother issues thatmayaffectdatause.Dueto themethodused, it isunclearwhetherthedataobtainedisfullyrepresentativeofthebroaderdataset.However,webelievesomeoftheconclusionshereinarelargelyapplicable.Inthenextphase,DGhopestorunthefulldatasetthroughitsjOCDSvalidator,toensurethatalloftheprocurementsarevalidagainstthedatastandard.Thetablebelow,basedontheinformationthatwewereabletoextractfromtheAPIusingthemethoddescribed above, shows that there are nearly 60,000 procurements with planning information.58However,just7,844(13%)oftheprocurementswithplanninginformationalsohavetenderdata.Thereare 11,175 planned procurements (18.7% of all planned procurements) with award, contract, andimplementationfieldsinthisdataset.

Table6:Numberofdistinctprocurementsbyphaseandnumberoftotalelements

ContractingStage DistinctProcurements TotalElements

Planning 59603 65860

Tender 7844 798759

Award 11175 11280

Contract 11175 11280

Implementation 11175 11280

Noting that the total number of elements is greater than the number of distinct procurements, itappears that there are redundant or invalid OCIDs in the planning phase, increasing the number ofprocurementsbeyondwhatispossiblebasedonthenumberofOCIDs.Forinstance,DGhasidentifiedalargenumberofprocurementswithaninvalidOCID“_OCID_”.60 ThesamefieldisusedforthetenderID.

Completeness&ValidityofIndividualDataFieldsTo gain a better sense of the quality of the data,we reviewed a sample of fields. These fieldswereselectedduetotheirperceived importanceorrepresentativenessof thedataonthewhole.Thetableshows thenumberofprocurements that containdata in the related field, aswell asnotes about thedataqualityornotablecharacteristics.DGwillprovideafulldatareviewonceithasobtainedtheentiredatabase.

58Usinganotherqueryingmethod,weaccessedover87,000distinctprocurements.However,wewerenotabletoaccessaward,contract,orimplementationphaseinformationusingthismethod.Consequently,wehaveconductedouranalysiswithasmallerdatasetthatwebelievetobesufficienttodrawinitialconclusions.59WeassumewewereonlyabletoaccessupdatedtendersusingtheapproachweidentifiedtoaccessingtheAPI.60Thisincludes:6242planningitems,144tenders,106awards,106,contracts,and106implementations.

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Table7:GPPOCDSDataFields,FrequencyandNotableCharacteristics

Phase Fields Count Notes

Global

OCID 78453

parties/id 11280

parties/name 11280

parties/address/locality 11280Appearstocontainbuyer/name,notlocalityinfo

parties/0/contactPoint/email(Buyer) 0 Nodataavailable

parties/1/contactPoint/email(Supplier) 7085 62.8%ofentriescontaindata

Planning planning/budget/amount/amount 65860

Tender

tender/id 7987 RepeatoftheOCID

tender/value/amount 7987

tender/tenderPeriod/startDate 5161 64.6%ofentriescontaindata

tender/procurementMethod 7987Datasetcontainsonlylimited&directprocurements

tender/items/id 7987

Placeholderused;itemsIDstobeusedwithe-Procurementsystem

tender/items/description 7987

tender/value/amount 7987

Award awards/value/amount 11280

Contract

contracts/id 11280 RepeatoftheOCID

contracts/period/startDate 11280

contracts/value/amount 11280

Implementation contracts/implementation/transactions 4

Fieldrecentlyadded,containslittleinformation

ThisresearchoftheavailabilityofdatawithintheOCDSdatashowsmixedresults,withsomedatafieldsbeingwellpopulated,andotherslackingappropriatedata:

- The OCID is fully populated, but some errors have been identified. Tender and contractidentifiersarenotdistinguishedfromtheOCID,whichcouldposeaproblemiftherearecasesinwhichtwocontractsderivefromasingletender. Itemidentifierswillbe integrated intothee-ProcurementsystemusingtheUNSPSCsystem.61

61TheUnitedNationsStandardProductsandServicesCode(UNSPSC)isawayofnamingproductsandservicesforuseineCommerce.

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- Financial data fields (budget/value, tender/value, award/value, contract/value) are robustlypopulated throughout all stages of the procurement process. The lone exception is theimplementation transaction amounts (contracts/implementation/transactions), a field onlyrecentlyaddedtotheGPP,tothecreditofthePPDA.

- Dates fieldsdisplaymixed results.The tenderstartdate (tender/tenderPeriod/startDate) is64percent complete, while the contract start date (contracts/period/startDate) is 100 percentcomplete. The tender period length in days (tender.tenderPeriod.durationInDays) is empty,eventhoughitcanbederivedfromthetender/tenderPeriodfields.

- The parties names and identifier fields are robustly populated for buyers, suppliers, and PEs(which contain the same data as the buyers). The address and contact information fields arepartially complete,although thedata is inconsistent.For instance, theparties/address/localityfield contains buyer names, rather than locality information. The supplier email field ismorerobustlypopulated(62.8%)thanthebuyeremailfield(0%).

TheexampleshighlightedheresuggestthatthereexistanumberofdatafieldsintheOCDSreleasefordatauserstobenefitfrom-oncetheyareabletofullyaccess it.However,dataquality improvementsandtheprovisionofadditionaldatafieldswillmaketheOCDSreleasemorerobustfordatausersinsideandoutsideofgovernment.MergingidentifiedUseCaseswithOCDSDataTwolistsofprocurementindicatorsareattachedtothisdocument.Thefirstlistfocusesonprocurementperformance indicators, while the second list focuses on red flagging indicators. Each of these listsdefinesasetofindicators(althoughmanyadaptationsandindicatorsexist)andprovidestheOCDSandnon-OCDS(extension)datafieldsrequiredinordertoimplementtheindicator.Thegeneralusecaseswithineachtoolareprovidedinthetablebelow,alongwithanassessmentoftheproportionofindicatorsthatmaybeachievedwiththedatalevelsavailable:Table8:Additionaldatarequiredforadequatecoverageofelicitedusecases

IndicatorCategory Percentindicatorscurrentlyachievable

Datarequiredforadditionalcoverage

ProcurementPerformanceIndicators

1.Competitivenessofthebiddingprocess

7/13

-Evaluationdata(technical,financialreviewspass/fail)-tender/tenderers(bidextension)forwinning&losingbidders-Subcontractorinfo,subcontractvalue-Supplierdataaboutsmall&mediumenterprises

2.Transparencyanddisclosure

9/1762 -Documents(contract,procurementplan,tendernotice,etc.)-Complaintsandfeedback

62Inseveralinstanceswhereadocumentmayberequested,aproxydatafieldmaybeavailableforuse.

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-Suspendedsupplierslist-Deliveryaddresses

3.Procurementefficiency 12/16 -Bidplanapprovaldate-tender/items/id63-Amendmentsinformation

4.Valueformoney 3/8 -Severalotheritemscanbeachievedwithitemsinformation(includingitems/idanditems/value)

5.Legalcompliance 2/4 -planning/procurementMethod(availableinGPP,butnotOCDS)-Tenderitemsinfo-Candevelopotherindicators(e.g.forLocalContentPolicyGuidelines)usingextendedsupplier&beneficialownershipdata.

6.Reportinganddescriptivestatistics

4/5 Indicatorrequirestender/tenderers/id(preferablybidextension)forlosingbidders.

RedFlaggingIndicators

1.Corruptionrisk(Rigging) 10/40 -Bidpackagespurchased(y/n)-Govtemployeeaddresses-Bidextension(winning/losingbidders,IDs,bidamounts,bidderresponsiveness)-Prequalificationresults-Awardcriteria-Complainttype-Contractamendments-Contractlinks-Items(IDs,amounts)-Advertisementpublicationtimes-Approvingofficials’IDs-Competitiveprocurementthresholds

2.Collusionrisk 0/12 -Bidextension(winning/losingbidders)requiredforallindicators-Subcontractorinfo-tender/bidSubmission/timeStamp(bysecond)

3.Fraudrisk 4/16 -Subcontractorinfo-Suspendedsuppliersinfo-Beneficialownershipregistry-PEphonenumbers-Itemvalues-Supplierestablisheddate-Bidvalues-Bidderresponsiveness

63ThisisadatafieldintheOCDSpublication,butitwillnotbeuseduntilthee-Procurementsystemisimplemented.

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GapsinAnalysisOne outstanding question relates to how the PPDA has modeled framework agreements within theOCDS publication. One PE estimated that it was using framework agreements in 50-60% ofprocurements. Understandinghowthis isreflected intheOCDSdata isessentialtoeffectiveanalyticsuse.Additionally,aspreviouslydescribed,wewereonlyabletoaccessasmallportionofprocurementswithdata for the stages of the procurement process beyond planning and are uncertain as to therepresentativeness of this sample. Once DG and AFIC have a broader sample, we will be able toundertakeamorerigorousanalysisofdataquality.

Recommendations1. IncreaseOCDSdatatoincludeallpublicdatasets.ThePPDAshouldpublishallpublicdatafields

inOCDS,creatingextensions for thosethatarenotOCDScompliant, so thatuserscanbenefitfromthefullscopeofpublisheddata.Datathat ispublishedforashorttimeperiodshouldbeincluded,andpublishedpermanently.AdditionaldatatopublishinOCDSincludes:

a. Bidderinfo(Losingbidders,reasonsforloss);b. Suspendedbidderslist(name,suspensiondate);c. Numberofitemspurchased;d. Complaintsinformation(procurementID,date,subject,response);e. Investigations(procurementID,date,subject,result);f. Additionalsuppliersdata(size,registrationdate,etc.);g. Linkstokeydocuments.

2. Considerpublishingdata collected thathasnot yetbeenpublished.Eachadditionaldata fieldpublishedhaspotential tobring value todatausers. Someunpublisheddata collectedby thePPDA-or thathasnotyetbeencollected,butcouldbewiththeadoptionofe-Procurement-haspublicbenefit thatmayoverrideany restrictionson itspublication.Thesedata fieldsmayinclude:

a. Bidderinfo(Bidamounts,technicalandfinancialresponsiveness);b. Suspendedbidderslist(supplierID,suspensionduration,etc.);c. Itemprices;d. Subcontractorinfo;e. Frameworkagreements(usingrecommendedapproachbyOCDSHelpDesk);f. Beneficialownershipdata;g. Contractamendments;h. Advertisements(time/dateofpublication,publicationlocation,etc.);i. Amendmentsdata(tenders,awardsandcontracts);j. Procurementmethodrationale;k. ThePPDAappliesgoodpractice in releasingallGPPdata ina structured format (XLS).

However,thePPDAshouldalsoconsiderpermanentlypublishingdatacontainedinthebestevaluatedbiddernotices,andconvertingittoOCDS;

l. Beyond individualdata fields,OCDScontainsamechanismforpublishingprocurementdocuments. Because the GPP does not enable uploading of documents, there are noGPP links to critical contracts, needs assessments, or other key documents producedduringtheprocurementprocess.

3. The PPDA website contains valuable information about procurements that have receivedcomplaints, been investigated or audited, and the suppliers involved in those processes have

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been investigated as well. Linking this data to the OCDS output would bring additional high-value informationto lightforcitizens.Alternatively,PEscouldberequiredtoprovidenotice intheGPPwhenacomplainthasbeenfiled,orauditorinvestigationconducted.

4. Study unique identifiers to ensure common use. A crucial advantage of OCDS is the use ofuniqueidentifiersforprocurementprocesses,suppliers,PEs,buyers,anditems.Tobenefitfromtheintegrationofdatasystemsandfromdataanalytics,anapproachmustbeadoptedtomatchunique identifiers across government systems, and to create unique identifiers that meetcurrentandfutureneeds.DGiswillingtosupporteffortsbythePPDAtodevelopastrategyformatchinguniqueidentifiersacrosskeysystems.

5. Publish all data permanently. The PPDA should also consider permanently publishing datacontainedinthebestevaluatedbiddernotices,andincorporatingitintoOCDS.

6. ImprovetheOCDSdatapublication.OurinitialanalysisshowsavarietyofareaswheretheOCDSpublicationmaybeimproved.Suggestionsinclude:

a. Reorganize tags to ensure that no releases include appropriate data for the taggedphase (e.g. no tender data in the planning release). While tender data may beincorporatedintheawardreleasesandviceversa,thecreationofredundantdatafieldsshouldbeinfrequentandserveaclearpurpose.Therearenumerousinstancesinwhichdatafromonephaseappears indownloadstaggedwithanotherphase.Therearealsoinstances in which data affiliatedwith one phase is published only under a tag for adifferentphase(e.g.tender/tenderersdataappearsundertheawardstag).

b. Ensurethatallpartiesareincludedinthepartiesarray,andisconsistentwithOCDS1.1and future versions (which will remove the arrays for tender/tenderers andawards/suppliers).

c. Converttender/tenderersandrelatedinformationtousethebidextension.d. Ensure that all data fields contain appropriate information (e.g.

parties/address/postalCodeshouldnotcontainafulladdress).e. ConsideradoptinguniquetenderandcontractIDsthatdifferfromtheOCID,particularly

iftherearepossibilitiesofconflict.7. Take measures to improve data quality. Data quality can be improved through the use of

validators,increasedtraining,andadoptionoftoolsthatrequiredatastandardization.OurinitialreviewoftheOCDSdatarevealedseveralerrorsthatrequiretakingthefollowingactions:

a. ResolveOCIDerrors.A falseOCID,“_OCID_”was found inover6,500cells in thedatareviewed. As these appear to be related to legitimate procurements, theseprocurements can be excluded from the published data and resolved before beingrepublished.

b. Improvedatavalidation.Theuseofstrictervalidationtoolsmaypreventthepublicationof procurement information that contain data errors. For instance, a number of testprocurements were published, including the field “TESTPDE (Please Do not Bid orRespond).”DGandAFIC canworkwith thePPDA todefine criteria for validation thatmaybeusedintheGPPande-Procurementsystem.

c. CreatebusinessrulesthatrequirePEstousespecifiedformats.ThePPDAmayconsiderrequesting NewWave to implement stricter format specifications with the GPP (e.g.August 7, 2018 vs. 07/08/2018). As the e-Procurement system is developed, the GPPshould determine its approach to data formats, focusing ondeveloping rules that arealreadyinpracticebymanyPEs.

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5.CONTEXTFORENHANCEDOPENCONTRACTINGIMPLEMENTATIONBeyondOCDSadoption,opencontractingseekstoenhancegovernment,privatesectorandcivilsocietyparticipationintheprocurementprocess.Thisrequiresalegalandpolicyframeworkfordatapublicationand engagement. The extent towhich actors inside and outside of government have themeans andcapacitytosupportOCengagementisanotherpointofconsideration.Thissectionfocusesonsomeofthe critical elements of the OC environment, reviewing some that have been discussed in the HivosOpenContractingScopingStudy,whileexpandinguponandupdatingothersbasedonourownfindings.Thissectioncoversthefollowingsubtopics:

I. DataPublicationLawandPolicyII. CitizenEngagementinProcurementIII. GovernmentReportingonProcurementPerformanceIV. OversightofProcurementProcess&GovernmentFunds

I.DataPublicationLawandPolicyTheUgandanlegalframeworkenablesthePPDAtocollectprocurementdata,whilerequiringthatsomecriticaldatabepublished,includingbidnoticesandprocurementplans.Theadoptionofe-Procurementprovidesanopportunitytorethinkwhichdatamustbepublished,andtofurtherdefinethefollowing:which data must be published in the public interest and which data contain information defined asconfidentialunderPPDAActprovision47.ThelegalrightofcitizenstoaccessgovernmentinformationisestablishedintheConstitutionofUganda(Article38and41)and furtherdelineated in theAccess to InformationAct2005.While severalotherlawsarerelevanttothediscussionofthelegalframeworkforprocurementdataaccess,64thePPDAAct2003 is the defining legislation for procurement and contains several key clauses.65 The basis forpublishingthelegalandpolicydecisionsrelatedtoprocurementissetforthinprovision53:“Copiesofthe Act, regulations, guidelines and forms made under this Act, standard bidding documents anddecisionsoftheAuthorityshallbemadeaccessibletothepublicbytheAuthority.”The PPDA has legal authority to disclose proactively, or in a reasonable time frame if requested, thefollowing information: procurement plans, evaluation reports, awards, contracts, and performancereports.66 Of these documents, procurement plans and awards are actively published (although notincluded in the OCDS publication as described in section 4 above), while the other items must berequested. But AFIC notes that the PPDA Act includes the principle of publicity; that information bemadepublicbydefaultunlessitisforbiddenbytheconfidentialityofsection47ofthePPDAAct2003.67Accordingtointerviews,thePPDA’slegaldepartmenthaspreventedpublicationofsomeadditionaldatafields requestedbyAFIC.Clarifyingwhichdata shouldbepublished isessential asPPDAenters thee-Procurementera.

64See:Hivos,2016.65Theseinclude:S.5,S.6,S.41(2),S.45,S.53,S.50(2b),andS.87.See:Hivos,2016.66AFIC.EnhancingPerformanceandAccountabilityofSocialServiceContractsinUgandaProject:MonitoringcontractsonHealthandEducationWorksinUganda.”November6,2017.AFICcitesArticle38oftheConstitution,andparagraph1.7ofthePPDAstrategicplan.Section45ofthePPDAActrequirestheprocurementprocessbeconductedinatransparentfashion.67PublicProcurementandDisposalofPublicAssets.Act1of2003.

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To meet its strategic objective of increasing transparency as a means of facilitating third partymonitoring and reducing corruption (Strategic Plan, 1.7), the PPDA should publish these otherdocumentsonline,and increaseaccesstodatacontainedwithin inconformancewithOCDS.Clarifyingwhichdatafieldsareconsideredconfidentialandwhicharetobeproactivelypublished isalsocritical.Forinstance,thePPDApublishesthenamesoflosingbidders,butnottheiruniqueidentifiers,andonlyfor theperiod that thebestevaluatedbiddernotice isavailable.Why this list is removed frompublicviewandhowthisapproachtopublicationsatisfiesthetransparencyandconfidentialityrequirementsisunclear.Otheraspectsoftheconfidentialityprovisionthatshouldbeconsideredforclarificationinclude:

● The stipulation 47.2.b.1 prohibiting disclosure of information that “is likely to prejudice thesecurityofsovereigntyofthestate,”givenitslackofclarity;

● The stipulation 47.2.b.iv.c that ensures that information supplied in confidence by the bidderremainprivate.Whiletradesecretsandproprietaryinformationmustnecessarilyremainprivateinordertogiveconfidencetobiddersthattheycansupplythehighestqualitygoodsandideasto thegovernment, informationabout theirbid - includingbidprices, item information,etc. -areoftenseenasbeinginthepublicinterest.TheGovernmentofScotlandispreparingsuppliersforthepublicationofsuchinformationbyaffixingallbidmaterialswithanopenlicense.

PEs also have transparency requirements. The PPDA Act requires PEs to proactively discloseprocurementplans,procurementnotices,bestevaluatedbiddernotices,andcontractawardnotices.68Inpractice,AFICandotherCSOshaveexperiencednumerousdelaysandotherdifficulties in trying toaccessthisdatafromselectPEs.SeveralPEsinterviewedalsonotedthatdataforsmallprocurementsisnotalwaysreportedintheGPP.Theadoptionofe-Procurementcanfacilitatepublicationatthenationallevelofallofthisinformation,andinrealtime,ifthelegalframeworkallows.

AccessingDatainPracticeAsapracticalmatter,gainingaccesstodesireddataoftenpresentsachallenge.CSOsandprivatesectorinterviewees spokeof numerous instances inwhichdesired informationwasonlypublishedafter keydecisionshadalreadybeenmade, thusdeprivingthemofanopportunity to influencetheprocess.Aneffort by AFIC to access contracts and procurement plans from three local PEswasmetwith delays,sometimesbyasmuchas8months(longerthanprescribedbylaw).69Whiletherehasbeenanefforttopublish information proactively (e.g. procurement plans), it remains difficult in many instances forcitizenstoaccessnecessaryinformationwithsufficienttimetoact.Notably,justaround20percentofUgandancitizenshaveaccesstocomputers.Whilepublishingtendersonline inacentralizedportalwill facilitatea levelplayingfield,thisappliesonlytothosewith internetaccess.Forthisreason,thePPDAplanstocontinueadvertisingtendersinlocalnewspapers.However,itmaybeworthwhilepiloting initiativesthatseektostrengthenaccesstoprocurementopportunitiesbylocalsuppliers.

AdoptionofanopendatalicenseFordata tomeet “open” requirements,anopen licenseoradisclaimer stating that thedata is in thepublicdomainisrequired.Adoptionofanopenlicenseisthefirststepinadvancingtowardsadoptionofthe5-StarOpenDataPlan,createdbyTimBerners-Lee.70Openlicensesguaranteecitizens’rightstouse

68AFIC,November6,2017.69See:AFIC,November6,2017.70See:http://5stardata.info/en/.

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thedatainquestion,includingtorepublishandmixthedataattheuser’sdiscretion.Alicensemayalsosetforthusageterms,includingwhetherornotattributionisrequired.TheMinistry of Information, Communications Technology andNationalGuidance issued a draftOpenDataPolicyinMay2017.71ThispolicystatesGoUg’sintentiontoshifttowardsuseofopenlicensesintheyears to come, stating:“It shall bemandatory to use open standards and the open government datalicense shall be used to ensure that there is clarity on which data is free to copy, adapt, utilizecommerciallyandpublish.”72Although the GoUg draft Open Data Policy does not recommend the use of any specific opengovernmentlicense,manyOCDSpublishershaveadoptedlicensesthatmeettheopenrequirementsasdefined in thepolicy (see list below). TheGovernment of Scotland ismoving towards adoptionof anopen license for its data by adding theUKOpenGovernment License to allmaterial publishedon itsprocurementwebsite.73Table9:OpendatalicensesusedbyprominentOCDSpublishers

OCDSPublishers SiteReferencingLicense LicenseUsed

ColombiaCompraEficiente:Publicprocurementagency

https://herramientas.datos.gov.co/es/content/preguntas-frecuentes

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/

Govt.ofMoldova:PublicProcurementAgency http://opencontracting.date.gov.md/about http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0

Govt.ofMexico:MinistryofCommunicationsandTransport(SCT) https://datos.gob.mx/libreusomx CompatiblewithCCBY4.0

Govt.ofUK:CrownCommercialServiceshttps://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

CityofMontrealhttp://donnees.ville.montreal.qc.ca/portail/licence/

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

Paraguay:NationalDirectorateofPublicContracts

https://www.contrataciones.gov.py/datos/open-contracting-info https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

NewSouthWaleshttps://github.com/NSW-eTendering/NSW-eTendering-API/blob/master/LICENSE https://mit-license.org/

ZambiaPublicProcurementAuthority https://www.zppa.org.zm/ocds-licensehttps://opendatacommons.org/licenses/pddl/1.0/

TechnicalanddatausecapacityPublic procurement is still seen as a functional service that supports achieving corporate objectives.Improvingdatacapacity,digitisingrecordsandautomationofthisfunction,justaswithanyothersector,haspotential to improveservices.Unfortunately inmanycases, it isnot takenasseriouslyas itoughtandisthusunder-resourced.Admittedly,thelackoftechnicalanddatacapacitywithinthePPDAcreatesan opportunity for partners (civil society, development partners, academia) to provide support onrelatedpolicyandimplementation.Inrecognisingthebenefitsofsuchsupportwithrespecttotechnical

71See:http://www.ict.go.ug/sites/default/files/Resource/Open%20Data%20Policy%20First%20Draft%20vX.pdf.72OpenDataPolicy,p.6.73See:http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0052/00524238.pdf.

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challenges, the PPDA has requested AFIC’s support in ensuring thatOCDS is effectively implementedthroughthee-Procurementsystem.II.CitizenEngagementinProcurementThe PPDA’s commitment to the values of open contracting go beyond implementation of OCDS. ThePPDA’sStrategicPlan2014-15to2018-19statesthat“Monitoringofcontractperformancebynon-stateactors increases transparency at contract implementation and increases the chances of procurementmeeting its objectives.”74 Its recognition of the value of non-state participation in the procurementprocess, including by civil society, has beenmanifest in its openness to engagement on a number offronts.ThisviewofpublicengagementandmonitoringissupportedbytheConstitutionandthePublicSectorMonitoringandEvaluationPolicy.75AllCSOandprivatesectorindividualswhowereinterviewedbythemissionteamandwhohadsoughttomeetwiththePPDAfeltthatitwasopentotheirengagementandwillingtolistentotheirconcerns.76The MoFPED’s procurement policy team also appears open to CSO and private sector engagement,whichprovidesanadditionalopportunitytoaffectprocurementreformprocessesthatfewermightbetaking.ThePPDA’sCapacityBuildingandAdvisoryServicesisaninternalunitthatconductstrainingsandothercapacity building activities. Many of their activities support the needs of PEs and other governmentagencieswitharoleintheprocurementprocess.77In2015-16,thePPDAandTransparencyInternationalUganda(TIU)collaboratedonatrainingforcivilsocietyanddistrict localgovernmentofficials.Also, inthepast year,AFIChas supportedandworkedwith thePPDA to conduct trainings forPEs. ThePPDAreportsonitstrainingandengagementactivitiesinitsAnnualReports,whichisgoodpractice.The PPDA’s engagement of citizens includes provision of data publicly through the GPP, the PPDAwebsite,consultationopportunities,suchasBaraza(publicforums),78whereopendiscussionsareheldon the procurement process and development outcomes. It hosts an Annual Procurement Review,bringingtogethergovernment,civilsociety,andprivatesectorrepresentativestodiscusschallengesandopportunitiesforprocurementimprovement.ThePPDAhasalsoengagedonamorefrequentbasiswithinterest groups, such as the Uganda Contracts Monitoring Coalition, a coalition of organizationsdedicatedtomonitoringprocurementimplementation,includingAFICandTIU.PEs are generally viewed as being lesswilling to engage the public. Few, if any, conduct trainings oroutreachactivitiesaimedathelpingsupplierstobetterunderstandtheprocurementprocessandhowtobid effectively. According to the Hivos supported Open Contracting study, citizens’ participationrequests areoftendeniedbecause theyarenot viewedasbeingparty to theprocurementprocess.79

74See:https://www.ppda.go.ug/download/ppda_strategic_plan/strategic_plan/PPDA-Strategic-Plan-FY-2014-15-to-2018-19.pdf.75Hivos,12.76Citizens’righttoparticipateinpublicaffairsisconstitutionallyprotected(article38).TheprimeministerhasoperationalizedthisrightthroughthePublicSectorMonitoringandEvaluationPolicy,availableat:https://usaidlearninglab.org/sites/default/files/resource/files/Attachment_J.15-_M%26E_Policy_Final_Draft.pdf.77Alistofactivitiesfor2015-2016isavailableintheAnnualReport.78See:https://www.ppda.go.ug/ppda-holds-5th-baraza-in-mbale/.79Hivos,13.

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ThisviewappearstocontradictthePPDAAct,whichgivesstandingto“any…entityorperson”tofileacomplaintatanytimeduringtheprocurementprocess.80Recognizing thebudget constraints associatedwith the conductof engagement activities (particularlythosethatrequiretravel),thereareseveralopportunitiesforenhancingengagementthatwouldbenefitthePPDAandcitizensonthewhole.Theseinclude:

● Engaginginroutinizedworkinggroupstostrengthenperformanceonkeyissues.ThePPDAcouldhost - or collaborate with external actors to host - ongoing working groups focused onaddressing key performance challenges. These groups could unearth shortcomings andrecommend policy options for dealing with issues that may not be immediately clear fromwithinthePPDA(and/orMoFPED).Forinstance,amultistakeholdergrouponprocurementdatacouldrevealchallengesfromthebiddersidewithrespecttocompletingbiddingdocuments.

● SupportingoutreacheffortsbyPEs.Accordingto interviews,practicesamongPEs forengagingcitizens and suppliers vary. Providing guidelines to PEs for citizen engagement - includingwelcomingcitizenparticipationatbidopenings-andincorporatingsessionsonengagement intrainingsmayhelptoencouragetheopennessthatthePPDAdisplaysonitsown.PEscouldalsoconduct workshops for bidders on bid preparation, issuing complaints and enforcing bidcompliance,aprocessthatwouldenablethemtoreceiveusefulfeedbackontheprocurementprocess.

III.CSO&PrivateSectorEngagementPublicprocurementisreallywhengovernmentoptstocontractgoodsorservicesfromtheopenmarket(insteadofproducingtheseinternally)81.Theprivatesectorisoftenthemajorproducerandsupplierofgoods and services to government - thus the ambit of public procurement is not just not just thepurviewofgovernment.TheHivosOpenContractingScopingstudy(of2016)containsacomprehensivestakeholdermapping,includingavarietyofCSOs,developmentpartners,PublicAccountsCommitteeofParliament,academic institutions,privatesectorassociations,media,and infomediaorganizationsandtherolestheyplay.Whilethislistneednotberepeatedhere,itisusefultohighlightsomeofthemainneeds of thework of other actors in the open contracting space currently;more importantlywhat itcouldeventuallybe.It is important foractors inpublicprocurementtotopromotecreativebusinessactivitiesandact inafair manner through market practices that are truly competitive to realise value-for-money. The illsfacingpublicprocurement(suchasthosehighlighted inthefigurebelow)areperpetratedbydifferentactors(whoincludeprivatesector)duringtheprocurementcycle.

80PPDAAct,5.1.a.81Thai,K.(2008).InternationalHandbookofPublicProcurement,AuerbachPublications

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Figure2:Commonproblemsinpubliccontracting(Source:AFICReport82)

Fortunately, almost all of the above can be operationalised and monitored through data. However,interviewsrevealedthatmanycivilsocietyandprivatesectororganizationsalsolacktechnicalcapacity,andeitherhavelimitedabilitytousedataorlimitedtime.YetthisisoneofthecrucialroleswhichcanbetakenupbyCSOsandtheprivatesectortoenhancedatauptakeanddatauseintheopencontractingspace.Oneintervieweecommentedthatcontractswerenotinitiallyavailable,sotheyfocusedonmonitoringofservicedelivery.Butwiththeavailabilityofthecontractsandprocurementplans,itbecamepossibleto check what is promised against what is delivered (including compliance with laws andlocal/international standards). So just providing this data will not be enough moving forward, butmakingthisdatadigitalwouldgoalongwaytoimprovequalityandefficiencyofmonitoring.Public sector procurement considersmanymore interests and stakeholder outcomes and objectives.Third-party monitoring of needs assessments, project conception, contract execution, and eventualservice delivery; CSOs like Transparency International (TI)Uganda, UCMC, AFIC, among others, serveimportantroles:

1. Traininglocalcommunitiestomonitorprojectimplementation2. Identifyingloopholesandusethefindingstoadvocateforprocurementreforms3. Complementing GoUg efforts on sensitising private sector and other on public procurement

process4. Advocacyon legalprovisionsoramendmentsthatpromotetransparencyandaccountability in

theprocurementprocess.None of all these can be achieved without engagement and partnership with the PPDA, and moreimportantly,withoutdataandtechnicalskills.Thissectionwouldnotbecompletewithoutamentionofextractives.TheOCPhasa lotof interest inextractives - but this remains untapped in Uganda. OC is important in extractives sector becausetransparency leads to1) Levelingof the fieldandmakes it competitiveattractingquality investors, 2)82EnhancingPerformanceandAccountabilityofSocialServiceContractsinUgandaProject-MonitoringcontractsonHealthandEducationWorksinUganda

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Allowing consultations and demystifying the process and increasing trust 3) Reduces corruption andavoids tensions. This can be achieved by adopting OCDS83 principles throughout whole process ofplanning, award and management of contracts. Currently however, there is no implementation forcomplianceofthesectorwithOCDS84.IV.GovernmentReportingonProcurementPerformanceThePPDAmonitorsandreportsonprocurementperformanceinAnnualReportsandtheProcurementPerformance Monitoring System (PPMS). The PPMS report has been issued annually since 2007-08,demonstrating the PPDA’s long-term commitment to performancemonitoring. Both of these reportsutilizeestablishedprocurementperformanceanalyticstodescribeannualactivities,assessperformanceagainsttargets,andtoaccountforperformancechanges.It’snotablethatbothofthesereportscapturedata beyond thatwhich is reported through theGPP. In 2015-16, the PPMS notes that theGPPwasaccessibleto97PEs,whilePPMSdatawascollectedforanadditional67PEs.85While the Annual Report and PPMS contain valuable information, neither report is published in anexploitableformat.Thedataissummarized,sointerestedpartiescannotfilterorsortthedatatobetterunderstandifsomesectorsorPEsareperformingbetterthanothers,orifresultsareconsistentacrossthecountry.ThePPMSperformanceindicatorsfocusonthefollowing:

1. Contractssubjecttoopencompetition2. Procurementsimplementedaccordingtothemarketprice3. Averagenumberofbids4. Budgetabsorption5. Averagetimetakentocompleteprocurementcycle(calendardays)6. %ofcontractscompletedwithintheoriginalcontracttime7. ReportingtoPPDA8. Contractsawardedtolocalprovidersbynumberandvalue

ItappearsthatalloftheseindicatorscanbeaddressedusingtheGPPOCDSdata,atleastforaportionoftheprocurements.The Annual Report contains many more indicators, at least 19 of which appear to be derived usingprocurementdata:

1. Averagenumberofbidsreceived2. Averagenumberofbidsthatreachthefinancialcomparisonstageofanevaluation3. %ofcontractsbyvaluesubjectedtoopencompetition4. Proportionofcontractsbyvalueawardedtolocalproviders5. No.ofdomesticproducersawardedtendersonthebasisofpreferenceschemes6. No.ofreservationschemes7. Abridgedadverts(issuanceof)

83SectorchangestoOCDStoaccommodateextractivesareprimarilyconcernedwithtransactions(payments),locations,applications(bids),projectidentificationandtheinitiationofcontractingprocesses.https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1nniKoHvLdpctJq19l8-VYxg7rL4baQjdf-8ZMqT1_kQ/edit#gid=084ItsuffersasimilarfatewithEITI;GoUghasrepeatedlycitedtheneedtodevelopandharmoniseitsownlegislationwiththeEITI-whichisbothastandardandaprocess.85PPDA.DraftReportonthePerformanceofthePublicProcurementSystemForFY2015/16.August,2016.

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8. Procurementabsorptionrate9. Accreditations(issuanceof)10. No.ofEntitiescompliantwithsubmissionofreports11. No.ofEntitiescompliantwithsubmissionofProcurementPlans12. RegistrationofProviders(Newentriesandrenewals)13. AverageProcurementleadtime(OpenInternationalBidding)14. Averageprocurementleadtime(OpenDomesticBidding)15. Procurementscompletedaccordingtomarketprice16. Contractscompletedwithincontractualtime17. Suspensionsofproviders18. Proportionofcontractsratedsatisfactory19. Government Procurement Portal: Invitations for Bid (#), Best Evaluated Bidder Notices (#),

ContractNoticesThere are other important seemingly standard indicators that need to be monitored, for example,compliance with environmental health or safety laws; treating people with dignity and respect andprotectionofnationalhumanrights86.Althoughsomeof these indicatorsareassessedusingdatacollected throughauditsorothermeans,87several of them can likely be monitored using data publicly available through the GPP OCDS. Theseinclude:1,3,4,8,10(usingproxy),11(usingproxy),13,14,16,and19(eachusingproxies).Theothersmost likelyrequiredatacontainedoutsideoftheGPPOCDSpublication,althoughthesedatacouldbeincludedintheOCDSpublicationinseveralinstances.

Recommendations1. Clarifythelegalframeworktoenableproactivedisclosureofprocurementdata.AsthePPDAAct

isupdatedtoenableelectronicbidsubmissionandsupporte-Procurementuse,thereisaneedtoupdatetransparencymeasurestofacilitatedatauseintheelectronicage,aswellasimprovecompliancewithOpenContractingPrinciples.This includesproactivepublicationofdataonallfive stages of the procurement process, including procurement plans, tender notices, awardnotices,contracts,and implementation information,and thedatacontainedwithineach.Thisshould also include complaints information, sanctioned suppliers lists, and sufficient supplierinformation to ensure that public accountingmay be conducted in compliancewith requiredpolicies(includingtheLocalContentPolicyGuidelines).

2. Adoptanopendatalicense.Adoptionofanopenlicense-inaccordancewiththegovernment’sdraft policy - is required to ensure citizens’ rights to use the data in question, including torepublishandmixthedataat theuser’sdiscretion.A licensesets forthusageterms, includingwhether or not attribution is required, and whether the data can be used for commercialpurposes.Thisreportprovidesavarietyofoptionsforopendatalicenses.ThePPDAActshouldbeamendedtorequirethepublicationofprocurementdatainOCDSusinganopenlicense.

3. Publishperformanceindicatordataanddeepenanalysis.ThePPDA’spublicationofperformanceresultsiscommendable.Tofurtheritscommitmenttotransparencyintheprocurementprocess,thePPDAshouldconsiderreleasingtherawdatathatsupportstheseindicators,particularlyas

8613thIPPAProceedings.Choi,J-W.AStudyoftheRuleofPublicProcurement-CanPublicProcurementMakeSocietyBetter?Availableat:http://www.ippa.org/IPPC4/Proceedings/13ProcurementPreferences/Paper13-4.pdf.87Forinstance,thisappearstobethecaseforthe“procurementleadtime”indicators.

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this informationhas thepotential to affect supplierbiddingdecisions.By reporting resultsonthePE level, thePPDAmayencourage improvedperformance.Lastly,visualizingthisdata inauserfriendlyformatwillcatalyzeusebymultiplestakeholders.

4. Takecreativeapproachesto improvingsupplieraccesstoprocurementopportunities.Becausejust20percentofUgandanshaveinternetaccess,thePPDAandPEsshouldconsiderdevelopingadditionalmechanismsforfacilitatingaccesstoprocurementopportunitiesbysuppliers.Thesecould includemaking computers available to suppliers to register and apply for procurementopportunities. It couldalso includeconductingmore frequentsupplierworkshops (particularlyby PEs). In light of the lack of internet access, e-Procurement adoption may not leadautomaticallytoimprovementsinthenumbersofbiddersandparticipantsintheprocurementprocess (as has been seen in other contexts). The PPDA, civil society, and private sectorassociationsshouldbrainstormapproachestoimprovingsupplierparticipation.

5. Improveaccesstotechnicalanddatacapacity.Accordingtointerviews,CSOsandprivatesectorassociationslackinternaldevelopmentcapabilityandhavelimiteddataexpertiseandresources,particularlywithintheprocurementdomain.Thelackofsoftwaredevelopersanddataanalystswithin civil society impacts the sustainability of technology projects. Therefore, CSOs and theprivatesectorshouldthinkcreativelyabouthowtoaddressthischallenge.Forinstance,asmanyCSOshave coalesced aroundprocurement, infrastructure, andother domain issues, theymayconsidercreatingmechanisms forhiringandsharingexpertisewith respect to technologyanddataissues.Ifsufficientdemandexists,theycouldperhapsnegotiaterateswithaprivatesectoragencythatispartialtotheseessentialissues.Asmuchaspossible,DGandAFICwillseektouseopportunities available through this project to strengthen capacity to use data tools. Anopportunitytotraindeveloperstotroubleshootchallengesandcontinuedevelopmentoftoolscreatedthroughthisprojectisalsoavailable.

6. Increaseadvocacyinadvanceofe-Procurementadoption.Adoptionofe-ProcurementrequireslegalreformstothePPDAAct.Thisprovidesanopeningforcivilsocietyandtheprivatesectortolobby for changes that would improve the procurement process. Recommendations couldincludespecifyingwhichdataaretobemadeavailabletothepublic,and inwhichformats. InadditiontolobbyingthePPDA,stakeholdersshouldadvocatetotheMoFPED,theOfficeofthePrimeMinister,theParliament,andotherkeyministries.

7. ContinuedsupportforGPProllout.EnsuringthatallPEscaninputdatatotheGPPisessentialforfacilitatinglegalcompliancewiththePPDAActreportingrequirements,enhancingtheutilityofmonitoring activities, and building capacity for the forthcoming e-Procurement era. GPPtrainings/rollout couldbeconductedsimultaneouslywithdatause trainings tohelpPEs tracktheirownperformance.Also,thelackoftechnicalanddatacapacitywithinthePPDAcreatesanopeningforcivilsocietytoprovidesupportonrelatedpolicyand implementation.Recognizingthebenefitsofcivilsocietysupportwithrespecttotechnicalchallenges,thePPDAhasrequestedAFIC’s support in ensuring that OCDS is effectively implemented through the e-Procurementsystem.

8. Continuetomonitorlocallevelcontractimplementation.CSOsareplayinganimportantroleinmonitoringlocallevelcontractimplementation,fillingagapthatsupportsthePPDAandhelpstoinform theMoFPED. CSOs should continue to engage PEs and collect data on local contracts(includingcontractdocuments)andimplementationresults.ThisdatacouldbeintegratedwiththeGPPdatatopaintamorecompleteprocurementpicture.

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6.NEXTSTEPSAsstatedintheintroductionofthisreport,theassessmentmissionisthefirststepinabroaderefforttoencouragemulti-stakeholderengagementandtodeveloptoolsthatfostereffectiveuseofprocurementdata.Tocontinuethisprocess,weproposeadual-trackapproach:

1. Facilitate multi-stakeholder engagement to refine use cases and foster tools used in the co-creationprocess.

2. Support efforts to optimize the GPP OCDS output and data integration to improve access toOCDS.

Duringthecourseoftheseefforts,DGandAFICwillcollaboratewithstakeholderstodevelopaplanforsupporting data use efforts, drawing on our evolving understanding of stakeholder needs andopportunities.Thehighlightedapproachmayberevisedasdiscussionswithstakeholdersmature,andasopportunitiesandchallengesarise.Track1.Facilitatemulti-stakeholderengagementtorefineusecasesandfostertoolsco-creationprocess.Thesuggestednextstepsbelowseektooutlineaprocessfortheco-creationoftoolsthatwouldenablestakeholders to more effectively use data in their efforts to improve procurement performance andresults.

1. AlignmenttoneedsandprioritiesofPPDA:Itwillbeimportantastheusecasesarerefined,toalignandprioritize theneedsofPPDAgiventheir important role inpublicprocurement in therepublicofUganda.

2. Continuetrilateralstakeholderoutreach.Thisreportpresentsinitialfindingsbasedonalimitednumber of discussionswith procurement data stakeholders.DG andAFIC plan to continue tomeetwithpotentialstakeholders-includingfromgovernmentagencies,academia,civilsociety,andsuppliers-toensurethatimportantperspectivesarenotleftout.Timeline:Feb.-Mar.,2018.

3. Deepen understanding of user needs based on this report. In discussion with PPDA, werecommend convening a meeting with individuals from the various stakeholder groups todiscussthisreport,andtorefinetheirownanalysesoftheusecasesthatareofinteresttothem.At this meeting, users will be challenged to think through their approaches to data use, thechallengestheyfaceatpresentondatause,andthetypesoftools,guidance,andsupportthatcould enable robust collaboration towards shared objectives. Therewill be no right orwronganswertothis -weenvisagethistobean importantsteptobuildtrustandbuy inofpossiblypotentialusersofanyproductswhichwillbederived.Timeline:Feb.2018.

4. Discuss user experience approaches and foster co-design process. To understand user needswith respect to user experience, we will co-create and present mockups of procurementanalyticstoolsthatmodelexistingdataandrequesttheirfeedback-asfarasdecisionsupport,dataavailabilityandusabilityareconcerned.Timeline:Feb.-Mar.2018.

5. Revise/validatedesignand indicators list.DGandAFICwillpresenta listof themostessentialindicatorsbasedonfeedbackgarneredthroughtheusecasediscussions.Thislistwilltakeintoconsiderationdatapublishedatpresentanddatathatmaybepublishedinthefuture.Timeline:Apr.-May.2018.

6. Testingandcontinueddiscussionof keydata issues.During thedevelopmentprocess,wewillpresentpagesofthetoolstousersastheyarecompleted.Feedbackwillberequestedtoensureusability.Discussionofkeyissuesrelatedtodataanalysiswillhelpsupportthedevelopmentof

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trainingandworkshopmaterialsthataretobecreatedoncethetoolsarecomplete.Timeline:May-Jun.2018.

7. Go-live.Apubliclauncheventwillbehostedtoannouncethepublicationofatleastoneofthetools.Timeline:Jun.-Jul.2018.

8. Postimplementationreview:Theobjectivethisreviewistoestablishifprojectbenefitsaswellastheactualbenefitsfromthetoolsthemselveshavebeenrealized.Aug.2018

9. Sustainability:Certainly,morestructuredinterviewsandengagementsarerequiredbeforeit ispossible to address this issue. Our recommendation is to revisit this important topic afterfeedbackonthisreportaswellasadditionalinterviews.Feb.-Mar.2018

Additional steps, including the implementation of data use trainings or hands-on workshops, can bediscussedwiththestakeholdersandagreeduponasthisinitialco-creationphaseadvances.Track2.SupporteffortstooptimizetheGPPOCDSoutputanddataintegrationtoimproveaccesstoOCDS.This document has highlighted a number of opportunities for technical support efforts to aid inimprovingaccesstopublicprocurementdata.WorkingthroughtheframeworkoftheMemorandumofUnderstandingbetweenthePPDAandAFIC,DGandAFICproposetosupportthePPDA’songoingeffortstopublishdatainOCDSthroughthefollowing:

1. OptimizetheOCDSAPI.DG’sdeveloperscanfurtheranalyzetheAPIandworkwithNewWavetoenhancetheOCDSpublication,includingstrengtheningtheOCDSvalidationprocess.Doingsowould improve the functioningof theGPP’s “opendata”page, strengthen thequalityofdatapublished by the PPDA, and enable external users to fully access the API. This work can beconductedthroughGithubandwouldnotrequireDG’sdeveloperstoaccesstheGPPdatabase.

2. IdentifypotentiallyadditionaldatathroughtheGPPOCDS.TherearefourpossibledatasetstoincorporatetotheGPP’scurrentoffering:1)datacurrentlypublishedontheGPPinnon-OCDSformat,2)datacollectedbythePPDAviatheGPPthat isnotpresentlypublished,3)datathatmaybeintegratedwiththeGPP,and4)datathatmaybepublishedthroughthee-Procurementsystem(throughintegrationsorotherwise).

3. Improved visuals not currently existing in GPP: Through the co-creation process intimated inTrack1above, it isbelievedthatvisualizingdatathroughclickablecharts is themosteffectiveway to do so. Visuals such as charts and graphs are important because they help to graspdifficult concepts or identify new patterns. Clickability allows users to interact with the datadirectly,sorting,filtering,andviewingpartsofthedatathataddsmeaning.Implementationwillalsoincludetestingandfeedbackmechanismstoincorporateviewsofusers.

4. Wherepossible,convertadditionaldatatoOCDS.TheOCDSAPImaybethebestmechanismforimporting GPP data into the e-Procurement system. However, there are other datasets thatcouldpotentiallysupportthedatauseneedsidentifiedinthisreport, includingtheRoP,URSB,e-Tax system, IFMS, ULII, and possibly others. DG and AFIC can support the integration ofanotherdatasetwiththeGPPOCDSAPIasneeded,givenappropriatedatabaseaccess.

5. Conduct technical training onOCDS and analytics tools. DG and AFIC can support a technicaltrainingthroughthis initiativeaimedatenhancingdevelopers’understandingOCDSandabilitytomanageandtroubleshootanytoolsdeveloped.Thisisoneoftheseriesofstepsofmakingtheinitiativesustainable.

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The timeline for this work can be determined both in coordination with the PPDA and pending theavailabilityofNewWave.Dependingonthescopeofwork,thiseffortmayinfluencethetimingoftheco-creationprocessoutlinedabove.

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7.ABOUTUSDevelopmentGatewayDevelopment Gateway is an international non-profit organization that empowers developmentprofessionals,governments,andcitizenswiththeinformationandtoolstheyneedtoimprovelives.Wespecialize inbuilding technology, creatingdatamanagementprocesses,andhelpinggovernmentsandothers use data formaximum effect. DG bringsmore than a decade of experienceworking on opengovernmentandfiscaldatamanagementinover30countriesworldwide,includingmanyinAfrica.In Uganda, DG has supported the MoFPED to implement a Development Assistance ManagementSystem(DAMS),88whichtracksallexternaldevelopmentassistanceprojectsinthecountryandincludesa geocoded mapping tool. DG has also implemented an integrated of the DAMS with the DebtManagementandFinancialAnalysisSystem(DMFAS),89whichallowsDMFAStoexport itspublicdebt-relatedprojectdetailstoUAMP--providingafullerpictureofdevelopmentactivitiestoUAMPusers.DGhasdevelopedavarietyoftoolsthatsupportOCDSconversionandprocurementanalyticsuse.Ouropencontractingandprocurementanalyticsexperienceincludesthefollowing:

- InUgandaandSenegal,DGiscollaboratingwithgovernment,civilsociety,andprivatesectorrepresentativestoidentifyuserneedsandco-createanalyticstoolstosupportimprovedprocurementresults.

- InVietnam,DGimplementedOCDSanddeployedtheM&EDashboard,enablingthePublicProcurementAgency(PPA)touseanalyticstosupportitsmonitoringobjectives.

- WithsupportfromtheOpenContractingPartnership,DGhasdevelopedaCorruptionRiskDashboardthathelpsusersidentifypotentialcollusion,rigging,andfraudinpublicmarkets.

- InNepal,DGledanopencontractingpilotimplementationinpartnershipwiththegovernment,WorldBank,andcivilsociety.

- ThroughthedgMarketEuropeanUniontenderplatform,DGwasoneofthefirstorganizationstopilotOCDS.90

- InWestAfrica,DGworkedwiththeOpenContractingPartnershiptoconductrigorousassessmentsofthetechnical,political,andcontextualaspectsofthecontractingprocessinfivecountries:Ghana,Nigeria,Senegal,Liberia,andGuinea.91

- In Chile, thePhilippines, Tunisia, andMongolia,DGhas led in-depth technical assessments ofgovernmentsystems,datacollection,andpublicationprocesses,aswellaslegalframeworksandpublicengagementpractices.

Formore informationaboutDG’sOCexperienceandtoviewdemonstrationsofour tools,pleasevisitourwebsite.92AfricaFreedomofInformationCentre(AFIC)Africa Freedom of Information Centre (AFIC) is the largestmembership civil society organisation andresourcecentreinAfrica,promotingcitizens’rightofaccesstoinformation,opengovernment,andopencontracting.Ithasamembershipof40organisations,locatedacross22Africancountries.

88See:http://www.developmentgateway.org/blog/ugandas-development-information-goes-public.89See:http://www.developmentgateway.org/blog/strengthening-public-financial-management-uganda-connecting-dmfas-and-amp.90See:http://contractawards.eu/.91See:http://www.developmentgateway.org/blog/open-contracting-west-africa-dg-introduces-assessment-reports.92See:http://www.developmentgateway.org/expertise/contracting.

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AFIC’sstrategicplanisestablishedonimprovingtheAccessToInformation(ATI)policyenvironmentatbothcontinentalandsubregionallevels;promotingandsupportingadoptionandimplementationofATIlawsatthenationallevel;buildingcitizendemandandacommunityofpractice;strengtheningtheATIknowledgebase;andstrengtheningtheinstitutionalcapacityofthesecretariatandmembershipforthegreateradvancementofcitizens’righttoinformation(RTI).ThroughAFIC’swork,thepolicyenvironmentforcitizens’accessto informationhas improvedthroughhigherrecognitionoftherighttoinformation,aswellastheratificationanddomesticationofsixAfricanUniontreatiesthatrecogniseATI.OthernotableAFICcontributionsincludeResolution222oftheAfricanCommission on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the expansion of Article IV to strengthen ATI, theadoptionofanAUModelLawonAccesstoInformation,andanincreaseinthenumberofcountrieswithATI laws--goingfrom5in2010to22in2018.ThroughpublicationofcontinentalStateofATIreportsand shadow reporting to various treaty bodies, ATI has not only contributed to the practice ofmonitoring implementation and compliance, but also to building a knowledge base. The recentlylaunchedATIResourceKitincludesmanualsforCSOs,publicofficials,andjournalists,andhasprovedtobeanessentialresourceforcapacityenhancement.Withintherealmofopencontracting,AFIC’sworkincludesthefollowing:

- AnalysisofAfricangovernments’opencontractingcommitmentsintheirOpenGovernmentNationalActionPlans

- SuccessfuladvocacyfortherecognitionofopencontractingcommitmentsinOGPNationalActionPlans

- Monitoringimplementationofcommitments- SuccessfuladvocacyinUgandaforthecountrytoembraceopencontracting- CollaborationwithPPDAtoimplementopencontracting- EstablishmentofacontinentalWorkingGrouponOpenContractingandthedevelopmentof

countryactionplanstoadvanceopencontractingacrossAfrica- TechnicalsupporttoAFICmembers(andotherCSOs)andgovernments- Strengtheningtheknowledgebaseonopencontracting

In 2018, AFIC will scale up fundraising efforts to support the implementation of existing opencontracting countryactionplans, aswell as support thedevelopmentofnewones.Throughout theseprocesses,AFICwillutilizelessonsandexperiencegainedfromthefirstgenerationofactionplans.

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ANNEX1:LISTOFINTERVIEWS

Name Organization/Institution Meeting Date

Mr. Bashir Twesigye

CivicResponseonEnvironmentandDevelopment(CRED) 12/14/2017

Mr. Edwin Muhumuza PPDA, Performance Monitoring Directorate 12/11/2017

Enoch Nimpamya Action Coalition Against Climate Change, UCMC, CoST Uganda 12/12/2017

Ms. Florence George Mabea Uganda Association of Consulting Engineers 12/12/2017

Mr. Francis Ekadu Transparency International Uganda 12/12/2017

Mr. Godfrey Rwakafunjo

Uganda National Association of Building and Civil Engineering Contractors 12/12/2017

Mr. Michael Cengkuru Developer, New Wave Technologies 12/12/2017

Mr. David Kiyingi

Commissioner, Procurement Policy; Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MoFPED) 12/14/2017

Mr. Godfrey Erukwaine Head of Procurement, Ministry of Works 12/15/2017

Mr. Mack Opowo Head of Procurement, Uganda Wildlife Authority 12/14/2017

Mr. Patrick Kakembo PPDA, Technology 12/11/2017

Mr. Paul Twevaze Chair, Uganda Contracts Monitoring Coalition 12/14/2017

Mr. Mayanja Senior Procurement Officer, Wakiso District 14/12/2018

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ANNEX2:EXISTINGDATAGAPSIDENTIFIEDINSEPTEMBER201693(INAFICREPORT)Identifiedgap Implemented?(Y/N)MissingItemsinBuyersection #Buyer/identifier N#Buyer/identifier/scheme N#Buyer/identifier/id N#Buyer/contactpoint/name N#Buyer/contactpoint/email N#Buyer/contactpoint/telephone N#Buyer/contactpoint/faxnumber NMissingItemsinPlanningSection #Planning/rationale Y#Planning/Budget N#Planning/Budget/Source N#Planning/Documents N#Planning/Documents/id NMissingItemsinTenderSection #Tender/id Y#Tender/ProcurementMethodRationale N#Tender/award/criteria N#Tender/hasEnquiries Y#Tender/eligibilitycriteria N#Tender/item/classification N#Tender/item/classification/scheme NMissingItemsinMilestonesSection #Tender/milestone/documents N#Tender/milestone/document/url N#Tender/milestone/documentdatemodified N#Tender/milestone/documentdatepublished NMissingitemsinAmendmentsSection #Tender/amendment N#Tender/amendment/date N#Tender/amendment/changes N#Tender/amendment/formervalue N#Tender/amendment/rationale NMissingItemsinAwardsSection #Awards/id Y

93ibid

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#Award/title Y#Award/description Y#Award/status Y#Award/date YMissingItemsinSuppliersSection #Award/supplier/identifier N#Award/supplier/scheme N#Award/supplier/id N#Award/supplier/additionalidentifier N#Award/supplier/uri N#Award/supplier/address N#Award/supplier/email N#Award/supplier/telephone N#Award/supplier/region N#Award/supplier/postalcode NMissingItemsinContractsSection #Contract/implementation/transaction/uri N#Contract/implementation/milestone N#Contracts/implementation/transactions Y#Contracts/implementation/transactions/receiverOrganization/scheme N#Contracts/implementation/transactions/providerOrganization N#Contracts/implementation/transactions/id N

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ANNEX3:GPPOCDSDATAFIELDS

Phase FieldName Countocid 1id 2language 3date 4initiationType 5tag 6parties id 7 name 8 roles 9 address locality 10 postalCode 11 countryName 12 contactPoint name 13 email 14 telephone 15 faxNumber 16buyer id 17 name 18planning budget id 19 description 20 amount amount 21 currency 22tender id 23 title 24 mainProcurementCategory 25 status 26 value amount 27 currency 28 procurementMethod 29

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procurementMethodDetails 30 submissionMethod 31 submissionMethodDetails 32 tenderPeriod startDate 33 durationInDays 34 contractPeriod startDate 35 endDate 36 durationInDays 37 procuringEntity id 38 name 39 items id 40 description 41 tenderers id 42 name 43 numberOfTenderers 44 hasEnquiries 45 awardPeriod startDate 46 endDate 47awards id 48 title 49 description 50 status 51 date 52 value amount 53 currency 54 suppliers id 55 name 56 contractPeriod startDate 57 endDate 58contracts id 59

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awardID 60 title 61 description 62 status 63 period startDate 64 endDate 65 value amount 66 currency 67 dateSigned 68 implementation transactions 69

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ANNEX4:PROCUREMENTPERFORMANCEINDICATORSLISTLinktothisannexavailablehere(Seethespreadsheet’sfirsttab):https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1jzEZA4ZMGIjQQ3EsiZzgsZQkWA6oJ7PY0bcpr3Brb78/edit?usp=sharing

ANNEX5:REDFLAGGINGINDICATORSLISTLinktothisannexavailablehere(seethespreadsheet’ssecondtab):https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1jzEZA4ZMGIjQQ3EsiZzgsZQkWA6oJ7PY0bcpr3Brb78/edit?usp=sharing

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ANNEX6:CONCEPTNOTE:SUPPORTINGGOVERNMENTPROCUREMENTREGULATIONTHROUGHOPENCONTRACTING&PROCUREMENTANALYTICS

CONCEPTNOTE:SUPPORTINGGOVERNMENTPROCUREMENTREGULATIONTHROUGHOPENCONTRACTING&PROCUREMENTANALYTICSIntroduction

OpenContracting (OC) isgainingwidespread interestacrossAfricaasapromisingtool to increasetheefficiencyandeffectivenessofgovernmentservicedelivery,andtoreducethelossofgovernmentfundsthroughmisuseandcorruption.ThePublicProcurementDisposalofPublicAssetsAuthority (PPDA)ofUganda,throughapartnershipwiththeAfricaFreedomofInformationCentre(AFIC),isleadingthewayin OC adoption in East Africa. AFIC has conducted an OC scoping study and supported the PPDA topublishprocurementdatausingtheOpenContractingDataStandard(OCDS),astandardizedandopenformatforprocurementdata.

The continued success of OC in Uganda depends on the ability of stakeholders to use that data toimproveprocurementperformanceand,ultimately,procurementresults.OCDS isaneffectivetool fortransparency,butithasmanyotherpotentialbenefits,amongthem:

- OCDS is easy for developers to understand and it is well documented, so it is easy to linkgovernmentsystemsusingthestandard;

- ThereexistavarietyofopensourcetoolsthatcanbeusedwithOCDSdata,sousersmustnotrelyonproprietarytoolsbuiltfromscratch;

- There isawealthofknowledgearoundmonitoringtheprocurementprocessthatexistswithintheOCcommunity.Accessingthisknowledgecanimproveprocurementdatacollectionanduse,andleadtomoreeffectivereportingandbetterpolicyoutcomes;

Development Gateway (DG) has been awarded a two-year grant by the Hewlett Foundation toworkwiththePPDAandAFICtosupporttheircontinuedprogressonOCandtoengage indatauseefforts.Thegoalof this grant is to support theGovernmentofUgandaandother key stakeholders (includingfromcivilsocietyandtheprivatesector)touseprocurementdatatoenhanceprocurementresults.Ourtheory of change argues that the publication of OC data, combined with effective implementationsupport - including: co-created tools centered on high-value use cases; provision of training andresources tokey stakeholders; and facilitatedengagementbetweengovernment, citizens,andprivatesector-willresult inthesustainableuseofOCdataforimprovedpublicprocurementdecision-makingandservicedelivery.

ImplementationApproach

DG will apply a learning approach that prioritizes dynamic collaboration with partners, includingconsistent use of feedback loops, and rapid sharing of lessons learned across implementationenvironments.ThiswillbeaccompaniedbyDG’suseoftheagileapproachtowebdevelopment,whichenables creation of technologies that meet clients’ changing needs. Concretely, DG will take thefollowingimplementationsteps:

1. Conduct an OC Use Case Assessment: The assessment will explore the baseline technical,political, andcontextual issues thatmay influenceprogram implementation.Throughmeetingwith government, private sector and civil society stakeholders, DGwill identify key use cases

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thatcanbeaddressedthroughOCDSandanalyticsimplementation.WewillseektounderstandthePPDA’sOCDSpublicationfunctions,andidentifyopportunitiestoimprovedataquality,adddata fields to theOCDS output, and identify opportunities to link procurement data to otherdatasets.OfprimaryconcernishowthePPDAanditspartnerswanttobenefitfromtheuseofprocurementdata.

2. Prepare Government Data for Use:DGwill support the OCDS implementation based on theresultsoftheassessment.Dependingontheusecasesidentifiedandaccesspermitted,DGwillseektoprepareothergovernmentdatasources-e.g.financialmanagementorpaymentsdata-forintegrationwithprocurementdata.

3. Co-Create Open Source OC Analytics Dashboards: Based on the assessment and continueddialoguewithPPDAandAFIC,DGwillcollaborativelybuildanalyticswithgovernmentandlocalstakeholders that meet their needs for timely monitoring of procurement processes.DashboardsvisualizingtheseanalyticswillbebasedonDG’sOpenContractingExplorer,anopensource tool that contains a library of 25+OCDS-compliant analytics - including indicators thataddress all key OC use cases. Through trainings and hands-on learning, DG will supportgovernmentuseofanalyticsfordecision-making.

ScreenshotofDG’sCorruptionRisk/EarlyWarningDashboard.ElementsofthistoolcanbedrawnuponforuseinUganda,dependingontheneedsofPPDAanditspartners.

4. SupportGovernment,CivilSociety,andPrivateSectorCollaboration:DGwillcollaboratewith

thePPDAandAFIC,aswellasotherinternationalandlocalpartnerswherehelpful,tofacilitateongoing dialogue and OC data use. Using OC and analytics, t will also seek to seeopportunities/areas where there can be provided a feedback loop to ensure that otherministries/departments/agencies, civil society and private sector needs are taken intoconsideration as the government refines procurement policies and moves toward e-Procurementadoption.

5. Sustain and Contextualize Results: To understand the impacts of OC and analyticsimplementation in Uganda and ensure continued dialogue and data use, DG will developindividualcountryandcomparativelearningreportsthatwillfeedintostrategicactionplanstoinformfuturereformefforts.

AboutDevelopmentGateway

DGisanonprofitorganizationthatworksattheintersectionoftechnologyanddevelopment.DGoffers

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15+yearsofexpertise increating technologyandensuring thatdata informsdecision-making.DGhasimplemented OC projects in 11 countries: Chile, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mongolia, Nepal, Nigeria,Senegal,Tunisia,thePhilippines,andVietnam.InVietnam,DGhasworkedwiththePublicProcurementAuthorityandtheWorldBanktodevelopOCanalyticstoolsfocusingoncompetitiveness,procurementefficiency, and value for money. With the collaboration and support of OCP, DG has developed acorruptionriskanalyticsdashboard.Theopensourceplatformsdevelopedfortheseprojectswillprovidethebasisforthatproposed.Atpresent,DGworkswithpartnergovernmentsinmorethan30countriesworldwide;25governmentsactivelyuseitsAidManagementPlatform.