Open Procurement Albania publishes information for procurement procedures worth of 9.4 billion Albanian Lek (76,42 million Euros) for Homes and Schools damaged by the Earthquake. The Government opts for Limited Procedure, avoiding open bidding competition. The 20-days timeframe for submission of requests by interested competitors is not respected.

Data, documents, and information on every stage of such procedures can be easily accessed in our database for transparent procurement: http://www.openprocurement.al/sq/albaniandf/list

The Albanian government through the Albanian Development Fund has announced contractions worth 900410 141 (nine billion and four hundred million and ten thousand and one hundred and forty-one Albanian Lek). Equivalent to 76,42 million Euros). Purpose of tender: Construction of Homes and Schools in the regions affected by the Earthquake (November 2019) The financing is from the state budget. The procedure applied is the limited procedure (not open). This procedure requires interested parties to submit a request to the authority, and then the authority selects the bidders based on the eligibility criteria, and not on the bids they have submitted. The selected companies or operators are then notified of their selection and asked to submit their bids to the authority, which selects the best bid. This non-open procedure is envisioned by the Law on Public Procurement (Law No. 9643, Article 31). The law requires such procedures to be used only when it is necessary to make a difference between the selection phase, where candidates are qualified/disqualified, and the phase of deciding who the winning operator is following a review of their bids. The Limited Procedure is to apply in specific cases and requires legal arguments. With the bidders already known (through the selection phase), the process is more likely to present risks for the competition and efficiency compared with the Open Procedure. The contracting authority would have to carefully argue why it opted for this procedure. Such arguments are not found in the information made available for the public regarding the tender documents, or in any reports by the Albanian Development Fund.

The list of procedures published on 10 and 11 March includes:

1. Reconstruction of individual houses in areas affected by the earthquake. As part of the reconstruction process. Reference of this procedure REF – 53475-03-09-2020 with a fund limit of 5 525 192 288 (five billion and two hundred and twenty-five million and one hundred and ninety-two thousand and eighty-eight Albanian Lek). The scope of the Framework Agreement includes the reconstruction of individual houses as per the model projects (1+1, 1+2, 1+3) in the territory of Durrës, Kamza, Kavajë, Rrogozhinë, Krujë, Kurbin, and Lezha municipalities. Mirdita, Shijak, and Vorë. According to the Standard Document, the house reconstruction can be done as a group or separately on the site of existing houses, as designated by the mandatory local plans. The procuring authority is the Albanian Development Fund. The interested parties are only given nine calendar days (not working days) to submit their bids. Based on Law No. 9643 and No. 34, and Decision No. 914 of the Council of Ministers, the time available for bidders to submit their tenders is 20 days, which is a criterion that the Authority has not met, putting the procedure at risk. The tender submission deadline is set in contradiction with the 20-days deadline. On this procurement passport, under Open Procurement Albania, you will find the documents accessible for the public. LINK http://openprocurement.al/sq/albaniandf/view/id/293
2. Equally, a Lot Procedure was announced on March 17th for a total fund limit of 4,175,217,853 (four billion and one hundred and seventy-five million and two hundred and seventeen thousand and eight hundred and fifty-three) Albanian Lek without VAT. The budget available for 2020 is 1,043,804,463 Albanian Lek without VAT. Lots include:
3. Lot 1. Reconstruction of schools in areas affected by the earthquake funded by the Reconstruction Fund through the budget approved by Decision No. 212, dated 11. 03. 2020 on The use of the Reconstruction Fund to fund reconstruction of schools. The fund limit without VAT is 511 405 370 Albanian Lek (without VAT). http://openprocurement.al/sq/albaniandf/view/id/297
4. Lot 2. Reconstruction of schools in Kavaja Municipality for an amount of 490 413 615 Albanian Lek without VAT. The buildings to be reconstructed under Lot 2 include the 9-year elementary school “Selman Daci”, the 9-year elementary school “Ramazan Jangozi”, the 9-year elementary school “Kastriot Derveni”, the 9-year elementary school “Gjon Luka” in Luz village, which cover all a surface of approximately 10 691 m2. The tender was announced on 17th of March, while the deadline for the submission of bids is 27th of March. LINK http://openprocurement.al/sq/albaniandf/view/id/298
5. Lot 3. The Reconstruction of Schools in Durres Municipality consists of 845 723 696 Albanian Lek without VAT. The schools included in Lot 3 are: the 9-year elementary school and the kindergarten “Bedrie Beziqi”, kindergarten “Met Hasa”, the 9- year elementary school “Neim Babameto”, the 9-year elementary school “Qemal Mici, the 9-year elementary school “Hasan Koci” with a total construction surface of approximately 18 438 m2. Linku http://openprocurement.al/sq/albaniandf/view/id/299
6. Lot 4. The Reconstruction of Schools in Durres Municipality 2, value 850 692 969 Albanian Lek. The schools to be reconstructed under Lot 4 include “Shaqe Mazreku” School, the United High School “Rexhep Mezini”, the 9-year elementary school and kindergarten “Adem Gjeli”, 9-year elementary school “Xhelal Shtufi Shkafanaj”, 9-year elementary school “Njazi Mastori 2+3”, pre-elementary school and kindergarten, 9-year elementary school “Haradinaj Brothers” with a total construction surface of all buildings of approximately 18 545 m2. LINK http://openprocurement.al/sq/albaniandf/view/id/300
7. Lot 5. The reconstruction of schools in Kavaja Municipality and Rogozhina for 414 766 205 Albanian Lek without VAT. The schools to be reconstructed under Lot 5 include: the vocational school “Charles Teleford Erickson”, “26 Marsi” vocational school, the dormitory in Golem, the 9-year elementary school in Gose village, the pre-elementary school and kindergarten in Vile Bashtove, which cover all a construction surface of approximately 9041 m2. http://openprocurement.al/sq/albaniandf/view/id/301
8. Lot 6. The reconstruction of schools, Kamëz Municipality, value 621 757 340 Albanian Lek without VAT. The schools to be built under Lot 6 include the 9-year elementary school “Halil Coka”, the secondary school “Sulejman Elezi”, the kindergarten “Niko Hoxha”, the kindergarten “Lidhja e Prizrenit” in Paskuqan, the kindergarten “Halit Coka”, which cover all a total surface of approximately 13 555 m2. Link http://openprocurement.al/sq/albaniandf/view/id/302
9. Lot 7. The reconstruction of schools in the municipality of Shijak for an amount of 440 458 658 Albanian Lek without VAT. The schools covered by lot 7 are: the 9-year elementary school Ramadan Subashi, 9-year elementary school Ahmetaq, Kindergarten in “Kodër Bërxullë”, “Marqinet” Kindergarten, “Lidhja e Prizrenit” Elementary School, “16 Shtatori” High School, Kindergarten number 1, “Vlashaj” Kindergarten, “Kajo Karafili” High School with total construction are of all schools approximately 92602 m2. http://openprocurement.al/sq/albaniandf/view/id/303

Dear friends, we wish you are well and safe in these difficult weeks of Covid 19 pandemic. Our staff is teleworking since the 10th of March. Each of us is safely working from home, being in online communication with each other, our collaborators, and targets groups. In these difficult days we continue to disclose data, ensure transparency and assess risks related with payment and public contracting to strengthen information, transparency and accountability. Our motto: Follow Taxpayers’ Money

1 in 3 tenders without fair competition, open data encourage investigative journalism to denounce corruption with taxpayers’ money On January 7th, the TopStory investigative show on Top Channel denounced forms of fraud through public procurement tenders. Shocking facts were brought to the program for one in every three tenders without fair competition. 300 million euros of taxpayers’ money results to be lost every year, abused and misappropriated through tenders with clientelist elements. AIS, an organization promoting Open Data in Albania, contributed to this courageous TV investigation through data released: Specifically: Data about tenders and contracts with problems regarding competition published on the Open Procurement Albania portal; information about clientelist companies published in the Open Corporates Albania portal, and data on the payments from the State Budget published on Spending Data Albania . For the last four years, AIS has been publishing data and assessing the risk of irregularities in tenders, known as RedFlag procurement, identifying information and gaps for every tender held by municipalities ; Albanian Development Fund ; Albanian Road Authority ; Health Sector; Central Purchasing Agency; Public-Owned Agency;

The Albanian Government has signed eight contracts in 2019 for economic subjects that have obtained actual rights over state property against a symbolic price of 1 Euro. The Albania 1-Euro programme aims to grant potential employers (businesses) state property to use, with the purpose of increasing private investments and the number of employees. In 2019, six businesses and a non-profit organization have benefited from this programme. Only one of the contractors is a foreign investor. Properties granted for use in 2019, with a rental fee of only 1- Euro and for up to 60 years, are mainly industrial objects and military objects. In total, the Government has granted 537,503 square meters of total surface for 916 new jobs, without any contractual requirements that the employers in such contracts to be Albanian citizens. The investor, who has been granted the largest area, is the Albanian company Blu Imperial . More jobs in exchange for the Albania 1-Euro project are expected to be created by the Korean company Yura Co.Ltd, which will open a company for electric parts for cars. Its investment is estimated to be 6.5 million Euros and expected to create 516 jobs. Open Corporates Albania has prepared transparent passports for the business companies that have been granted rental contracts for only 1-Euro for state property.