12. Public Procurement Regime

The public procurement regime in Colombia has been revised and adapted to incorporate best contracting practices, enhance the use of information technology for accessing and publicizing selection processes, and implement measures aimed at preventing corruption.

In most cases, the selection processes will establish two types of requirements:

• Qualifying: these allow to know which proposals are qualified to move forward in the process. 
• Scorable: these determine the weighting of the proposals.

Those allowed to contract with the State can be individuals or legal entities, either national or foreign. Likewise, plural proposals are anticipated through collaborative contracts, known as consortia or temporary unions.

In Colombia, there are currently five ways for selecting contractors who wish to engage with the State:

• Public bidding.
• Abbreviated selection.
• Minimum amount process.
• Merit-based bidding.
• Direct contracting.

On the other hand, there is the Public-Private Partnership (PPP), which is the ideal mechanism to attract private capital through contracts between a state entity and a private actor (company or individual), with the aim of developing and operating public goods and services. Projects can originate from either a public initiative or a private initiative.

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If you would like to learn more about the topics mentioned, including the State contracting regime for foreigners, disabilities, and incompatibilities; the Single Registry of Proponents (RUP); the requirements for State contracts; and many other related subjects, we invite you to download the complete chapter.