Recommendations for reducing corruption risks in public procurement


The Kherson Regional Charitable Foundation "Union" monitored public procurement in the Kherson region from September to December 2024. In partnership with the Kherson Club of Active Citizens, which includes representatives of Kherson civil society, heads of condominium associations, media, volunteers, and simply active citizens, we analyzed several thousand open tenders related to the Kherson region and hundreds of suppliers participating in these tenders for their integrity and experience in performing work at the expense of Ukrainian taxpayers. 

Based on the results of public procurement monitoring and their analysis, 6 analytical reports on the use of budget funds were created:

◉ for the third quarter of 2024; 

◉ during the construction of shelters based on educational institutions in Kherson; 

◉ for October 2024; 

◉ for November 2024; 

◉ for December 2024; 

◉ for the IV quarter of 2024; 

During the monitoring, several risks were identified related to the involvement of contractors with a dubious reputation, inflated prices, and lack of transparency in individual tenders. This is a negative trend for the region, which should already be moving from humanitarian support to the recovery process in communities located further from the combat zone. 

In our analytical reports, we paid special attention to such tenders and unscrupulous suppliers of goods and services. You can read all the reports at this link. The reports mentioned above were also transferred to the Strategic Investigations Department in the Kherson region of the Strategic Investigations Department of the National Police of Ukraine as an element of cooperation in the fight against corruption and facilitating the implementation of the state anti-corruption strategy. 

At the same time, we prepared recommendations to reduce corruption risks and increase the transparency of government bodies' activities at the local level. 

Recommendations for authorities 

1. Expanding digital transparency tools: 

  • Visualization of procurement: implement an interactive dashboard on the official websites of authorities to display all public procurement at the local level (using schedules, project maps, implementation statuses, etc.). 
  • Automatic risk monitoring: promote the implementation of algorithms in Prozorro that will signal suspicious tenders (low competition, identical participants, inflated prices). 

2. Support for independent monitoring: 

  • Provide financial and technical support to public organizations that monitor tenders. 
  • Include representatives of the public and media in tender committees as observers, as well as expand the composition of the regional working group "Transparency and Accountability" for independent, unbiased, transparent work of the group, excluding from it those who have a direct or indirect relationship with unscrupulous contractors - winners of tenders. 

3. Stimulating fair competition: 

  • Develop incentive programs for new local participants. 
  • Publish instructions for businesses on submitting tender proposals. 

4. Sanctions for violators: 

  • Create a “blacklist” of companies found to be colluding or performing poorly, and publish it publicly. 
  • Introduce liability for officials who ignore violations. 


Recommendations for the public 

1. Active participation in monitoring: 

  • Tender monitoring through Prozorro: actively studies information about announced tenders and their results. 
  • Use specialized platforms such as Dozorro and YouControl, which simplify access to contractor information. 

2. Public initiatives: 

  • Create initiative groups: organize a procurement monitoring group in a specific community. 
  • Public appeals: preparing official requests to authorities regarding unclear procurements or corruption risks. 
  • Public consultations: actively participate in consultations and discussions organized by local administrations before implementing major projects and/or initiating such consultations in their absence. 

3. Raising public awareness: 

  • Monitoring training: involving activists and local residents in exercises to help them understand procurement processes. 
  • Development of information materials: distributing booklets and online content explaining how to monitor public spending. 

4. Using media and social networks: 

  • Investigative journalism: supporting local media that expose corruption. 
  • Social networks: using public platforms to draw attention to suspicious tenders and monitoring results. 


Recommendations for increasing trust between authorities and the public 

1. Establishing local “hotlines”: 

  • Provide citizens with the opportunity to report suspicious procurement activities at the local level. 

2. Regular reports: 

  • Governments should publish reports on government contracts that are understandable to ordinary citizens, including photos of the results where this is acceptable due to the security situation. 

3. Public education:

  • Organize open seminars on public procurement to explain how Prozorro works and how to exercise public control. 


Standard measures for all parties 

  • Development of a culture of integrity: Through educational campaigns, encourage both authorities and citizens to be transparent and accountable. 
  • Interaction between civil society organizations and authorities: sign memorandums of understanding on joint work to improve procurement procedures and promote transparency in this area. 


Involving the public in the control process will reduce corruption risks and contribute to a more efficient use of public funds, which will benefit the community.