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The European Union is one of the world's major donors of development aid funds. Either through the services of the European Commission or by means of the Multilateral Organizations and International Financial Institutions (IFIs) where the EU itself or its Member states are represented or have cooperation agreements, the Union mobilises an enormous amount of resources in order to deploy the European Development Policy.

These Commission's development aid programmes as well as the funds raised by the MO and IFIs for projects which are developed all around the world, give rise to an important amount of calls for tenders. These calls are an important source of Business Opportunities for companies and other organizations in any Member state, as they are backed and count upon the guaranty of those institutions. Although quite competitive, multilateral bidding is a market which is accessible for companies in any sector, providing opportunities to place their products and services in countries all around the globe.

This section is the result of the deep knowledge gathered by Euroalert.net team about the commercial opportunities that public procurement offers to companies of all kind, either with community institutions, multilateral organizations or related IFIs. It aims at bringing together some of the most relevant informations related to Business Opportunities on international tendering tracked and delivered to all Euroalert.net subscribers.

European Union External Aid Programmes – EuropeAid

The European Commission and EU Member states are one of the most important donors in terms of development aid funds. Operating under the mandate and guidance of Commissioner responsible for External Relations and European Neighbouring Policy, the European Commission Co-operation Office EuropeAid also works in close collaboration with responsible for European Development Policy.

Its main purpose is to implement Commission’s external aid instruments, both those funded by the Union’s budget and those from the European Development Fund (EDF). In so doing, EuropeAid manages European external aid programmes, ensuring that all aid funds reach all the regions in the world where Community acts.

Programmes funded by the European Commission and managed by EuropeAid are source for an important number of calls for tenders public notices of all kind in a wide range of countries worldwide. Beneficiaries and contracting authorities willing to purchase a service, goods or work, must open a public tender procedure which will lead to the conclusion of a public contract.

Following the commitment to transparency that the European Union applies in the implementation of all policies, EuropeAid ensures control and monitoring of all procedures for aid delivery. Assessment and accountability of the results generated by projects and programmes aim to improve management and to draw lessons on their implementation.

European Investment Bank – EIB

Created by the Treaty of Rome in 1958, the European Investment Bank (EIB) is the institution by which the European Union channels its long-term lending instruments, supporting European Cohesion and Development policies. As a difference with other financial institutions, EIB does not grant funding through EU budget, but it rather lends such funds in favourable terms by raising them on the capital markets.

To carry on with this support activity to EC policies, the EIB funds a wide range of projects in the most different sectors, and in all the countries where the Bank deploys its instruments, giving rise to many business opportunities in the tendering procedures which are originated. In 2007, about 87% of EIB calls for tenders were referred to financing of projects located within the European Union, although, in the context of the EU’s external development and cooperation policies, the EIB operates in over 150 countries outside the Union.

Tendering procedures which fall under the framework of projects financed by the EIB, including those designed under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) structure, are subject to guaranties and control procedures which ensure the transparency and sustainability of the project.

In all the projects carried out within the EU or in any of the pre-accession countries, especially for open and restricted procedures, the Bank requires the application of Community rules on public procurement and the publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. In any case, in all projects where the EIB acts, the Bank always encourages the publication of public procurement tendering notices in the OJEU.

European Bank for Reconstruction and Development – EBRD

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is an IFI owned by 61 countries, the European Commission and the EIB. The EBRD manages aid development projects in 30 countries from central Europe to central Asia. Investing operations carried out by the EBRD, allow to grant support to private sector clients whose needs cannot be fully met by the market.

The EBRD is the largest investor in those countries where in develops its projects, also mobilizing an important part of foreign direct investment. Projects financed by the EBRD lead to a significant number of business opportunities for all kind of companies in tendering procedures for works, supplies and services contracts. These calls for tenders are subject to strict principles of non-discrimination, fairness and transparency of the process, under the Bank's own supervision. Tender procedures are designed to ensure efficiency and effectiveness of the project and to minimise risk in the implementation of the Bank's lending and investment operations

Using consultants is also an important part of the Bank's activities. In these activities, the Bank applies due diligence to ensure transparency and efficiency, and counts upon various sources to finance consultancy services, namely the Bank’s consultancy budget, technical co-operation funds managed by the Bank, and loan proceeds.

Contract awarding procedures followed by the Bank also promote the development of tendering mechanisms al a local level, based on the most demanding international standards as well as the international private sector involvement in projects financed by the EBRD. In the case of projects in the state sector, the Bank always promotes open and competitive tendering, as for the the case of private sector operations, the Bank ensures that proper tendering procedures are always respected.