Infrastructure protection: Restoration Agency’s procurement organization not involved in defense tenders
This was confirmed in a comment to Ukrinform by Yurii Sverba, Deputy Head of the State Agency for Restoration and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine.
“Currently, restoration services are entering into direct contracts with contractors to carry out construction of protective structures at critical infrastructure sites. This is in accordance with subparagraph 13 of paragraph 13 of Cabinet Resolution No. 1178. The decision was made to save time, as standard procurement procedures typically take 30 days or more. The CPO conducts procurement solely through open tenders and is therefore not involved in these defense-related projects,” Sverba explained.
He added that the CPO is currently managing around ten tenders on behalf of restoration services, including procurement of consulting engineers and technical supervision services.
“In the future, we plan to expand the CPO’s mandate to include procurement for new construction projects through open tenders. At that point, all new infrastructure procurements — such as water pipeline construction — will also go through the procurement organization,” Sverba noted.
He also mentioned that the competition to select a supervisory board for the CPO, originally scheduled for the end of the year, has not yet been announced due to ongoing efforts to establish the organization’s operational capacity.
“The priority now is to ensure stable funding for the CPO so it can hire staff and plan its operations effectively. We must first build the institutional capacity of the procurement body itself, and then we will return to the supervisory board issue — which will definitely be addressed, as previously announced,” Sverba emphasized.
As reported, on April 1, 2025, the Cabinet of Ministers approved the creation of the Centralized Procurement Organization under the State Agency for Restoration and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine. The initiative aims to minimize corruption risks, standardize procurement practices, enable fair competition for Ukrainian and international companies, and optimize the use of public and donor funds.
Photo credit: mindev.gov.ua
