"Focus on Supply Chain Crisis Response" Public Procurement Service Prepares 326.6 Billion KRW Budget for Next Year

The Public Procurement Service (PPS) announced on the 9th that it has prepared a budget of 326.6 billion KRW for next year, an increase of 4.5% compared to the previous year (312.5 billion KRW).

Next year’s PPS budget will be intensively invested in areas such as responding to supply chain crises, supporting innovative growth, and advancing public procurement infrastructure.

First, the PPS will additionally allocate 70 billion KRW for raw material stockpiling funds next year, expanding the non-ferrous metal stockpile from 53 days at the end of this year to 55 days next year. It will also allocate 10 billion KRW for emergency procurement funds for economic security items for the first time, strengthening raw material stockpiling capabilities and infrastructure in preparation for supply chain crises.

Additionally, the budget includes 500 million KRW for the design of the new Gyeongnam Stockpile Warehouse (6,000㎡) next year (with a total of 12.1 billion KRW planned over three years), and 1.2 billion KRW allocated to enhance security at stockpile bases designated as national critical facilities. The budget for infrastructure expansion to ensure stable storage of stockpiled materials is set at 2.8 billion KRW, an increase of 260 million KRW compared to this year.

The budget for public procurement of innovative products has also been expanded. Public procurement of innovative products is conducted so that public institutions become the first buyers of innovative products to drive technology promotion and provide high-quality public services. The PPS has allocated 61.4 billion KRW for this next year, an increase of 3.6 billion KRW compared to this year.

The overseas demonstration budget, which has high field demand and significant export linkage results, has been doubled to 14 billion KRW compared to this year. In particular, a new budget of 3.5 billion KRW has been allocated for pilot purchases using lease and subscription methods introduced for the demonstration of high-priced and advanced equipment.

Furthermore, the research and development (R&D) budget for innovative product technology development has been increased by 1.2 billion KRW to 3 billion KRW, and a budget of 700 million KRW for official development assistance (ODA) for innovative products targeting developing countries such as the Philippines has been included. These budgets are focused on helping innovative procurement companies enter overseas markets and grow steadily.

The PPS will also expand investments for the advancement of public procurement infrastructure and capabilities next year. To this end, the PPS has allocated 1.4 billion KRW from its own ODA budget for the 10th export of the electronic procurement system ‘Nara Marketplace’ (a total of 10.2 billion KRW over four years) and emphasized plans to reinforce its workforce by 23 personnel to support swift and fair contract operations.

The PPS’s budget proposal for next year is expected to be finalized in December after review by the National Assembly.

Im Gi-geun, Administrator of the PPS, said, “Next year’s budget has been intensively prepared to strengthen key PPS policies such as responding to supply chain crises and supporting the growth of innovative companies. The PPS will continue to implement policies that adhere to principles and fundamentals of public procurement, striving to support national livelihood vitality and future leaps through public purchasing power.”