The government has approved a decision that definitively removes the competence of the National Agency for Information Technology (NAI) to conduct tenders for Information Technology. All procurement procedures for IT contracts will now be conducted by the Centralized Purchasing Operator.
"For procurement procedures related to the field of information technology for systems, software and hardware equipment, maintenance, as well as internet and intranet services, with a value above the monetary threshold for low-value procurements, the Centralized Purchasing Operator, sh.a., in its capacity as the central purchasing body, also calculates the estimated value of the procurement, according to the legislation in force on public procurement, a value which is confirmed respectively by the relevant contracting authority or entity," states the decision approved this Friday by the Council of Ministers.
Government decision to remove IT tenders from AKSH
The state's digital infrastructure is facing a near-emergency situation, especially in terms of maintenance. For many of the systems, maintenance contracts have been expiring for months. This is because, since the outbreak of the AKSHI corruption scandal, which led to the arrest of the former historical director Mirlinda Karçanaj, this institution has not conducted any procurement procedures.
It seems that the government has been determined not to allow any more tenders to be held at AKSHI and is even anxious. Two months ago, Parliament approved a proposal by socialist MP Erjon Malaj, which transfers the tenders of the National Agency for the Information Society, AKSHI, to a joint-stock company with public and private participation.
The law voted in the Assembly repealed several points in Articles 4 and 29 of the Law "On Electronic Governance", removing the powers of the National Agency for Information Technology (NAI) in conducting centralized procurement and concluding contracts for the construction and maintenance of information technology systems.
To carry out this task, he entrusts a joint-stock company, where the state owns at least 51 percent of the shares.
But the joint stock company has not yet been created and the situation with IT procurement is urgent because state services are failing and citizens are facing numerous problems. In this situation, the government did not wait for the creation of the joint stock company to transfer the tenders of the AKSHI, but intervened by temporarily transferring them to the Centralized Purchasing Operator.
Editorial
