The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) organised a national workshop on Sustainable Public Procurement in a hybrid format at the United Nation House in New Delhi on June 26 2023. The workshop aimed to gather inputs on recommended Sustainable Public Procurement criteria for three service sectors: Green servicing of Room Air Conditioners (RACs), Cleaning/Sanitation/Disinfection services, and Waste Management services.
Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) is an empowering policy tool for the transition to green and inclusive economies, especially in India. The total volume of public procurement comprising both goods and services in India is estimated to constitute about 25 percent of its GDP and hence the potential of SPP for shifting markets towards green economy is immense.
The workshop hosted nearly 70 attendees and discussed SPP criteria for Green servicing of Room Air Conditioners (RACs), Cleaning/Sanitation/Disinfection services, and Waste Management services.
This event was part of the broader PAGE India programme that supports the Ministry of Finance in identifying sustainable alternatives for commonly purchased goods and services, thus encouraging government agencies to consider these alternatives through their procurement processes.
Sh. Rajiv Srivastava, CEO & Chief Buyer Officer of Central Buyers in the Government e-Marketplace, addressed participants at the national workshop and emphasized on how GeM is helping government buyers achieve sustainable procurement goals.
These strides are aligned with earlier UNEP work in India. Previously, UNEP has conducted a study preliminarily assessing the market to propose SPP criteria for certain product categories and which products to prioritize, including Writing and Printing paper and RACs. Moreover, SPP recommendations for Green RACs were piloted on the Government e-Marketplace in May 2021.
Taking the work on SPP forward, UNEP conducted studies to identify the SPP criteria for ‘Green servicing of RACs’, Cleaning/Sanitation/Disinfection service’ and ‘Waste Management services’. Furthermore, the SPP recommendations under these studies were discussed during the workshop held on 26th June 2023 and the received inputs were incorporated into the reports.
PAGE looks to continue and expand work on sustainable public procurement and green economy more broadly in India, which is a PAGE Partner Country since 2018.
Since 2013, The Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE) has grown into an increasingly prominent alliance of UN Agencies, international partner organizations and governments. The partnership is recognized as an innovative and efficient model of excellence for delivering on the 2030 Agenda. Drawing on the expertise of five UN Agencies – UN Environment, the International Labour Organization, the UN Development Program, the UN Industrial Development Organization, and the UN Institute for Training and Research – PAGE challenges business-as-usual growth and business models, and places sustainability at the heart of economic systems. At the global level, PAGE partners with the donor community, the wider UN system, governments, civil society and the private sector to amplify and accelerate transitions to greener, more inclusive development, and to support future generations and sustainable development pathways.