Bulgaria expands SIGMA platform to enhance transparency and tackle public procurement dominance

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Vasilev has used the platform to highlight how concentrated public contracting has become. Speaking on BNT, he said more than 30% of successful public procurement contracts over the past five years involved only one bidder, amounting to roughly €16bn in procedures with very limited competition. In the Bulgarian-language report, he said the platform is intended to let citizens see how public money has been spent, which institutions have awarded contracts and how much individual companies have received from the state and municipalities. (bntnews.bg)

The ministry’s newer figures suggest the database is broader still. BTA reported that SIGMA covers the 2020-2026 period and contains 193,000 contracts and procurement lots with a combined value of more than €51bn. The government says the tool is meant to offer real-time oversight of public spending and to give citizens a clearer view of how state and municipal funds are allocated. ()

The minister has framed the project as part of a wider attempt to loosen entrenched patterns in public contracting and digital delivery. BNT reported that the next version of SIGMA should add automated controls during procurement itself, while BTA has said the system will be linked to the commercial register so that connections between firms, owners and managers can be traced more easily, including publicly declared links involving about 250 political figures. Vasilev, appointed from a background that includes a stint as deputy mayor of Sofia, has also argued that Bulgaria’s e-government remains too cumbersome and that technology should be used to speed up services, reduce paperwork and shrink the administrative burden on citizens and businesses. (bntnews.bg)

Source: Noah Wire Services