Kazakhstan's public procurement landscape: an in-depth review over two years

Purpose of the study is to analyze the public procurement market in Kazakhstan, identifying key trends, factors influencing contract failure, and regional variations in procurement practices.

Methodology: We examined nearly 3.9 million procurement contracts, employing descriptive statistics to overview market characteristics and using Generalized Linear Model regression analysis to identify factors affecting contract failure. The study focused on variables such as local production share, contract sum, procurement method, and regional differences.

Originality/Value: This research contributes to the limited literature on public procurement in emerging economies, offering a comprehensive analysis of Kazakhstan's procurement landscape. It provides valuable insights for policymakers and practitioners, highlighting areas for potential improvement in the country's procurement system.

Results: The study identified several key findings: (1) a high proportion of contracts marked as "changed," likely due to software structure rather than actual modifications; (2) a 4% contract failure rate, with failure more common in larger contracts; (3) requests for proposals emerging as the dominant procurement method (52% of contracts), reflecting a shift towards competitive bidding; (4) minimal growth in single-source procurement, consistent with government transparency efforts; (5) a negative correlation between local production share and contract failure, supporting the hypothesis that domestic suppliers contribute to contract stability; (6) unexpectedly lower failure rates in single-source contracts, suggesting supplier familiarity and pre-negotiation reduce risks; and (7) significant regional disparities in contract failures, indicating local administrative and market influences. These findings suggest the need for further research on competitive bidding, and investigation into factors contributing to the success of single-source contracts.

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