First National Public Procurement Plan of Costa Rica

After months of work and participatory processes, the National Public Procurement Plan (PNCP) of Costa Rica has been published. This instrument's central objective is to establish a strategic framework to guide public procurement, promoting transparency, efficiency, and sustainability, aligning the legal requirements of public procurement with the efficient use of public resources, seeking a positive impact in social, economic, and environmental areas, and fostering innovation in the productive sector.

Through this instrument, a pioneer in the country, the potential of public procurement to strengthen and enhance the compliance and impact of national public policies and international commitments is recognized. It aims to create favorable conditions for achieving positive results and impacts along the value chains of the economic sectors that sell goods, works, and services to the state. 

The plan presents a strategy divided into four axes: integrity, socioeconomic, environmental and innovation, aimed at raising ethical standards in procurement. It also comprehensively promotes the participation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as engines of economic distribution, generating employment for more vulnerable social sectors, promoting sustainable practices and increasing the adoption of innovative processes, among others. The plan aligns its actions with the Sustainable Development Goals and positions itself as a facilitator towards a more just and balanced national development.