Innovasjonsfremmende offentlige anskaffelser

Abstract

In this chapter, we take a closer look at challenges related to innovative public procurement. There is an expectation both from the government and the procurement legislation that public procurement shall be used to encourage innovations. In the theoretical part of the chapter, a review of relevant theory is provided. We also take a closer look at innovation in the service area, as this topic tends to be under-communicated in public documents. Data from Difi’s maturity survey from 2018 are used to gain closer insight into the public sector’s approach to innovative procurement. Among other things, we find a correlation between knowledge in innovative procurement and the eagerness to carry out this type of procurement. We also find that the number of acquisitions above the threshold value (NOK 1.3 million) is a more important parameter than the total investment and purchasing budget when we look at which public sector organization are most active in seeking innovations through the procurement processes.