Green public procurement is an important but as-yet unused tool for achieving the country’s Sustainable Development Goals, particularly in the area of environmental protection. Being aware of the volume of expenditure of the public sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina, responsible spending and awareness about environmental impacts of procured goods, services and works during their lifetime can have a serious impact also on the environmental protection and can be an important driver of innovations in the private sector, providing a real incentive to the development of “green” products and services.

This Report has been developed with a view to understanding how green public procurement can  be put into practice of the Contracting Authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina and it is the result of the pilot project implemented by the Joint Services in the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the support of UNDP.

The Contracting Authorities can find in the Report the practical guidelines for inclusion of green requirements into the bidder eligibility criteria, technical specifications for goods, services and works that are being procured, the contract award criteria and the provisions of contracts signed with suppliers through specific examples of potential “greening” of the public procurement procedures for goods, services and works, implemented by the Joint Services in the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and in compliance with the existing Law on Public Procurement in Bosnia and Herzegovina.  

The recommendations provided in this Report indicate the numerous possibilities for implementation of the green requirements in public procurement of electricity, food and beverages, plumbing consumables, business attire and footwear, work clothing and footwear, toners, postal services, hygiene supplies, printing services…both those which are defined in various legally set criteria, which makes their application easier, and those coming from innovative and creative actions by the Contracting Authority. Still, the most important factor of the green procurement implementation  is the “green commitment” by the Contracting Authority and its genuine intention to apply a greener approach that concerns not only its procurement process but the overall behavior and attitude towards the environment.