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Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs

Socially responsible public procurement

Socially responsible public procurement (SRPP) asks public buyers to look beyond the price of products or services, and also consider how they are produced, sourced and delivered.

It allows them to strategically deliver positive social outcomes, such as promoting employment opportunities, decent work, social inclusion, accessibility, and compliance with social and labour rights in the EU and worldwide, while delivering high quality social services and facilitating the access of social businesses to public tenders.

Socially responsible public procurement helps public authorities achieve additional social and ethical benefits even when budgets are limited. In this way, it can also contribute to countering the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Resources for public buyers

Buying Social - a guide to taking account of social considerations in public procurement (2nd edition)

Making socially responsible public procurement work: 71 good practice cases

Actors for social impact procurement LinkedIn group