WORLD TRADE GPA/15
30July 1997
ORGANIZATION(97-3240)
Original: English Committee onGovernment Procurement
NOTIFICATION OFNATIONAL IMPLEMENTING LEGISLATION
Communication from Switzerland
Theattached communication hasbeen received from thePermanent Mission ofSwitzerland
inaccordance withtheCommittee Decision of4June 1996 relating totheprocedures fortheNotification
ofNational Implementing Legislation (GPA/1/Add.1).GPA/15
Page 2
1. SUMMARY OFTHE SWISS LEGISLATION ONGOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT
Switzerland 'sinternational obligations intheareaofpublic procurement have been transposed
intonational legislation through afederal lawongovernment procurement andafederal ordinance
ongovernment procurement covering theentities onthenational level andtheentities operating in
thewater, energy andtransportation sector owned orcontrolled byfederal entities. Both have entered
intoforce on1January 1996. Onthecantonal level, anagreement hasbeen concluded between the
Swiss cantons covering theentities onthesubfederal level andtheentities operating inthewater, energy
andtransportation sector which areowned orcontrolled bycantonal entities.
- Federal Law onGovernment Procurement of16December 1994 (SR1172.056.1)
- Federal Ordinance onGovernment Procurement of11December 1995 (SR172.065.11)
- Inter-cantonalAgreementonPublicProcurementof25November1994(SR172.056.4)
(a) Federal Law onGovernment Procurement of16December 1994
Scope: Procurement ofgoods (i.e. supplies), services andconstruction services mentioned
inAppendix I,Annex 4andAnnex 5oftheGPA by:
Federal agencies mentioned inAppendix I,Annex 1oftheGPA with avalue above
thefollowing thresholds2:supplies: SwF263,000; services: SwF263,000;
construction services: SwF10,070,000.
Exemptions: Thelistofexemptions coincides with theexemptions according toArticle XXIII
oftheGPA.
Content: Thelawprovides fortheimplementation oftheprovisions oftheWTO Agreement
onGovernment Procurement (GPA) onthefederal level. Inlinewith these provisions, it
guarantees non-discriminatory access topublic procurement markets forsuppliers established
inSwitzerland andinthesignatories oftheGPA orinother countries, asfarasthey grant
reciprocity. Procurement above thethresholds hastobepublished andprocured inanopen
orselective procedure. Theaward isgiven totheeconomically most advantageous offer,
specified byobjective criteria which must already beincluded inthepublication. Itfurthermore
provides forthepossibility tochallenge aprocurement before anindependent body forevery
relevant partoftheprocurement procedure. Atenderer whose offer hasbeen rejected may
claim damages, iftherejection hasbreached theregulations.
(b) Federal Ordinance onGovernment Procurement of11December 1995
Scope: Ontheonehand, theordinance gives some details ontheprovisions contained inthe
federal law. Ontheother hand, theordinance regulates theprocurement ofgoods, services
andconstruction services bythefederal agencies mentioned inAppendix I,Annex 1ofthe
GPA notattaining thethresholds. Italsoregulates theprocurement ofgoods, services and
1Reference totheSwiss systematic lawcollection
2Thethresholds have been adapted according totheDecision oftheGPA Committee (document GPA/1 of
5March 1996) andtherefore amount for1997 to:SwF248,950 forsupplies andservices onnational level and
SwF766,000 forsupplies andservices byentities inthesectors water, energy and transportation and
SwF9,575,000 forconstruction services forallcovered entities.GPA/15
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construction services bySwiss Telecom, theSwiss Federal Railways aswellastheprocurement
byentities inthemilitary sector.
Content: Theordinance aims atfullcompetition fortheprocurement ofgoods, services and
construction services bysetting clear rules onpublications, opening andtreatment ofoffers.
(c) Inter-cantonal Agreement onPublic Procurement of25November 1994
Scope: Public procurement ofgoods, services mentioned inAppendix I,Annex 4and
construction services mentioned inAppendix I,Annex 5oftheGPA by:(a)cantonal entities
mentioned inAppendix I,Annex 2oftheGPA andpublic enterprises owned orcontrolled
bythecantons; (b)communities andother corporations under public law; (c)private orpublic
entities which areactive inthefield ofsupply ofwater, energy andtransport orinthe
telecommunications sector andwhich arecontrolled bycantonal orlocal agencies mentioned
under (a)and(b);(d)other organizations covered byGPA orbyother international agreements;
(e)anyprocurement thatissubsidized by50% ormore bytheSwiss Federal Government or
byentities mentioned under (a).Thresholds3:SwF403,000 forgoods (supplies) andservices;
SwF10,070,000 forconstruction services; SwF806,000 forprocurement ofgoods and
services inthefield ofsupply ofwater, energy andtransport, andtelecommunication.
Exemptions: Thesame exemptions apply asinArticle XXIII oftheGPA andintheFederal
Law onGovernment Procurement.
Content: Theagreement implements theprovisions oftheWTO Agreement onGovernment
Procurement (GPA) onthesubfederal level. Inlinewith these provisions, itguarantees non-
discriminatory access topublic procurement markets, through non-discriminatory tendering
procedures, bysetting clear rules onpublications, opening andtreatment ofoffers. It
furthermore provides forthepossibility tochallenge theaward ofaprocurement before an
independent cantonal body.
Procurement procedure
Public procurement onafederal level
• ProcurementsgovernedbytheFederalLawandOrdinanceonGovernmentProcurement
Thefollowing procedures areforeseen:
- public oropen tendering procedure under which allinterested suppliers may submit
atender;
- selective orrestricted tender procedures: upon public invitation allinterested suppliers
maysubmit anapplication forparticipation. Participation islimited toacertain number
ofselected suppliers (atleast three), andthese suppliers areinvited tosubmit atender;
- private contract orsingle tender under theconditions mentioned intheGPA;
3Thethresholds have been adapted according totheDecision oftheGPA Committee (document GPA/1 of
5March 1996) andtherefore amount for1997 to:SwF383,000 forsupplies andservices onsubfederal/cantonal
level andSwF766,000 forsupplies andservices byentities inthesectors water, energy andtransportation and
SwF9,575,000 forconstruction services forallcovered entities.GPA/15
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- invitation procedure (nopublication, direct invitation; ifpossible three suppliers have
tobeinvited); thisprocedure applies tosome procurement contracts below theGPA
thresholds andtosome procurement contracts covered byGPA exemptions.
Public procurement oncantonal level
• Procurement governed bytheInter-cantonal Agreement onPublic Procurement
Thefollowing procedures areforeseen:
- public oropen tendering procedure under which allinterested suppliers may submit
atender;
- selective orrestricted tender procedures: upon public invitation allinterested suppliers
maysubmit anapplication forparticipation. Participation islimited toacertain number
ofselected suppliers, andonly these suppliers areinvited tosubmit atender;
- private contract orsingle tender under thesame conditions asforeseen intheGPA.
Publication
• Procurement under theFederal Law ofGovernment Procurement and under the
Ordinance onGovernment Procurement
- Invitations toparticipate inatendering procedure andawards inpublic or
selective procedure orinprivate contracting procedure aretobepublished.
Publication inatleast two (ofthethree) official languages (except for
construction services, where atleast publication intheofficial language ofthe
siteisrequired). Incase there ispublication inItalian andGerman only, a
summary inFrench, English orSpanish hastobeattached. Thepublication
ismandatory inthe"Swiss Official Trade Gazette" andmaybealsopublished
inanyother publication.
• Procurement under theInter-cantonal Agreement onPublic Procurement
- Invitation ispublished. Publication ofpublic orselective tenders atleast in
"theofficial cantonal publication". Publication inatleast oneofficial language
(German, French orItalian). Publications inItalian orGerman have tobe
accompanied byasummary inFrench, Spanish orEnglish.
Minimum setofinformation required tobepublished
• Procurement under theFederal Law andOrdinance onGovernment Procurement
- The following minimum setofinformation isrequired tobepublished:
procuring entity (name, address), description oftheservice tobeprocured,
delivering place andtime, conditions ofparticipation (economic andtechnical
conditions andrequired financial guarantees), place andtime forsubmission
ofthetender, language used intheprocurement procedure, theaddress where
togettender documentation andtheamount payable forthisdocumentation,
awardingcriteria(ifthereisnotenderdocumentation)whethertheentityintendsGPA/15
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tohold negotiations, indication onwhether theprocurement falls under the
provisions oftheGPA, indication ofchallenging procedures andentity.
- Summary inEnglish, French orSpanish contains thefollowing information:
theservice tobeprocured, time-limits forsubmission ofapplications for
participation orforsubmission ofbids, enquiry point.
• Procurement under theInter-cantonal Agreement onPublic Procurement
- Equivalent minimum setofinformation required asunder thefederal law,
following theobligations oftheGPA;
- Ifthepublication isnotinFrench, asummary inFrench hastocontain the
following information: theservice tobeprocured, time-limits forsubmission
ofapplications forparticipation orforsubmission ofbids, enquiry points.
Opening oftenders
• Procurement under theFederal Law onGovernment Procurement
- Atleasttworepresentativesoftheprocuringentityregisterandopenthetenders.
Inthecase ofprocurement ofconstruction services, theopening procedure
hastobesummarized inwritten form. Therecord should include atleast the
following information: names ofpersons attending theopening procedure,
names oftenderers, submission dates ofoffers, prices offered, variety ofoffers.
• Procurement under theInter-cantonal Agreement onPublic Procurement
- Atleast tworepresentatives oftheprocuring entity open theoffers. The
opening procedure hastobesummarized inwritten form. Therecord includes
atleast thefollowing information: names ofpersons attending theopening
procedure, names oftenderers, submission ofdates ofoffers, prices offered.
Alltenderers have theright toexamine therecords.
Award criteria
Theeconomically most advantageous offer. Tomeasure thevalue ofanoffer, criteria such
asdelivery dates, quality, price, efficiency, overhead expenses, service toclients, environmental impact
canbeconsidered. Criteria taken intoaccount have tobepublished inadvance. Forstandardized
goods theaward canbebased onthelowest price only.
Procedures forhearing andreviewing complaints/appeals
Procedures available forparties, domestic andforeign, tolodge complaints against theaward
ofacontract
- institutional status
Federal level: against decisions concerning aprocurement falling under thescope oftheFederal
Law, complaint/appeal canbemade tothe"Federal Appeals Commission". This Commission
isanindependent judicial authority which takes afinal decision onthecase.GPA/15
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Cantonal level: cantonal authority (inmost cases: administrative court).
- time-limits forcomplaints/appeals
Federal level: 20days from publication ofdecision.
Cantonal level: 10days from publication ofdecision.
- type ofremedy thatmay begranted
Federal level: theCommission cantakeprocedural decisions, e.g.takeprecaution measures,
such asgiving suspensive effect toacomplaint. Itdecides itself onthecase orreverts the
case fordecision with binding recommendations tothecontracting entity. Ifacontract has
been already concluded, theaward cannot berevoked andtheCommission forappeal canonly
state thatfederal lawhasbeen violated. Only expenses caused bythetender andthebehaviour
oftheprocuring entity arebeing reimbursed.
Cantonal level: remedy equivalent tofederal level.
2. OTHER REGULATIONS RELATED TOGOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT
(a) Law onNational Budget of6October 1989 (SR611.0)
(b) Ordinance onNational Budget of11June 1990 (SR611.01)
Scope: Principles formanaging thebudget such aslegality, urgency, efficiency andeconomy.
(c) Federal Law (SR 725.11) of8March 1960 andOrdinance onNational Highways of18
December 1995
Scope: Principles forgovernment procurement arelaiddown. Furthermore thecantonal
legislation isapplicable. Although thecantons arecompetent inthisdomain, they need the
approvaloftheSwissFederalHighwaysOffice(whichissupervisingtheconstructionofnational
highways) before acontract isawarded.
(d) Law ontheEstablishment ofaSwiss Common Market of6October 1995
Scope: Persons, whether national orforeign, domiciled inSwitzerland, shall have, inpursuit
oftheir commercial activities, equal access tothemarket allover theSwiss territory. In
particular, thelawaims atimproving professional mobility within Switzerland, strengthening
thecompetitiveness oftheSwiss economy, supporting cantons intheir efforts toharmonize
conditions formarket access. Concerning public procurement, Article 5states theprinciple
ofnon-discrimination andtheobligation ofpublic tendering ofprocurement ofa"certain
significance". Thelawprovides forachallenge procedure against anyrestrictions tomarket
access.GPA/15
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3. CONTACT POINT
Requests from other Parties totheGPA concerning implementing legislation orother questions
related togovernment procurement may beaddressed to:
Federal Office forForeign Economic Affairs
Division forWorld Trade -WTO
Palais Federal Est
3003 Berne
4. ANSWERS TOTHE CHECKLIST
I. GENERAL ELEMENTS
1. HastheAgreement been transposed intonational lawand/or does itapply directly?
The Agreement hasbeen transposed into national/subfederal lawbytheFederal Law on
Government Procurement andtheInter-cantonal Agreement onPublic Procurement.
Although Switzerland follows themonistic theory with respect totherelation ofnational and
international law, implementation oftheAgreement byfederal andinter-cantonal instruments was
necessary (e.g. tointroduce thechallenge procedure).
2. Inthecasethatentities below thefederal orcentral state level arecovered: arethese categories
ofentities autonomous from federal orcentral state level government intheimplementation
oftheAgreement?
Yes. However, according totheSwiss constitution, anyinter-cantonal agreement hastobe
approved bythefederal government inorder toensure thattheagreement does notviolate federal law.
3. Inthecase thatAnnex 3entities arecovered: arethese categories ofentities autonomous in
theimplementation oftheAgreement ordothey apply thelegislation provided bythe
federal/central orsub-central level?
These areeither covered bynational orcantonal legislation.
4. Which main differences (ifany) exist between theimplementing laws atthefederal orcentral
level, thesub-central level andforAnnex 3entities?
The implementing legislation forsub-central level andforAnnex 3entities falling under
sub-central level legislation, hastobeadopted byall26cantons.
Insubstance andwith respect totheGPA, there areonly minor differences intheimplementing
legislation (e.g. thetime-limit forcomplaints is20days onfederal and10days onsubfederal level).
5. Towhat extent isinformation technology used intheprocess ofgovernment procurement?
Invitation tosubmit offers andinformation oncontract awards forsupplies above thethresholds
oncentral government level ispublished inthedatabase TED (Tender Electronic Daily) oftheEC.
Otherwise information technology isnotyetmuch used intheprocess ofgovernment procurement.GPA/15
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This islikely tochange inthefuture: Switzerland participates intheEUproject SIMAP forelectronic
tendering andthere areplans toeditthe"Swiss Official Trade Gazette" oratleast thepartrelating
togovernment procurement publications electronically.
II. SPECIFIC ELEMENTS
6. Identify thespecific provisions inyour legislation which reflect thenational treatment andnon-
discrimination commitments ofArticle IIIoftheAgreement.
- Federal Law onGovernment Procurement: Article 1,paragraph 2.
- Inter-cantonal Agreement onPublic Procurement: Article 1,paragraph 2,lit.b.
7. Article IX:2 oftheAgreement foresees thattheinvitation toparticipate maytaketheform of
anoticeofproposedprocurement.Ifyourimplementinglegislationprovidesforthisopportunity,
give details.
Foropenandselectivetendering,atendernoticehastobepublished.Theregulationsonnational
andsub-central level describe indetail theinformation tobeprovided such asname andaddress of
theprocuring entity, thetype ofprocedure (open orselective), place ofdelivery, content ofcontract,
date ofexecution ordelivery, place andtime-limit fortheoffer, amount ofsecurities (ifrequired),
alltechnical andeconomic requirements, award criteria, ifnospecific documentation isbeing handed
outandfurther information.
8. Article IX:3 oftheAgreement foresees thatentities atthesub-central level aswellasAnnex 3
entities mayuseanotice ofplanned procurement oranotice regarding aqualification system
asaninvitation toparticipate. Ifyour implementing legislation provides forthisopportunity,
give details.
Swiss implementing legislation does alsoprovide forthisopportunity: according toArticle 18,
paragraph 2oftheFederal Law onGovernment Procurement, Annex 3entities owned orcontrolled
byfederal entities andtheautomobile services ofPTT canpublish notices simultaneously with a
qualification system. TheInter-cantonal Agreement alsoforesees thispossibility forAnnex 2entities
andAnnex 3entities owned orcontrolled bycantonal entities.
9. Inthecase ofselective tendering procedures: towhat extent areentities allowed touse
permanent listsofsuppliers oristhere arequirement forlistsofsuppliers tobeselected on
acontract-by-contract basis?
Entities areallowed tomake useofpermanent listsofsuppliers. Suppliers andservice providers
must atanytime have thepossibility toaskforinclusion inthelist.Therespective entity hastoexamine
therequest within duetime. Iftheprocuring entity refuses toaccept asupplier onthelist,ithasto
deliver acontestable decision. Itispossible tochallenge thisdecision before theFederal Appeals
Commission orthecantonal administrative courts independent body. Suppliers andservice providers
which arenotyetonthelisthave tobeincluded intheprocurement procedure, iftheprocurement
isnotbeing delayed bytheir inclusion inthelist. Ifthelistisnotlimited toaperiod ofthree years,
thelistandtheconditions tobefulfilled bysuppliers with aview totheir inscription onthose lists
andthemethods according towhich each ofthose conditions areverified bytheentity concerned have
tobepublished annually.GPA/15
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10. Article XIVoftheAgreement allows fornegotiation under certain conditions. Areentities
allowed toproceed tonegotiations? Ifso,which categories andwhat aretheconditions
imposed?
TheFederalLawonGovernmentProcurementforeseesthepossibilityofnegotiations(Article20)
under theconditions thatinthetender notice suppliers have been informed about possible negotiation
procedures orifnone oftheoffers appears tobetheeconomically most advantageous.
TheInter-cantonalAgreementonPublicProcurementdoesnotforeseethispossibility(Article11
lit.c).
11. Article XIcontains thetime-limits fortendering anddelivery. Time-limits shall normally be
"not lessthatXdays". Does thedomestic legislation reflect thevarious minimum time-limits
assetoutintheAgreement? Ifnot,give information onanylonger time limits which have
been established.
Time-limits have been established inthedomestic legislation assetoutintheGPA (Article 19
Ordinance onGovernment Procurement forcentral government procurement andparagraphs 17and
18oftheProcurement Directives totheInter-cantonal Agreement).
12. Towhat extent does theimplementing legislation allow entities, inpursuance ofArticle XII:1,
topermit tenders tobesubmitted inseveral languages (one ofwhich hastobealanguage
oftheWTO)? Towhat extent doentities usethisflexibility?
TheFederal Law onGovernment Procurement does notforesee anylimitation oflanguages
allowed fortenders. Itisthepractice toaccept tenders tobesubmitted inoneoftheofficial Swiss
languages, which areGerman, French (WTO language) andItalian. Forcertain very technical tenders
alsoEnglish hasbeen accepted.
Paragraph 21oftheProcurement Directives totheInter-cantonal Agreement laysdown the
obligation tosubmit tenders inthelanguage oftheprocedure.
III. CHALLENGE PROCEDURES -ARTICLE XX
13. Paragraph 3ofArticle XXrequires each Party toprovide itschallenge procedures inwriting
andmake them generally available. Please provide thisinformation.
Under thecoverage oftheLaw onGovernment Procurement, suppliers having aninterest in
anullification ormodification ofadecision ofacovered entity may appeal against alleged breaches.
Aspecial independent judicial authority ("Federal Appeals Commission") hasbeen setupwhich decides
definitively onthecase. Theappeal does notautomatically have suspensive effect. Ifasked forby
thecomplainant, suspensive effect canbegiven totheappeal. Butthisisonly possible aslong asthe
contract hasnotyetbeen awarded. Time-limit tohand inappeals is20days. TheCommission for
appeals caneither decide itself orrevert thecase totherespective entity with instructions. Ifthe
respective entity hasalready concluded acontract with another supplier, theCommission canonly state
whether thelawhasbeen violated.
Only damages (negative interest) canbeclaimed. Theclaim hastobehanded inwith the
respective entity. Here theFederal Appeals Commission decides definitively alsointhiscase.GPA/15
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Under thecoverage oftheInter-cantonal Agreement, appeal canbemade against decisions
ofsub-central entities orAnnex 3entities falling under theInter-cantonal Agreement before acantonal
administrative court orindependent review body according tocantonal law(each ofthe26cantons
hastodefine initscantonal lawtheindependent review body). Thetime-limit is10days. Theappeal
hasnoautomatic suspensive effect, butsuch effect canbegranted ifrequired andjustified. The
independent cantonal authority candecide onthematter itself orrevert thecase with orwithout
instructions. Ifacontract hasalready been concluded, compensation intheamount ofthenegative
interest canbeclaimed.
14. Totheextent thatthisinformation does notfully respond tothefollowing points, please provide
thesupplementary information necessary todoso.
(i) Thetime-limit tolaunch acomplaint contained intheAgreement is"not lessthan
10days". What arethelimits indomestic legislation?
Seeunder 13above.
(ii) What body isresponsible forthechallenge procedures? Isthisa"court" oran
"impartial andindependent review body"? Ifthelatter:
Anindependent review body ("Federal Appeals Commission") according tothelaw
ongovernment procurement forchallenge procedures involving central government
entities orAnnex 3entities falling under thelawongovernment procurement andan
independent review body oranadministrative court according tocantonal law.
- How areitsmembers selected?
"FederalAppealsCommission":membersareappointedbytheFederalCouncil
(Swiss Government) foraperiod offour years.
Cantonal courts orreview bodies: members ofadministrative courts are
generally appointed bythecantonal parliament, members ofanindependent
review body sometimes bythecantonal government.
- Areitsdecisions subject tojudicial review?
These decisions arenotsubject tojudicial review butthey have procedures
asdescribed inArticle XXGPA paragraph 6.
- Ifnot,how aretherequirements ofparagraph 6ofArticle XXtaken into
account?
(iii) What istheapplicable lawbyreference towhich thechallenge body willexamine
complaints?
Forprocurement under theFederal Law onGovernment Procurement: Federal Law
onGovernmentProcurementandfederallawontheadministrativeprocedure(systematic
collection ofSwiss legislation number: 172.021).
Forprocurementundercantonallaw:Inter-cantonalAgreement,implementingcantonal
lawongovernmentprocurement,LawontheEstablishmentofaSwissCommonMarket
andcantonal legislation onadministrative procedure.GPA/15
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(iv) Which rapid interim measures areprovided tocorrect breaches oftheAgreement and
topreserve commercial opportunities?
- Dothese measures include thepossibility tosuspend theprocurement process?
Onwhat conditions?
The supplier who hastheright toappeal may askforsuspension ofthe
procurement process ifthecontract with another supplier hasnotyetbeen
concluded. Insuch acase, theinterest ofthecomplainant hastooutweigh
thepublic interest intheprocurement being executed without delay.
Forprocurement under cantonal law, some cantonal procedural laws provide
forautomatic suspensive effect which canbewithdrawn bythecourt.
(v) How dochallenge procedures provide forcorrection oftheAgreement? What types
ofcompensation forlossordamages suffered canthechallenge body order?
Thecourt orindependent review body may decide itself inthecase orrevert ittothe
respective entity with instructions. Compensation forlossordamages suffered covers
only thenegative interest, thatmeans thatthesupplier should getcompensation for
hisexpenses, notcompensation forthecontract hehasnotbeen awarded.
(vi) Give anyavailable information onthetime periods forthestages ofthechallenge
process, including toobtain interim measures andafinal decision.
Information ontime-periods forthestages ofthechallenge process isdifficult toobtain.
There arenofixed time-limits forthedifferent stages. Interim measures canbeobtained
inavery short period (ifnecessary within oneortwodays).
(vii) What aretheusual costs toconduct achallenge procedure? Arethere possibilities
foreseen todosofreeofcharge?
Costs have tobeborne bytheunsuccessful party ingeneral. Thesuccessful party bears
nocostandcaneven getcompensation forthecosts.
Monitoring oftheenforcement oftheGPA
CommissionfortheimplementationandmonitoringoftheinternationalobligationsofSwitzerland
inthearea ofgovernment procurement
Inorder tomonitor thecompliance with international obligations, theFederal Council (Swiss
Government) hasestablished anindependent authority, whose services areavailable forsuppliers and
service providers from countries members totheGPA, ifthey facesystemic difficulties with theway
theSwiss authorities implement theGPA.