The value of transactions carried out using the "eProcurement Scotland" system was £1.7 billion in 2007, five times the previous year's total of £321 million. It amounted to almost a quarter of all public sector procurement, which is worth about £8 billion a year.
The online service was set up in 2002 to link public sector bodies – such as central government, councils and health boards – with businesses that can supply them.
There are more than 80 public bodies using the system to buy goods and services, with some 43,068 businesses registered as suppliers.
John Swinney, the finance secretary, said the service delivered savings and made doing business easier.
Swinney said: "EProcurement Scotland is one of the most comprehensive and successful e- government initiatives in the world. I want to see more public bodies maximise the benefits of buying goods and services online."
Andrew Watson, of the Federation of Small Businesses Scotland, said the system was "transforming the way the public sector procures goods and services".
He added: "More and more buyers and suppliers are signing up and more contracts are being agreed online."
Liz Cameron, chief executive of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, said the system had "demonstrated substantial success in linking public sector purchasers with private sector suppliers".
She added: "The high value of transactions it is now handling is testament to this."
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Peter MacMahon
Quelle/Source: The Scotsman, 13.02.2008
