Policy Statement

Baku Eurasian University is dedicated to encouraging sustainability in its procurement procedures. This policy sets standards and procedures to guarantee that socially conscious, economically viable, and ecologically friendly goods and services are given priority in all procurement activities. This policy is applicable to all university departments, staff members, and vendors who make purchases of goods and services on the university's behalf. BAAU urges its suppliers to implement sustainable practices and to disclose their social and environmental performance. BAAU places a strong emphasis on building lines of contact with suppliers in order to encourage discussion, exchange expectations for sustainability, and work together on projects for continuous improvement. By following this sustainable procurement policy, the institution promotes a sustainable culture among its suppliers and community while exhibiting its dedication to social responsibility, environmental stewardship, and financial restraint.

Objectives

The objectives of this policy are to:

• develop a sustainable and higher commercial orientation;
• make quality part of the procurement process;
• instill appropriate risk management into procurement processes;
• ensure procurement processes are easy to understand, use and audit;
• develop awareness of the University’s procurement obligations and compliance with them.

Scope

This policy applies to all employees of the University and its subsidiary companies, including temporary staff, contractors and consultants involved in the procurement process. It relates to the management and control of all non-pay spend, in respect of the acquisition of goods, services and works in all Departments and applies irrespective of the source of funding for a purchase.

Sustainable Procurement policy

Incorporating social, economic, and environmental factors into procurement decisions is the practice of applying sustainability to the procurement process. Offering a sustainable procurement strategy serves a variety of purposes, the main one being to match procurement operations with more general organizational objectives concerning sustainability.

• Create a formal policy that outlines the organization's commitment to sustainable buying is the first step in creating a sustainable procurement policy.
• Consider social and environmental factors when choosing suppliers, and give preference to those that hold reputable sustainability certifications (such as Fair Trade, etc.).
• Choose recyclable or less packaged products to minimize waste throughout the shopping process.
• Ensure that procurement procedures follow industry guidelines and sustainable best practices.

This section provides a clear explanation of how the procurement process incorporates sustainable concepts, including everything from supplier selection and waste reduction to policy formulation.

Responsibilities

• The University seeks value for money in procurement through balanced judgement of a range of financial and non-financial factors. Procurement takes into account: the mix of quality, cost and resources; fitness for purpose; total cost of ownership; and risk;
• Subject to the University’s financial delegations, University staff have the flexibility to conduct sustainable procurement activities using appropriate expertise and resources to achieve value-for-money outcomes;
• Procurement must be conducted in an ethical, sustainable and transparent manner, without conflicts of interest or breaches of probity standards to ensure equity, confidentiality and confidence in the integrity of decision makers;
• Procurement expertise and processes match the complexity and level of organizational risk of each procurement activity;
• Procurement decisions must consider economic, social and environmental impacts, and how they affect the University’s financial position, reputation and progress towards sustainable development;
• Procurement activities should meet the highest standards of ethical and sustainable conduct throughout the supply chain.

Principles

• All purchases are aligned to the University’s business needs and strategies;
• The University obtains the best value for money by purchasing from preferred suppliers where possible to leverage the University’s buying power;
• Before any products or services are provided, the proper contractual arrangements are in place;
• Supplier payments are accurate and timely;
• Processing payments and receiving invoices requires little administrative work;
• Reporting on supplier-related expense is of a high quality, to drive better decision making;
• The process of acquiring goods or services is transparent and documented, and supports audit and regulatory requirements;
• Exemptions are granted transparently and with the proper authority and justification.

Procurement management

Contract planning and management must ensure delivery of desired commercial outcomes with third party suppliers of goods and services by considering a broad range of factors such as:

• financial, reputation and supply risk;
• optimized commercial/ financial outcomes for the University;
• supplier performance and delivery;
• privacy considerations;
• record keeping and reporting.

Procurement Methods:

• Competitive Bidding: Goods and services above a certain threshold (as determined by university policy or local regulations) must be procured through a competitive bidding process.
• Sole Source Procurement: When one supplier is the only one able to deliver the necessary products or services in an extraordinary situation, the relevant authority must approve the justification.
• Emergency Procurement: Procedures for emergency procurement, including authorization and reporting requirements, should be outlined.

Risk Management

All procurement activity is undertaken in a way that does not expose the University to unacceptable levels of risk. Risks are managed, reduced and or mitigated where appropriate. This includes but is not limited to ensuring:

• acceptable and appropriate terms and conditions are in place.
• the University’s procurement activity does not disadvantage bidders.

Training and Awareness:

University staff involved in sustainable procurement activities should receive appropriate training on this policy and relevant procedures.

Regular awareness programs should be conducted to promote understanding and compliance.

Review

This policy will be reviewed at least every 2 years. Up until the new version of the policy is adopted, the old one will still be fully enforceable.