The Public Procurement Law was put in force in 2003 with an objective to improve competition,
transparency and integrity. Although it had some limitations compared with the
EU directives, its enactment was a positive step in a country where irregularities in public
tenders were frequently encountered. However, the post-2002 incumbent government
party repeatedly changed it, with the results of frequent exemptions. Dozens of public
contracts have been taken outside the scope of it over time, leading the share of Turkish
public procurement in GDP (e.g. 5-6%) to fall significantly under the EU equivalent
(15-16%). The use of non-competitive tender procedures such as direct procurement and
restricted procedure has been on rise while the use of competitive open procedure is declining.
Unlike the EU regulations, the PPL does not include procedures and provisions
for the delivery of public private partnership contracts, which has risen as preferred allocation
means in large scale infrastructure investments. The outcome of allocation therefore
is increasingly reflecting particularism, with foreign participation in public tenders
decreasing, and a price advantage award to domestic bidders in international tenders
extensively and increasingly used in recent years.