Banco Central de ChileAdministrative Policies
Acquisitions and Contracting Policy of the Central Bank of Chile
1. Acquisitions and Contracting Policy of the Central Bank of Chile
The Central Bank of Chile’s acquisitions and contracting policy is grounded in the Bank’s values and ethical principles. Its main pillars are safeguarding the efficient use of the institution’s equity, and public trust on the Bank’s capacity and responsibility for managing its budget independently. The Bank, as an autonomous and legally established body, is committed to continuously improving its policy and performance in terms of transparency and efficiency in acquisitions and contracting. It is committed to ensuring a level playing field and guaranteeing the rights of suppliers, while adhering to the principles stipulated in the regulations governing Public Administration.
The purpose of the acquisitions and contracting policy of the Central Bank of Chile is to ensure that all goods and services required by the Bank are acquired and contracted centrally, through open, transparent, timely and competitive processes, with the best price/quality ratio given the life-cycle of the good or service, and providing the due guarantees, both with regard to the offers’ reliability and to the faithful execution of the contracts, thereby minimizing the risks for the Bank.
Every acquisition and contracting activity by the Bank must be planned and specified by the Units that demand the goods and services, with the support of the corresponding Budget Coordination Unit (1), and managed by the Acquisitions Department of the Logistical Services Division, complying with the applicable legislation and the requirements set forth in the Bank’s bylaws. Any exception must be authorized by the General Manager.
The Logistical Services Division shall ensure that the Bank's Acquisitions and Contracting Policy is properly disclosed, and shall coordinate the initiatives of the participating units for its correct and efficient implementation. It will also assess its efficacy on a permanent basis, and propose improvements where appropriate.
2. Definitions and Principles
The acquisition of goods and services by the Bank can be carried out through public tenders, requesting price quotes, or through direct contracting.
The acquisition and contracting processes must comply with the following basic principles:
Transparency: the Bank shall make available to all participants in its acquisition and contracting processes, every relevant piece of information with regard to the manner of implementation as well as their results. The decisions adopted by the Bank will be based on objective evaluations, under the parameters previously stipulated, and communicated to the bidders at the outset of the respective processes.
Competition: the acquisition and contracting processes of the Bank will ensure the participation of a large number of providers of goods and services. These providers must have a proven capacity to fully execute the obligations entered into with the Bank, without hindrance to the guarantees that, where appropriate, will be required for the fulfillment of those obligations. These processes should ensure a level playing field for all participants.
Efficiency: the objective of the acquisition and contracting processes is to satisfy the requirements of the Bank’s Units in a timely manner, through an optimal use of the institutional resources in the purchasing and contracting processes, emphasizing an appropriate price to quality ratio for the respective goods or services for their entire life-cycle.
Objectivity: there will be a clear differentiation of roles between the final user of the goods or services and the executor of the acquisition or contracting process in all such processes in the Bank. This will guarantee that the decisions made consider all the offers that fulfill the specified requirements and that the most beneficial option is chosen for the Institution, avoiding conflicts of interests.
A direct acquisition or contracting process with a single supplier will be considered when there is only one supplier in the market; when the continuity of the current processes needs to be ensured for strategic reasons; or due to unforeseen circumstances that make a tender or price quote request process impossible. These processes must be duly documented with the corresponding justifications and approvals.
The requests for price quotes to suppliers of goods and services must be made in writing, and simultaneously to the suppliers. They must adequately describe the product or service required in order to ensure price quotes based on homogenous offers that ensure comparability when deciding. Likewise, the highest possible degree of simultaneity is required in the supply and receipt of price quotes.
The acquisition and contracting processes must safeguard the interests of the Bank and seek the best price-quality relationship for the goods and services required. The cost must consider the complete economic life-cycle of the good or service; in other words, the investment costs and the costs of installation and incorporation of the good into the Bank, the operational and maintenance costs, and other relevant costs.
The acquisitions policy will be applied respecting the minimum requirements and spending approval levels stipulated in the Bank’s bylaws, always minimizing risk in operational, financial, legal and reputational aspects, and ensuring an adequate balance with satisfying the needs of the users.
The Units demanding goods and/or services must plan and identify their requirements fully and in a timely manner, seeking the best possible specification integrating all the parts that make up the whole, based on the standards applied by the Bank, with the support of the corresponding Budget Coordination Units. The latter are responsible for defining the standards for the goods and services in their respective functional areas.
The acquisitions and contracting requirements drawn up by the Units must be compatible with the strategic planning, annual budget and policy definitions provided by the Board of the Central Bank of Chile.
The Acquisitions Department will be the only Unit responsible for handling the procedures of acquisition of goods and contracting of services, barring the exceptions stipulated in the Bank’s bylaws, while complying with legislation in force and requisites set forth in the Bank’s internal regulations. Hence, it will also be the only unit of the Bank authorized to enter into agreements to purchase goods and contract services with suppliers, through the formal bid awarding process, ensuring an adequate balance between the needs of the user and the manner in which they are satisfied. Any exception must be approved by the General Manager.
The acquisition and contracting processes must be carried out transparently, following the stages defined in the Bank’s bylaws and documenting each of the decisions adopted to ensure the traceability required by the regulations and to ensure accountability for those decisions, in order to safeguard the interests of the Bank and ensure fair and effective competition among the participating suppliers, safeguarding their trust and encouraging their participation.
The Bank will primarily govern its contracts by national legislation and the jurisdiction of the Chilean courts. However, exceptions are permitted, such as international contracts for business dealings or economic or financial operations, in which they can be subject to foreign laws and courts. In any case, approval by the Board is required to waiver any of the above terms in the contracts entered into by the Bank.