ADB Procurement Policy (2017)

The ADB Procurement Policy (2017) is the primary framework that governs how goods, works, and services are procured under Asian Development Bank-financed projects, replacing an earlier prescriptive guidelines model with a principles-based approach that gives executing agencies more flexibility to select methods appropriate to the risk and context of each assignment.

What is the ADB Procurement Policy (2017)?

The 2017 policy was a significant departure from ADB's prior procurement guidelines. Rather than prescribing a fixed hierarchy of methods (such as the old international competitive bidding and national competitive bidding categories), the new framework establishes a simplified suite of methods anchored to core-procurement-principles. Open competitive bidding becomes the default for large contracts, with limited competitive bidding and direct contracting available where justified. For consulting services, the familiar methods (qcbs, quality-based selection, least-cost selection) are retained, but they sit under a unified policy document rather than separate guidelines.

The policy applies to all loans, grants, and technical assistance financed by ADB, and it tasks both ADB staff and developing-member-country executing agencies with jointly assessing procurement risk and choosing proportionate oversight levels. This risk-based approach means that well-performing executing agencies with strong procurement systems may receive less intensive prior review, while higher-risk projects attract closer bank supervision.

Why the ADB Procurement Policy (2017) matters for bidders

Understanding the 2017 policy helps suppliers interpret ADB procurement documents correctly and anticipate the rules that apply to any given contract. Because the policy emphasises fit-for-purpose methods, the procurement approach for a specific contract, whether open or limited bidding, single-stage or two-stage, is chosen by the executing agency in consultation with ADB based on market conditions and contract complexity. Suppliers who understand this flexibility can engage earlier in the project cycle, through expressions of interest and market consultations, to help shape procurement approaches that suit the market. The policy also sets the integrity baseline: firms that violate the adb-anticorruption-policy face debarment under the cross-debarment agreement shared among the major multilateral banks.

FAQ

Does the 2017 policy apply to all ADB-financed projects?

Yes. It applies to all ADB sovereign and non-sovereign project procurement, though specific procurement plans and method choices vary by project based on assessed risk and complexity.

What replaced the old ICB and NCB categories under the 2017 policy?

Open competitive bidding (OCB) replaced both ICB and NCB as the single default competitive method, removing the threshold-based distinction between international and national competitions.

Where can suppliers find the full text of the 2017 policy?

The policy document and its accompanying regulations are published on adb.org under the procurement section, alongside the Procurement Regulations for ADB Borrowers which provide the operational detail.