Provisional Translation
| OTO No. | 547 | Classification | MOFA-3 STA-2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of Acceptance | October 29, 1996 | Ministry/Agency Receiving Complaint | Economic Planning Agency |
| Responsible Ministries | Ministry of Foreign Affairs Science and Technology Agency |
Related Laws | Agreement on Government Procurements |
| Complainant | Belgian Embassy (proxy complaint) | Exporting Countries | Belgium |
| Subject | Concerning procurement of the cyclotron and chemical compound equipment for the Center for Advanced Medical and Pharmaceutical Research. | ||
| Details of Measures | The cyclotron and chemical compound procurement procedure for the Center for Advanced Medical and Pharmaceutical Research ("the Foundation, " hereafter) is allegedly neither clearly nor sufficiently formulated. The following reply was given to the complainant who sought a clearer explanation on the applicability of the GPA to the Foundation's procurement in question and its factual base. 1. Japanese government bodies subject to application of the WTO's agreement on government procurement are all listed in Attachment I of the agreement. How ever, the Foundation is not one of them, and since it is not included among the government organizations subject to the agreement, the complainant's claim that "the Foundation should conduct procurement according to procedures set out in the GPA" is without grounds. 2. The complainant's assertion that Ishikawa Prefecture ("the Prefecture, " hereafter) supplied 23 percent the funding for the Foundation when it was established, and that the implementation of the project, including the purchasing of equipment and facilities, was financed by the Science and Technology Agency ("the Agency, " hereafter) is factually correct. However, this has nothing to do with whether the Foundation is listed as a body subject to the GPA. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) 3. The Prefecture is promoting a project to set up research facilities on the uses of radiation and for testing basic nuclear technologies with a grant ("the grant, " hereafter) provided by the Agency. Since the Foundation applied to the Prefecture for a grant to obtain the necessary equipment for research into the medical and pharmaceutical uses of radiation, the Prefecture approved a subsidy for the procurement in question, based on the grant given in 1996. 4. The condition attached to the grant was that competitive bidding is required for contracts relating to the project, except in cases where competitive bidding is difficult or inappropriate for the grant project. 5. When the Agency inquired to the Prefecture concerning the complaint in question, the Prefecture inquired to the Foundation and received the following reply: after careful review from the viewpoint of smooth operation of the radiation testing research project, the Foundation determined that selective tendering procedures by companies meeting certain requirements were appropriate for this procurement, and that the procurement was conducted in a fair and appropriate manner. (Science and Technology Agency) |
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| Classification of Processing | Cc | Directions | IV |
| Remarks | |||