The Anti-Corruption Agency has identified instances of inflated prices in public procurement totalling 29 billion tenge since the beginning of the year. Of this, 6.4 billion tenge was returned to the budget, and for the remaining 22.6 billion tenge, customers revised procurement terms — either reducing prices or increasing delivery volumes.
According to the agency's press service, since the start of 2019, the inefficient use of 224.7 billion tenge in budget funds has been prevented. In 2024 alone, the agency identified overcharges amounting to 55 billion tenge, of which 26 billion tenge was returned to the budget.
"To enhance the preventive effect, work on bringing administrative charges for violations in this area has been stepped up. All facts with signs of violations identified during monitoring are forwarded by the Anti-Corruption Service to the internal state audit bodies to draw up administrative reports," the statement said.
It is noted that while the Agency's departments identified 22 violations in 2024, that number has already reached 95 in the current period of 2025. At the initiative of the Anti-Corruption Service, the new Law "On Public Procurement" includes provisions aimed at closing corruption loopholes.
"Procurement in paper form under the 'DSP' classification (except for law enforcement and national security needs) has been eliminated, and restrictions on the procurement of intellectual property objects have been introduced. Such purchases are now only permitted if the antitrust authority confirms there are no manufacturers of similar goods and services. A ban has been imposed on participation in procurement by individuals convicted of corruption," the agency reported.
Meanwhile, the Anti-Corruption Service and the Ministry of Finance have approved a joint Roadmap to eliminate corruption risks in public procurement. The document includes 26 measures.
"Integrations of the public procurement portal with government agency databases are planned, along with improvements to its functionality: detecting bid rigging, preventing the transfer of more than 30% of total work volume to subcontractors, introducing artificial intelligence, and so on," the statement said.
One of the priority areas remains addressing the issue of late payment for fulfilled government contracts. The integration of the "State Planning" information system with the public procurement portal, automation of payments for completed contracts without human involvement, and the creation of a Register of Unscrupulous Customers are planned.
Furthermore, the agency has outlined measures to eliminate fictitious employment in catering organisations. In particular, it proposes:
- confirming employee employment via digital signature;
- modifying and integrating the 'HR Enbek' information system with the public procurement portal;
- preventing the same workers from being assigned to different organisations and regions.