Green Public Procurement in China: Making the case for implementation through the quantification of the potential economic, social and environmental multiplier benefits

IISD and green public procurement (GPP) stakeholders in China are of the view that the awareness of Chinese policy-makers needs to be raised about the positive externalities and the positive environmental, social and economic multipliers that could be realized through GPP. 

We observe that, while China has made concerted efforts to advance GPP, the existing latticework of related policies lacks cohesion, and poor deployment strategies prevent effective implementation of GPP. IISD proposes to quantitatively model and illustrate the environmental, social and economic gains that China can realize by implementing GPP as a cross-cutting policy for sustainable development. This will include modelling the efficiency gains of water, energy, waste and effluent reduction, emissions control, the creation of green jobs and the improvement of sustainable livelihoods. Furthermore, using the findings of these models, IISD will develop recommendations on how China's prevailing GPP policy framework can be streamlined and what implementation strategies will be needed to achieve the modelled gains.

There is wide consensus among policy-makers that GPP law is weak and inefficient, and that reforms are urgently needed. IISD will hold a high-level multistakeholder workshop to engage with high-level policy-makers, raise awareness on GPP and promote the implementation of the recommendations. This project builds on international good practice of GPP implementation. The European Union and the United States have conducted similar analyses, making the case for higher GPP targets, expanding the scope of GPP priority areas and providing incentives for GPP implementation.