Reform in the Contract State: Embedded Directions in Public Procurement Regulation in South Africa

The authors examine South Africa's transition toward a 'contract state' and the subsequent failures of its public procurement regulatory regime. They highlight that while the state has moved toward a centrally steered but decentralised form, limited central steering capacity has resulted in a fragmented system prone to corruption. The paper discusses a 2013 reform initiative by the Minister of Finance intended to establish a centre-led, strategic, and developmental procurement methodology to address these systemic deficits.

• South Africa's public procurement regulatory regime is characterized as weak, fragmented, and incoherent due to the establishment of only limited central steering capacity, which has contributed to corruption and state incapacity.
• Since 2013, the South African Minister of Finance has pursued reforms to create a centre-led, strategic, and developmental procurement methodology that seeks to reduce rule rigidity while strengthening disciplinary mechanisms to compensate for lacks in political will and regulatory capacity.

APA

Brunette, R., Klaaren, J., & Nqaba, P. (2019). Reform in the Contract State: Embedded Directions in Public Procurement Regulation in South Africa. Public Affairs Research Institute. https://pari.org.za/article-reform-in-the-contract-state-embedded-directions-in-public-procurement-regulation-in-south-africa/

Chicago

Brunette, Ryan, Jonathan Klaaren, and Patronella Nqaba. Reform in the Contract State: Embedded Directions in Public Procurement Regulation in South Africa. Public Affairs Research Institute, 2019. https://pari.org.za/article-reform-in-the-contract-state-embedded-directions-in-public-procurement-regulation-in-south-africa/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Brunette |first1=Ryan |last2=Klaaren |first2=Jonathan |last3=Nqaba |first3=Patronella |title=Reform in the Contract State: Embedded Directions in Public Procurement Regulation in South Africa |publisher=Public Affairs Research Institute |date=20 May 2019 |url=https://pari.org.za/article-reform-in-the-contract-state-embedded-directions-in-public-procurement-regulation-in-south-africa/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{brunette2019reform, author = {Brunette, Ryan and Klaaren, Jonathan and Nqaba, Patronella}, title = {{Reform in the Contract State: Embedded Directions in Public Procurement Regulation in South Africa}}, institution = {Public Affairs Research Institute}, year = {2019}, month = may, url = {https://pari.org.za/article-reform-in-the-contract-state-embedded-directions-in-public-procurement-regulation-in-south-africa/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }