The Procurement Ombud Proposes 5 Solutions to Solve Federal Procurement Issues
News release
Ottawa, Ontario – July 8, 2025
In his new Knowledge Deepening and Sharing report, the Procurement Ombud outlines 5 key solutions to address long-standing systemic issues in federal procurement. These issues, have persisted for decades and continue to undermine the efficiency of the system and the core principles of fairness, openness, and transparency.
These systemic issues, such as overly complex solicitation processes, unclear accountabilities, and fragmented rules, have been raised by Parliamentarians, procurement experts, and Canadian businesses year after year, highlighting the urgent need for systemic change.
In consultation with federal procurement experts and stakeholders, the Procurement Ombud has identified 5 foundational changes for improving the system.
The top 5 foundational changes proposed by the Ombud are:
- The establishment of a federal Chief Procurement Officer (CPO) to ensure effective oversight
- The creation of a government-wide vendor performance management (VPM) system to enhance supplier accountability
- The development of one universally applicable set of federal procurement rules to simplify the overly complex federal procurement landscape for both suppliers and procurement professionals
- The use of artificial intelligence (AI) advancements to modernize federal procurement tools and systems
- The establishment of a framework for procurement data collection to increase the transparency of federal procurements
Quotes
“For far too long, federal procurement has been plagued by the same recurring issues— overly complex processes, unclear accountability, and fragmented rules. Band-aid fixes are no longer enough. Now is the time for bold, foundational reforms that will strengthen the system, deliver better results for Canadians, and build trust in how public funds are spent.”
Alexander Jeglic
Procurement Ombud
Quick facts
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The Office of the Procurement Ombud was established to promote fairness, openness and transparency in federal procurement.
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In 2018, OPO launched the Knowledge Deepening and Sharing initiative to understand the root causes of recurring issues in federal procurement and help address issues on the horizon before they materialize as complaints.
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OPO has published 13 reports to date, including the latest one on the Top 5 foundational changes needed in federal procurement.
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Recent audits and reviews have revealed long-standing issues in federal procurement, and their impact on the core procurement principles of fairness, openness, and transparency.
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Limited changes have resolved some concerns, but core, systemic problems remain and continue to hinder the efficiency of the procurement system, highlighting the need for change at a systemic level.
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OPO’s 2023-24 annual report titled “Time for Action” raised some of these issues and called for foundational reforms in federal procurement.
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Contacts
Media Inquiries
Office of the Procurement Ombud
Phone: 613‑947‑9755
Email: MediaBOA.OPOMedia@boa-opo.gc.ca