Decision No. 133 of 2011 on the Regulations for Supplies, Services, and Works at the Palestinian Monetary Authority

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45 93 العدد الرقم المرجعي93-1-2012: 2012/1/25 Decision No. (133) of 2011 on the Regulations for Supplies, Services, and Works at the Palestinian Monetary Authority After reviewing the amended Basic Law of 2003 and its amendments, and the Palestinian Monetary Authority Law No. (2) of 1997 and its amendments, and the Decree-Law concerning Banks No. (9) of 2010, and based on the proposal by the Board of Directors of the Palestinian Monetary Authority dated (2011/7/3), and based on the powers delegated to us, and in pursuit of the public interest, we have issued the following Regulations:

Chapter One: Definitions and General Provisions Article (1): Definitions The words and expressions below shall have the meanings assigned to them wherever they appear in these Regulations, unless the context indicates otherwise:

• The Regulations: The Regulations for Supplies, Services, and Works at the Palestinian Monetary Authority.
• The Authority: The Palestinian Monetary Authority.
• The Board: The Board of Directors of the Palestinian Monetary Authority.
• The Governor: The Governor of the Palestinian Monetary Authority.
• The Appointed Committee: Any committee formed by the Governor under the provisions of these Regulations, including the Procurement Committee, the Inspection and Acceptance Committee, and the Sale and Disposal Committee.
• Supplies: Tangible items required for the Authority's operations, including consumables, materials, machinery, tools, equipment, and software.
• Services: Intangible benefits required for the Authority's operations, including maintenance of all types. A transaction is considered a service even if it includes supplies, provided the cost of supplies does not exceed 50% of the total transaction cost.

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• Works: All construction and rehabilitation works with a total cost exceeding 5,000 dollars. A transaction is considered works even if it includes supplies or services of any type, provided the combined cost of supplies and services is less than 50% of the total transaction cost.
• Procurement: Supplies, services, or works purchased by the Authority.
• Purchase: The process of purchasing supplies and/or contracting for services and/or contracting for works as per these Regulations.
• Financial Item: A financial balance available in the budget for the purchase process, as per the Authority's financial and accounting system.
• Financial Linkage: The expenditure authorization issued by the Authority's Finance Department.
• Purchase Documents: All documents related to any purchase transaction of the Authority.
• Contractor: The natural or legal person who supplies and/or executes the procurement.
• Bidder (Tenderer): The potential contractor who competes in a tender for the Authority.
• Bidder (Auctioneer): The legal person who competes in a bid/auction.
• Bid/Auction: A process for selling supplies owned by the Authority.
• Engineer: The internal or external technical/engineering specialist responsible for design, preparing tender documents and bids for the Authority's projects, or supervising their execution according to contracted agreements.
• Warehouse: The designated and approved place for storing, preserving, issuing supplies, or depositing and retrieving archived items.
• Variation Orders: Orders containing changes in specifications, quantities, execution period, or value.

Article (2): Application of the Regulations and Technical Responsibilities The provisions of these Regulations apply to all departments of the Authority according to the structure approved by the Board.

Chapter Two: General Procurement Rules Article (3): Procurement of Supplies, Services, and Works The procurement process for supplies, services, and works is conducted according to Tables (1 and 2) attached to these Regulations.

Article (4): Procurement Policy .1 Administrative procurement activities (pre-award) commence upon the availability of a financial item, and absolute post-award is not permitted except by referring to the delegation of authority structure for the award decision, thereby achieving transparency and providing flexibility in operational mechanisms. .2 Transparent open contracting is adopted in procurement processes. .3 The delegation of authority structure is separated from the procurement methods structure through clearer detailing of procurement methods and more precise determination of authority ceilings.

Article (5): Procurement Activities and Process .1 The Authority's procurement activities result from the relationship between inputs and outputs of procurement processes, with the General Services Department responsible for formulating policies, establishing mechanisms, ensuring optimal achievement, and monitoring them in the Authority's interest. .2 Procurement inputs rely on five elements, which are manually or electronically organized by the General Services Department using methods and tools deemed necessary and appropriate. These mandatory elements to initiate procurement transactions are: a. Proper planning (through the budget). b. Internal control (through managing procurement activities using forms). c. Transparency (through equal cost for similar conditions). d. Disclosure (by making all procurement transaction documents and information available). e. The principle of competition (by providing equal opportunities for contractors to compete for procurement). .3 Procurement outputs rely on the "Best Value for Money" principle for each transaction at its time and conditions, which means considering a set of four evaluation criteria to be met before issuing the purchase decision: a. Quality (obtaining the highest possible level). b. Speed (supply/execution in the shortest possible time). c. Price (lowest possible economic cost). d. Utility (overall benefit during the assumed life of procurements, such as warranty, maintenance, and alternative opportunities).

Article (6): Prequalification of Contractors .1 Preference is given to local procurement, and procurement from outside Palestine is permitted in justified cases that serve the Authority's interest. .2 Prequalification of contractors may be adopted to ensure procurement output standards under the "Best Value for Money" principle, achieving efficiency and adequacy, consolidating similar activities, and reducing transaction multiplicity. .3 The "Contractors Database" must be updated by inviting potential contractors to announce in newspapers as needed, applying for inclusion after completing required documents through the mechanism adopted by the General Services Department.

الرقم المرجعي93-1-2012: 48 93 العدد 2012/1/25 .4 Prequalification from the Contractors Database is conducted, as much as possible, based on pre-determined evaluation criteria for each field. When selecting a potential contractor (or more), the best one must be chosen in each of the Authority's needs fields to contract with them for long periods, covering those needs flexibly according to pre-agreed conditions and approved by the Procurement Committee.

Article (7): Justified Procurements Any supplies or services related to the Authority's operational processes, which cease with them and usually do not compete, are directly contracted by the General Services Department as justified procurements in the following cases: .1 Periodic or recurring purchases from official bodies or with known fixed prices, such as electricity, telephone, water, fuel, and gas. .2 Purchases from a sole or monopolized contractor, or maintenance contracts with the original contractor or technical support services for technological assets. .3 Supplementary parts and maintenance parts required for existing assets in the Authority. .4 Special services related to vital operations of the Authority, such as external advertising, tickets, travel requirements, and travel needs.

Article (8): Emergency Procurements Any supplies arising from abnormal conditions such as fire, earthquakes, wars, riots, vandalism, emergency circumstances, sieges, border closures, and urgent conditions are purchased immediately according to the powers specified in these Regulations, via routing or telephone communication with the authorized person, and procedures related to them are documented subsequently.

Article (9): Purchase of Technological Assets .1 Due to the renewable nature of this asset type, updating standard specifications for its items is required at least semi-annually, within a general policy called "Technology Assets Standards and Specifications Policy." .2 Contracts for purchasing technological assets may be awarded through prequalification with annual contracts renewable up to three years. .3 Current assets may be replaced by new ones for specification updates from the same contractor, provided economic benefit is achieved under the "Best Value for Money" principle according to a technical report and approved by the General Services Department.

49 93 العدد الرقم المرجعي93-1-2012: 2012/1/25 Article (10): Purchase of Office Furniture and Equipment .1 Office furniture and equipment are purchased by applying the General Services Department's policy and executive instructions issued for this purpose. The General Services Department standardizes them as much as possible according to tasks and employee grade. .2 Contracts for purchasing office furniture and equipment may be awarded through prequalification with annual contracts renewable up to three years. .3 New assets are not purchased in place of assets whose value has become zero unless by a technical report.

Article (11): Purchase of Maintenance Services The purchase of maintenance services is conducted as follows: .1 Adherence to executive instructions issued by the General Services Department specifying cases for internal maintenance (the Authority's maintenance unit) and external maintenance (external maintenance contractors). .2 Contracts for purchasing maintenance services may be awarded through prequalification with contracts renewable up to three years. .3 Contracting or renewal procedures for periodic contracts are completed before the contract expires in sufficient time to provide supplies or services promptly.

Article (12): Purchase of Insurance .1 Contracts for purchasing all types of insurance, except health insurance, may be awarded through prequalification with annual contracts renewable up to three years. .2 Health insurance is contracted based on annual agreements subject to renewal, provided their terms are reviewed by the Procurement Committee.

Article (13): General Services Department In addition to the provisions in these Regulations, the General Services Department exercises the following responsibilities and powers: .1 Preparing and managing administrative expense budgets, capital assets, and projects, and executing all activities, with concerned departments coordinating with the General Services Department accordingly.

الرقم المرجعي93-1-2012: 50 93 العدد 2012/1/25 .2 Formulating and updating procedures and instructions for optimal asset utilization according to new developments and Board policies. .3 Unifying and simplifying procurement requirements, planning, and coordinating supply, materials, and transport activities. .4 Maintaining supplies records. .5 Cooperating with departments to identify optimal means and methods for storing and maintaining supplies.

Article (14): Powers to Issue and Approve Purchase Documents Upon request, the General Services Department verifies the suitability of the need with prevailing policies before initiating a procurement process linked to some or all of the following procedures: .1 The power to sign purchase requests belongs to the highest department/office official or their delegate. .2 The power to approve financial linkage requests, regardless of the linkage amount, belongs to the General Services Department Director or Regional Supervisor, considering budget balance availability. .3 The power to approve price requests verbally or in writing, and sign them, belongs to the General Services Department Director regardless of financial linkage size, and to the Regional Supervisor according to their powers. .4 The power to grant award decisions belongs to the authorized person according to the authority table and procurement method, and to the Procurement Committee for referred transactions. .5 The power to sign all supply orders and agreements for all procurement methods and ceilings belongs to the General Services Department Director, and to the Regional Supervisor or authorized official according to their powers. .6 The power to approve acceptance certificates for all procurement methods and ceilings belongs to the General Services Department Director, and to the Regional Supervisor or authorized official according to their powers, who sign them or delegate others for approval, or approve recommendations from appointed acceptors. For procurement transactions exceeding 5,000 dollars, a prior report from the appointed Inspection and Acceptance Committee is required. A Procurement Committee report for the award decision is also required. .7 The power to approve invoices and withdrawal requests belongs to the General Services Department Director, as well as the Regional Supervisor or authorized official according to their powers, considering the need owner's endorsement of the acceptance voucher. The General Services Department Director has direct power to approve all justified procurement documents under these Regulations. .8 The power to confirm exemptions and penalties belongs to the General Services Department Director, while transactions exceeding 5,000 dollars require Procurement Committee endorsement. .9 The power to sign supporting administrative correspondence and follow-ups with contractors for all procurement transactions belongs to the General Services Department Director, individually or delegated, including award notification letters, inquiries regarding existing contracts, follow-up letters for penalties/exemptions, cancellation of supply orders, and requests for supporting documents.

51 93 العدد الرقم المرجعي93-1-2012: 2012/1/25 Chapter Three: Procurement through Committees Article (15): Procurement Committee and Its Operational Rules .1 The Governor may appoint suitable Authority employees with expertise, issuing executive instructions for them to perform duties as a procurement committee, inspection and acceptance committee, disposal/sale/gifting/audit committee in any Authority headquarters, including dispatching suitable members outside Palestine if needed. Their recommendations serve as the Committee's recommendations. .2 The General Services Department performs its responsibilities until bid submission, exercising powers per these Regulations and submitting complete transaction justifications to the Procurement Committee. .3 Transactions are completed through the Procurement Committee, which performs the following responsibilities: a. Organizing procurement transactions via tenders and bids from bid opening to contracting and adjudication. b. Evaluating bids for procurement transactions exceeding 5,000 dollars. c. Issuing a regular meeting schedule for the Committee to align with the annual procurement schedule issued by the General Services Department. .4 The constituted Procurement Committee holds the following powers: a. Enlisting suitable Authority or external employees to study submitted bids. b. Adjudicating award transactions for procurement exceeding 5,000 dollars. c. Committee decisions are enforceable regardless of transaction ceilings, provided approvals exist per the Regulations. d. The Committee Chairman may delegate any member to preside over the Committee. .5 The Committee meets periodically or as needed, upon invitation by its Chairman or deputy in case of absence. .6 The quorum is completed with two-thirds of members present, including the Chairman or their deputy from among them. .7 Committee decisions are taken by majority; if votes tie, the Chairman's or deputy's side prevails. A dissenting member may record their objection in the meeting minutes with reasons.

الرقم المرجعي93-1-2012: 52 93 العدد 2012/1/25 Article (16): Special Rules for Procurement via Bids/Tenders In addition to these Regulations, bids are regulated by the following rules: .1 Open bids are announced in at least two daily newspapers once or twice. .2 For closed bids aimed at prequalification and checking contractor capabilities, invitations may be sent without newspaper announcement to previously qualified potential contractors. .3 As part of initial bid stages, technical specifications and quantity schedules may be determined in the bid document before financial bids are submitted. Then, only technical bids from potential contractors are requested and submitted to the Authority, preliminarily evaluated by the Procurement Committee. Subsequently, bidders are requested to explain bid details through a presentation session before the Procurement Committee. After technical modifications, final technical and financial bids are submitted.

Article (17): Special Rules for Works In addition to these Regulations, works receipt processes are regulated by the following rules: .1 The bid and its conditions are prepared based on designs from an internal technical department or the Authority's approved Engineer, assisted by FIDIC (Fédération Internationale des Ingénieurs-Conseils) as a reference for works transaction documents. .2 Bid documents may include special conditions, general bid conditions, bills of quantities, project drawings, special specification schedules, and other relevant instructions. .3 Potential contractors may be prequalified and added to the Authority's approved Contractors Database. .4 The contractor is notified of the work site and issued a commencement order in writing within an agreed period after award. .5 Payments to the contractor are disbursed based on Engineer or technical specialist recommendations, upon claims submitted by the contractor and endorsed by the Engineer, according to the duration or conditions specified in the bid document and concluded contract. .6 The Governor's approval, upon the Procurement Committee's recommendation, is required for any variation orders related to works executed via tenders and bids, endorsed by the requesting department and recommended by the Engineer. .7 The Inspection and Acceptance Committee submits its report on final handover, recording observations on all contract-specified works execution. These reports serve as confirmation for the final withdrawal request for submitted payments after verifying Committee observations are fulfilled. .8 If any dispute arises with the contractor, arbitration is resorted to first, and Palestinian courts have jurisdiction in all cases requiring judicial resolution. من 53 93 العدد الرقم المرجعي93-1-2012: 2012/1/25 .9 For special works projects, the Board of Directors or the Governor (with special delegation from the Board) may appoint suitable departments or committees to perform procurement or acceptance roles, exempting them from these Regulations' provisions under special executive instructions regulating procurement/acceptance procedures for the relevant project, provided they endorse related transaction justifications.

Article (18): Preparing the Purchase Request .1 The requesting department ensures the need is explicitly included in planned requirements and approved in its allocated budget, specifying the budget code. .2 If the need requires determining or updating technical specifications, the requesting department obtains them from the General Services Department with technically expert departments to update the need's technical description and obtain precise details, preparing an attachment with detailed technical specifications. .3 The requesting department submits the purchase request with the technical specifications attachment directly to the General Services Department, or through it to senior management, using the mechanism and form designated by the General Services Department. .4 If the need is new and not previously planned in the budget, the purchase request is submitted to the General Services Department after taking all procedures per the financial system. .5 The General Services Department requests financial linkage regardless of amount or authority level.

Article (19): Preparing Price Requests .1 The tender document is prepared in cooperation with the requesting or specialized department whenever possible. .2 The tender document must specify the required need, technical specifications, and necessary guarantees. .3 The tender document must indicate that these Regulations are the definitive reference regarding any inquiries, ambiguities, or disputes with contractors, and submitting bids constitutes absolute agreement and acceptance of all contents. .4 The General Services Department determines the tender document price if deemed necessary, in coordination with the requesting department. .5 The delivery or execution deadline is specified in the tender document.

Article (20): Financial Guarantees .1 The Procurement Committee may require a bid bond worth 5% of the bid value, valid for at least 3 months from the bid submission deadline, for contracts exceeding 10,000 US dollars.

الرقم المرجعي93-1-2012: 54 93 العدد 2012/1/25 .2 Subject to Articles (5) and (7), a performance bond worth 10% of the supply order or contract value must be provided, valid from the start of the supply order or contract until the final acceptance certificate is issued, for at least one month (whichever is longer). .3 The Procurement Committee may require a free maintenance bond where necessary, in the form of a bank guarantee worth 5% of the invoice value, valid for the free maintenance period.

Article (21): Tender Announcement Tenders are announced via direct invitation to collect or purchase them, by sending the tender document to potential contractors registered in the Contractors Database according to their specialization, or by inviting them to collect it via any other means.

Article (22): Bid Submission and Custody .1 Bids are submitted in two closed envelopes placed within a third sealed envelope, with the technical bid in one envelope and the financial bid in another. .2 Technical and financial bids for a single tender are submitted in one sealed, stamped envelope addressed to the Authority, with the tender name and number written on it before the specified time in the tender document. .3 Bid envelopes are delivered to the Secretariat, which stamps, registers, and proves submission date. They are placed in a dedicated box with two different locks; the Procurement Committee Chairman (or delegate) holds one key, and the Secretary (or deputy) holds the other. .4 If envelopes are too large for the box, they are kept by the Secretariat responsible, who prepares a register and delivers it to the Procurement Committee Secretary according to assets.

Article (23): Procurement Committee Meeting Sessions .1 The General Services Department submits the meeting agenda to the Committee at least one working day before the session date. .2 Procurement Committee sessions are held according to a dedicated schedule. . .3 The Bid Committee determines the bid opening mechanism as deemed appropriate. .4 If bids cannot be opened at the specified time, they are postponed to another date determined by the Committee and notified to concerned parties in public sessions.

55 93 العدد الرقم المرجعي93-1-2012: 2012/1/25 Article (24): Procurement Committee Procedures .1 The Procurement Committee examines bids and attached samples, with attending members signing all pages. .2 Unsigned or unstamped bids according to regulations are not accepted. .3 The Procurement Committee, through its Chairman or deputy, officially delivers any submitted guarantees to the Finance Department for custody. .4 The Procurement Committee records observations on submitted bids and delivers all papers and attachments to the General Services Department.

Article (25): Bid Examination and Evaluation .1 The Procurement Committee examines bids, considering any evaluation criteria mentioned in the tender document. Technical bids are studied first and separately from financial bids, with authority to appoint another committee to analyze technical bids. .2 Three percentages are determined for evaluation whenever possible, relating to the technical and financial aspects, with others clarified in an evaluation table such as financing conditions, availability of financial, commercial, and technical capacity. .3 The Procurement Committee may cancel or re-tender a bid, or extend the opening date for any necessary and fundamental reasons. .4 If fewer than three bidders participate, the tender is re-tendered; if this fails or fewer than three bidders submit in the second attempt, the tender is awarded to the best submitted bid by Governor's decision. .5 The Procurement Committee excludes values of any unpriced additions or cuts not required in the tender document per these Regulations. .6 If an error exists in the bid regarding total price, the unit price is applied. .7 If the number written in figures differs from that written in words, the worded amount is binding; the value is corrected accordingly. .8 If one or more items are unpriced, the Procurement Committee may decide to exclude the bid or consider unapproved items charged to other items. .9 Bids for supplying or executing items fully or partially are accepted, unless the tender document specifies otherwise. 10. Regarding variation orders, the General Services Department Director may approve additional needs exceeding those in the tender document, provided they do not exceed 10% of the original bid's total value and sufficient financial items are available. Amounts exceeding this up to 30% are handled by the Procurement Committee.

الرقم المرجعي93-1-2012: 56 93 العدد 2012/1/25 Article (26): Negotiation .1 The Procurement Committee, with the Governor's approval, may request bidders to review their bids as final and resubmit them after opening technical bids only, with the Committee justifying this in writing. .2 After opening financial envelopes, negotiation may be conducted with the first candidate; if agreement is not reached, negotiation proceeds with the next, and so on. .3 The Procurement Committee may preliminarily refer to the first candidate after opening financial envelopes and preliminary evaluation, negotiating again regarding the submitted bid, with a record drafted accordingly.

Article (27): Award .1 Final award is made to the bid holder meeting conditions as deemed appropriate by the Procurement Committee per these Regulations. .2 If the lowest-priced bid does not align with quality and speed standards compared to other bids, it is not considered the most suitable bid. .3 If any bids are equal in all evaluation aspects, the tender may be split among submitters according to circumstances. .4 The General Services Department Director or delegate notifies the winning contractor of the referral decision in writing via a referral letter; if rejected, it is referred to the Procurement Committee for adjudication. .5 Contracts are concluded using the Authority's reference documents and contract forms, specifically general reference conditions, with the possibility of customizing and modifying special conditions for contractual documents.

Article (28): Handover (Acceptance) and Payment .1 Handover of all supplies, services, and works purchased via tenders and bids is performed by the appointed Inspection and Acceptance Committee, with a record prepared for this purpose. .2 The Inspection and Acceptance Committee may enlist specialists to verify compliance, inspect materials, or evaluate services/works. .3 For handover of supplies, the following is followed: a. They are deposited with the warehouse keeper as custody upon arrival from contractors, and the Inspection and Acceptance Committee is notified. b. Upon notification, the committee immediately proceeds to the warehouse to inspect supplies according to regulations and prepares a record of compliance or non-compliance with required specifications. . In case of compliance, the warehouse keeper confirms the quantity of handed-over supplies and issues an official handover voucher. d. In case of non-compliance, the General Services Department is notified and informs the contractor to return them; they are considered as not received. .4 The Inspection and Acceptance Committee documents any deviations through an acceptance record showing discrepancies, amounts, financial impact, and recommending necessary actions. The General Services Department suspends withdrawal transactions until the Procurement Committee adjudicates the matter. .5 The Inspection and Acceptance Committee may recommend imposing or exempting the contractor from delay penalties if reasons are beyond control. .6 If no observations requiring fulfillment by the Procurement Committee exist, the General Services Department prepares the transaction properly and refers a memo to the Finance Department confirming completion according to regulations, recommending payment of dues to owners.

Article (29): Return of Guarantees Guarantees are returned as follows: .1 The bid bond is returned to submitters who were not finally awarded, or whose bids expired, or who were awarded after submitting a performance bond. .2 The performance bond is returned to the contractor after fulfilling all supply order conditions or contract terms, based on an acceptance record recommending this.