By: Víctor Vindel

On January 24 of this year, the Legislative Assembly approved the Public Purchases Law to establish the basic rules that will regulate the public purchases process, as well as the contracting of works, goods, and services of any nature made by the Public Administration to comply with its purposes.

According to Article 2 of the Law, the following are subject to comply this regulation: natural or juridical persons, both national and foreign; State institutions, their dependencies and auxiliary organisms of institutions and state companies of autonomous character; and the procurements of public and private entities that commit public funds.

The approved Law contemplates the creation of the National Public Purchase System, which will be integrated by the National Public Purchase Directorate, Public Purchase Units, Requesting Units, Financial Units, and other intervening actors according to the public purchase cycle, being the National Public Purchase Directorate the governing entity in public procurement at the national level.

The Electronic System of Public Purchases of El Salvador, COMPRASAL, continues to be the medium by which all the information on procurement and contracting of the State must be registered, which aims to automate and manage the operations of the contracting processes of works, goods, and services that the Public Administration carries out within the framework of the Law.

This law will become effective 8 days after its publication in the Official Gazette.