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Gothberg, Pauline --- "Public procurement and human rights in the healthcare sector: the Swedish county councils collaborative model" [2019] ELECD 1141; in Martin-Ortega, Olga; Methven O'Brien, Claire (eds), "Public Procurement and Human Rights" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2019) 165

Book Title: Public Procurement and Human Rights

Editor(s): Martin-Ortega, Olga; Methven O’Brien, Claire

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

Section: Chapter 10

Section Title: Public procurement and human rights in the healthcare sector: the Swedish county councils collaborative model

Author(s): Göthberg, Pauline

Number of pages: 15

Abstract/Description:

The aim of this chapter is to contribute to knowledge on how human rights can be integrated into the terms and practice of public procurement by focusing on the Swedish county councils’ experience of collaboration in healthcare procurement. The chapter explores a collaborative model which has developed over 11 years and includes standardising human rights requirements across a group of public buyers; establishing a division of responsibility for operationalising human rights due diligence in the procurement process, as well as follow-up measures; and sharing the costs of resources, for example, staff time, capacity development and financial resources for conducting third-party audits. Based on our experiences, it is argued that public procurement can be an effective policy instrument to identify and mitigate human rights abuses, and one that can influence suppliers and manufacturers to move towards more sustainable practices, thereby improving conditions for workers in government supply chains.