Sustainable public procurement – a systemic intermediary facilitating SPP implementation in the European metropolitan region of Nuremberg

Sustainable public procurement (SPP) is a significant lever for governments to fulfil Sustainable Development Goal 12.7. Recently, the literature has begun to research how systemic intermediaries can support a transition process toward SPP; however, this process has only been examined qualitatively. The purpose of the study is to provide a first quantitative analysis of such an intermediary by examining a SPP initiative called “pact for sustainable procurement” in Germany.

The paper analyses a repeated survey among municipalities in the region over three periods from 2018 to 2022, both among municipalities that joined the pact and those that did not. The paper used chi² tests of independence and a set of logit regressions.

The pact, as a bottom-up SPP initiative, had a large, significant and robust effect on the likelihood of municipalities implementing SPP and assuming an SPP role. Furthermore, this paper confirms findings about the importance of top-level commitment, knowledge and organizational culture in implementing SPP, as well as organizational size.

The paper presents findings on how to effectively implement SPP at the municipal level, using a bottom-up approach based on a voluntary agreement among different municipalities in a metropolitan region.

The paper makes a significant contribution by providing the first quantitative analysis of the effects of systemic intermediaries in implementing SPP. It analyses the case of a bottom-up SPP initiative at the municipal level, which can be emulated, and offers insights into the ongoing discussion about factors in implementing SPP.