Following the release of a European Commission Communication on 3 October identifying six priority areas of improvement in public procurement, the European Commission's DG GROW is today hosting a high-level procurement conference on transparency and integrity, professionalisation and large infrastructure projects in Brussels.

The conference, entitled Joining Forces in Public Procurement to Power Investment, is being held in the context of an increased focus at the European level on strategic procurement, professionalisation and improving public procurers' capacities to undertake large procurements. These topics will also be engaged with in two major conferences being held by ICLEI in 2018 - the Procura+ Seminar in Oslo (Norway) on 21-22 March, and the EcoProcura 2018 Conference from 3-5 October in Nijmegen (Netherlands).

A number of SPP and PPI projects coordinated by ICLEI have also addressed the professionalisation of procurement processes and improving public buyers' capacities to uptake innovation. The SPP Regions project has recently published guidance on engaging in Life-cycle Costing, Market Engagement and other areas. The PPI Project has also developed training and guidance for public procurers to invest in innovative solutions across several sectors of public spend.

For more information on the Joining Forces conference, visit the European Commission's DG GROW website.