Strengthening Public SW Project Procurement Management... Ministry of Science and ICT to Implement Revised Notice from the 19th

[Asia Economy Reporter Joselgina] The management system will be strengthened to ensure that public software (SW) construction projects are issued on time and that sufficient project periods are guaranteed. Contracting authorities undertaking projects worth more than 100 million KRW must decide and disclose the project period and issuance timing for the following year by the end of September of the previous year.

The Ministry of Science and ICT announced that it has revised the "General Standards for Management and Supervision of Software Projects" with these contents, effective from the 19th.

Until now, the practice was to start preparing for the issuance of public SW construction projects for the following year only after the next year’s budget was confirmed by the National Assembly in December, causing delays in project issuance and difficulties in securing sufficient SW project periods.

To improve this, the revised notice includes a provision requiring contracting authorities managing public SW projects worth over 100 million KRW to decide early, by the end of September of the previous year, the expected project period and expected issuance timing for the next year's software development projects. Contracting authorities must register this information in the Ministry of Science and ICT’s comprehensive software industry information management system (www.swit.or.kr).

Additionally, the Ministry of Science and ICT will continuously monitor whether public SW construction projects are being issued on time (timely issuance). Through this system improvement, contracting agencies will begin preparing for SW project issuance three months earlier, by the end of September of the previous year instead of the beginning of the project implementation year. Accordingly, the issuance timing of public SW construction projects will be advanced, providing SW contractors with sufficient project periods.

The plan also includes measures to promote remote development considering environmental changes after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Until now, when selecting workplaces for public SW construction projects, the workplaces proposed by SW contractors were given priority review, but due to insufficient specific criteria, remote development was inadequate. The Ministry of Science and ICT has promoted system improvements considering the recent shift to a non-face-to-face era triggered by COVID-19, as the SW industry’s demand for remote development is increasing due to these environmental changes.

The revised notice mandates that contracting authorities for public SW construction projects allow contractors to propose workplaces that meet security requirements at the time of project issuance, and when reviewing workplaces, they may give preferential treatment to contractors with excellent security and quality management. Accordingly, remote development, which is suitable for the post-COVID era characterized by non-face-to-face work, will be activated, and cost savings from long-term business trips to workplaces within contracting agencies will be possible, contributing to the improvement of the SW project environment.

The Ministry of Science and ICT stated that it will actively listen to the opinions of the SW industry during the revision process of subordinate laws under the amended Software Promotion Act, scheduled to take effect on December 10, and will continue to improve the public SW project environment.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.