A CASE STUDY OF TAIWAN'S FRAMEWORK TO EVALUATE UNSOLICITED PUBLIC/PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP PROPOSALS

The acceptance of unsolicited proposals (a private-initiated process) has been viewed by several governments as a means of encouraging innovative initiatives. However, the ramifications of this mechanism are still poorly understood. This paper analyzes a framework used by the Taiwanese government to evaluate unsolicited proposals. Taiwan's experience demonstrates the need for an improved framework in which key issues such as building consensus, maintaining a transparent procurement process, ensuring sufficient competition, and protecting intellectual property rights shall be addressed. In addition, the case study suggests that the roles of participants, the relationships and interfaces of activities, information flows, and decision making points should all be well defined. Some fundamental differences between solicited and unsolicited proposals are also discussed.