Region looking to make purchases in more socially responsible way

Policy could prioritize supporting local businesses, reducing poverty and promoting diversity

Niagara Region’s corporate service committee recommends giving the green light to establishment of a social procurement policy that would leverage the municipality’s buying power beyond the traditional value-for-money approach to achieve a broad range of social benefits.

Approval by regional council next week would see a multidisciplinary working group develop a procurement strategy to include social, economic and workforce development goals in purchasing goods and services.

Bart Menage, the Region’s director of strategic procurement and acquisitions, told the committee in 2022 the Region made more than 14,000 purchases with a cumulative value of $332 million.

He also cautioned councillors the development process will take time and effort. Staff won’t have a fully developed plan for council’s consideration until 2025.

“This is a culmination of a lot of research, a lot of consultation, a lot of discussions and a lot of reading just trying to assimilate all of this information,” said Menage.

“Essentially, the focus has been on what actions we could take at the Region to adopt the principles of social procurement in our processes.”

The program would prioritize purchasing in a way that advances social goals such as supporting local businesses, reducing poverty, promoting diversity and inclusion, increasing workforce development, supporting marginalized groups and addressing environmental sustainability.

If successful, the initiative would see the Region engage a diverse range of suppliers, including smalland medium-sized enterprises, minority-owned businesses, womenowned businesses, social enterprises and businesses owned by underrepresented groups — and it could lead to better economic opportunities and a more inclusive business environment locally.

Renee Delaney of Thorold introduced herself as a small-scale farmer speaking on behalf of Niagara Community Benefits Network, which promotes equitable development, quality of life and community investment.

“I work firsthand with alternative models,” Delaney said. “I see the problem and try to address it outside the box. I rely on the community to help support my farm so that I can give food away.

“This is an innovative way to make money, which is economic development from a farming perspective. So it is very much profit-driven but in a charitable, kind, compassionate and thoughtful way to address some very complex issues.”

Delaney said the establishment of social procurement for the Region would have an impact on Niagara for generations to come.

“This social procurement policy can be a role model for the rest of the region and the big corporations so they can contribute to our society,” Delaney said.

“Moving forward, the Niagara Community Benefits Network would like to work alongside you. This report is excellent. It even notes that it’s a complex issue that will take time to unpack. We couldn’t agree more.”

St. Catharines Coun. Brian Heit said executing the plan will take a lot of work. Heit gave an example from his time as a city councillor when a Niagara auto dealer lost a bid on a contract by a few hundred dollars to a dealership in Newmarket and appealed the decision to council. However, in the end, the contract went to the Newmarket firm because of the RFP process that puts the emphasis squarely on the lowest bid rather than buying locally.

“How would it be different with this if we move forward?” Heit said.

Todd Harrison, corporate services commissioner and treasurer, said the policy could be written to allow the Region to weigh other factors, such as the dealership’s fair wage policy.

St. Catharines Coun. Peter Secord said he supports the policy but is concerned about added costs.

If too restrictive, the policy could limit competitive bids from outside Niagara. “Unscrupulous” local contractors could then add another 10 per cent to the cost, and there would not be much the Region could do about it.

“My big concern also is what does that add to our expenses in the long term,” Secord said. “I’ll support it, but I’m going to be critical and watch what happens.”

Menage said dealing with those issues is part of the committee’s mandate in mitigating risks.

“It will enable us to utilize procurement in a way that truly leverages the best value for Niagara Region, not just an economic transaction,” Menage said.