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REGULATIONS ON THE PROCEDURE FOR THE ACQUISITION AND PROCUREMENT OF

GOODS AND SERVICES

Energy joins us.

NOVEMBER 25th, 2016

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REGULATIONS ON THE PROCEDURE FOR THE ACQUISITION AND PROCUREMENT OF GOODS AND SERVICES

CHAPTER I

BACKGROUND AND SCOPE Article 1.- These Regulations define the procedures, principles and rules that govern the call for, selection and procurement of goods and services, the establishment of a Procurement Committee, and the OLADE Purchasing Website. This instrument is based on the efficient management of resources, effective attention to the needs of Member Countries, transparency of administrative acts and the consolidation of a culture of modernization and organizational improvement. The established provisions apply to any process undertaken by OLADE for procuring goods and contracting services, including consulting, except when specified otherwise in these Regulations. Article 2.- The following are excluded from the scope of these Regulations:

a) Processes for inviting, selecting and recruiting local and international staff, since these are

included under the General Regulations and Internal Staff Regulations;

b) Purchasing of cafeteria, cleaning and office supplies, which are classified as consumable goods; they shall be governed by the internal procedures of the Administration Shared Services and Finance Department Management;

c) Purchases required for projects financed with loans and international cooperation that have a specific internal procedure for selecting and procuring goods and services; and

d) Internship programs for students or professionals, as these are not work relationships and are governed by the internal procedures of the Organization.

Convening and selection processes that involve professional technical services or administrative services that are specified in Article 18 of the Internal Staff Regulations and specific cooperation agreements involving funding by OLADE, may in the opinion of the Executive Secretary, be known by the Procurement Committee.

CHAPTER II

PRINCIPLES Article 3.- These Regulations are based on the following principles: CELERITY: Agile, efficient and technologically innovative procedures shall be used to save resources and take advantage of the opportunity of the case. EQUALITY AND OBJECTIVITY: The objective is to ensure the greatest number of qualified bidders so that the Organization can obtain the best conditions for fulfilling its requirements and needs, and all offers shall be considered under the same conditions of participation without preferences and ensuring fair treatment.

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PUBLICITY AND TRANSPARENCY: The Organization’s requirements will be disseminated among the relevant authorities of the Member Countries through timely and continuous access to all stages of the procurement process; this will allow bidders to know the rules, procedures, actions and decisions taken to facilitate monitoring and control. EFFICIENT AND ECONOMIC USE OF RESOURCES: The resources of the Organization will be optimized and rationalized for the benefit of its Member Countries with due attention to considerations of economy, quality, efficiency and technological validity. PLANNING OF ACQUISITIONS: There will be adequate forecasting and coordination of needs and acquisitions, and the benefits of clustering related goods or services will be emphasized. ORIGIN OF BIDS: The resources the organization employs for the procurement of goods and services shall also serve as a catalyst for the economy of state organizations of the Member Countries, with emphasis on regional capacity and the generation of competitive bids. DUE PROCESS: The actions of the Organization in procuring goods and services shall follow a previously established procedure, avoid discretion and facilitate order, control and follow up.

CHAPTER III

DEFINITIONS

Article 4.- For the purposes of these Regulations, the following shall apply: Minutes of Meeting: A description or record of what transpired during each meeting of the Contracting Committee and Evaluation Commission. Opening of Bids: An action by which the Contracting Committee and/or Evaluation Commission reviews bids and other information required by the date and time indicated in the Invitation. Consumables: Items that undergo natural destruction during their first use due to their specific characteristics. Enquiry: A communication sent by the Bidder using the prescribed procedure and received by the Procurement Committee that requests clarification, interpretation or modification of issues that are exclusively related to the Bidding Conditions and/or the terms of reference. Call: A public or direct formal invitation by OLADE to cover requirements for the procurement of goods or services. Decision: A written, verified and approved opinion of the members of the Procurement Committee. Qualification: An authorization of OLADE that allows a supplier to be listed in the Registry of Suppliers, after an analysis of its legal and technical status. Report: A written, verified and approved opinion of the members of the Evaluation Commission. Bid/Proposal: Documents in which the bidder describes the technical and/or economic conditions of the goods or services offered. PhD (Pro hierarchical Decision): Software developed on VB.Net that is executable on Windows operating system platforms. It is a multi-criteria design model used as the base methodology for weighting requirements and evaluating characteristics of goods and services to be acquired by OLADE. Appendix I: User's Guide.

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Annual Work Plan: A Work Program prepared by the Executive Secretary according to the Annual Budget and the Triennial Work Program of the Organization. Specifications and/or terms of reference: Documents prepared by the corresponding Administrative Unit according to the current methodology, which establish the requirements, demands, abilities, rights and obligations of bidders that participate in goods and services procurement processes. Supplier/Bidder: A natural or legal person that is registered in the Registry of Suppliers and able to offer goods or services to OLADE. Meeting: A meeting of the Procurement Committee or Evaluation Commission. Consulting Services: Specialized professional services for advising, analyzing, investigating, planning, developing or evaluating OLADE studies, programs or projects. Organizational Unit: Each of the parties that comprise the Permanent Secretariat. It includes well-defined and distributed roles, responsibilities, hierarchies and authority. The organizational units are the Executive Secretariat, the Department of Studies and Projects, the Department of Integration, and the Administration and Finance Management. Qualifying Vote: A special vote of the Executive Secretary to decide the result of a vote of the Procurement Committee.

CHAPTER IV

GENERAL PROCUREMENT PROCEDURE Article 5.- Acquisitions by OLADE to meet goods and services requirements that are covered by these Regulations shall be governed by the following general procedure: The head of the corresponding Organizational Unit submits for the approval of the Executive Secretary, the need to acquire a particular good or service within the scope of these Regulations, demonstrating the technical or administrative need, the availability of funds, the characteristics of the good or the professional profile of the service that is required. The Executive Secretary is the competent authority to has the power to approve the acquisition of the good or professional profile of the service that is requested in accordance with the Annual Operating Plan and with the support of the Advisory Board. With that aim in view At the same time, the appropriate organizational unit is asked to submit the specifications or terms of reference. At the request of the Executive Secretary, the Procurement Committee begins the Public Tender process after analyzing the specifics of the request, unless due to the particulars of the case, another modality contained in these Regulations would apply, such as Direct or Shortlist Procurement. For Public Tenders, the Procurement Committee will publish the call on the OLADE Purchasing Website, which shall remain open during the period set by that committee in the Minutes of Meeting. For the bidding competition, the call shall specify the need for the interested parties to enter their information in the Registry of Suppliers in advance. Cases involving Direct or Shortlist Procurement will not be open for Public Tender, so the document containing the call will only be recorded in the Electronic Catalogue of Calls to ensure disclosure and transparency with the authorities of the Member Countries. In these cases, the Procurement Committee will select qualified suppliers from the OLADE Purchasing Website Registry.

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After the established time, the Executive Secretary shall convene the Procurement Committee to open the bids, carry out the corresponding evaluation, and select the successful bidder from among the suppliers that agreed to participate in the process. After the selection process, depending on the report of the Evaluation Commission, the Committee shall issue a decision to be considered by the Executive Secretary before signing the contract, in accordance with the provisions of OLADE regulations.

According to paragraph l) of Article 42 of the General Regulations of OLADE, the Council of Experts, will be informed of all contracts, agreements and loans subscribed by OLADE, and the Council of Experts should issue prior opinion to the signing of those agreements who exceed 25% of the annual budget After the product has been purchased or the service has been performed, the Procurement Committee shall conduct an evaluation of the supplier in accordance with the guidelines laid down in these Regulations, and if appropriate, it shall recommend that the Executive Secretary include it in the list of unreliable suppliers. If a new procurement is necessary, the Committee may carry out a partial evaluation of the supplier even though it has not completed the activities of the first contract.

CHAPTER V

METHODS OF PROCURING GOODS AND SERVICES Article 6.- These Regulations provide the following procedures for procurement: Competitive Bidding, Direct Procurement and Shortlist. The latter two shall not be used to avoid the bidding process, if not warranted by the nature of the requirement. Article 7.- A Public Tender is an administrative process by which OLADE issues an open public call to invite interested parties to use the purchasing website to submit proposals, from which the most appropriate according to the specifications and terms of reference shall be selected. Registered suppliers whose profile matches the requirements of the call are automatically included in this process if they agree to participate in the tender. Bids may be single-stage if the bids and quality of the bidders are to be compared in a single act, or multiple-stage, if the technical bids and financial bids are evaluated separately. Article 8.- Direct Procurement involves an individual invitation to a qualified natural or juridical person in the Supplier Registry. It is approved by the Executive Secretary in the following cases after having received advice from the Procurement Committee:

a) The specificity of the good or service to be acquired hinders the completion of a tender process. b) The urgency of the request requires immediate action.

Article 9.- Procurement by short list involves an invitation to a maximum of five and a minimum of three suppliers that are qualified in the registry to fulfill the requirements of the call due to the specificity of the goods to be procured, the services required or the demands of the local or national area.

Article 10.- Acquisitions made by OLADE to meet requirements for goods and services covered by these Regulations shall be governed by the following common rules:

a) All procurement processes that are not excluded by the provisions of these Regulations shall

be reviewed by the Procurement Committee.

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b) If a single bidder participates in a competitive bidding process, the offer shall be scored and evaluated and, if it meets the specified requirements and criteria, it shall be awarded the contract.

c) If a supplier does not accept the invitation and is the only participant, the same mode of acquisition can be repeated if deemed appropriate, or a new one can be initiated according to these Regulations

d) If no offers are submitted, the process shall be declared void and OLADE may conduct a new bidding process or use a different mode as provided in these Regulations.

e) After a contract is awarded, the procedure shall be declared void if the contract cannot be signed due to causes that are attributable to the supplier, and it is not possible to award the contract to another bidder based on the order of priority in the selection process.

CHAPTER VI

OLADE PURCHASING WEBSITE Article 11.- The OLADE purchasing website was created as a software tool whose use is mandatory for procurements that are subject to these regulations. It is managed for the Executive Secretary of OLADE by staff designated for that purpose. The OLADE Purchasing Website consists of a Vendor Registry, an Electronic Catalogue of Invitations, the Procurement Observatory, which in turn comprises the bid qualification process, information on monitoring and evaluation of contracts, and a list of non-compliant contractors. The website is the only means for carrying out all the electronic proceedings involved in the procurement process according to the provisions of these Regulations. All information relevant to procurement processes shall be published in a timely manner on the OLADE Purchasing Website. The Executive Secretary, through a duly reasoned report to the Procurement Committee, shall have the power to order restricted or public access to certain information on the website, while ensuring that the transparency of the process is not affected. The OLADE Purchasing Website has a system of warnings and cross-reference email alerts when matches are found in the supply and demand for goods and services, and between OLADE and registered suppliers. After identifying suppliers with appropriate profiles for the call, the Website will assign a code to that supplier with which it can submit its acceptance to participate in the selection process, its bid, work methodology and other documents required by OLADE. This code also allows the supplier and OLADE to conduct question and answer sessions to provide more information about the call. Article 12.- The electronic catalog of calls, registration with the Registry of Suppliers and the outcome of contractor selection shall permit general public access. Information contained in the Procurement Observatory may be consulted by the authorities of the Member Countries that are designated for that purpose; access shall be controlled by assigning the respective computer access permits. The information contained in the Registry of Suppliers, including the list of unreliable suppliers, shall be restricted to the Executive Secretary or whomever he/she designates. Article 13.- For all activities that are generated and carried out through the OLADE Purchasing Website, the official time shall be that of the Website. Article 14.- If due to Force Majeure or an Act of God, there is a system crash or suspension of service that prevents or restricts access to the Website, processes that are running will be suspended and restarted immediately after service is restored.

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Article 15.- The Supplier Registry is an integral mechanism of the OLADE Purchasing Website for qualifying natural and legal persons that have the capacity to contract with the Organization. Prior registration with the registry is a necessary requirement in order to participate in OLADE bidding competitions, but it is not a guarantee and does not bind the Organization to a particular procurement. Data shall be entered directly by the supplier of goods and services by accessing the OLADE Purchasing Website; information entered will be stored permanently in the Registry of Suppliers unless the bidder edits or deletes its profile. This registry is a dynamic element that can be queried and updated automatically in real time. Suppliers will be responsible for the veracity and accuracy of the information provided in order to qualify in the registry, and shall provide any updates or modifications in a timely manner. Article 16.- The qualification of suppliers in the Registry of Suppliers of OLADE shall be the responsibility of the Procurement Committee after it has verified the supplier’s legal suitability and specialty according to the data entered. In order to ensure reliability, uniqueness of the Website, and institutional interests, OLADE reserves the right to qualify registered suppliers according to criteria such as legal and technical capacity. Article 17.- The following registrations in the Registry of Suppliers of OLADE will not be qualified:

a) Natural persons or legal representatives of legal persons who have family ties with staff of OLADE within the fourth degree of consanguinity and/or second degree of affinity.

b) Natural persons or legal representatives of legal persons who are former employees who were removed for having jeopardized the institutional interests of the Organization.

Article 18.- The following shall be considered grounds for temporary suspension from the Registry of Suppliers:

a) Having been invited in three five (5)consecutive calls without agreeing to participate in the bidding process.

b) Failure to perform contractual duties due to a justified cause that involves a relative inability to perform them and others of a similar nature, based on a prior analysis of the Procurement Committee.

Once the causes or suspensions contained in OLADE’s internal procedures have been overcome, the Procurement Committee shall reinstate the supplier automatically without further action. Article 19.- The following shall be deemed grounds for permanent suspension from the Supplier Registry:

a) Entering false or adulterated information into the Registry;

b) Failure to fulfill contractual duties without just cause based on a prior analysis of the Procurement Committee;

c) Gross negligence in the performance of duties that causes institutional, technical or economic harm to the Organization;

d) Presentation of information that lacks scientific and technical validity for the contracted services, or applicability under the terms of the contract, or existing scientific and technical knowledge at the time it was prepared;

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e) Institutional, technical or economic harm during the performance of contracts caused by studies

produced by consultants;

f) Violation of the provisions of the Lima Convention, or the Regulations, Resolutions and internal administrative provisions of the Permanent Secretariat;

g) Harming the prestige of the institution, including the dignity of OLADE authorities and/or officials of the Permanent Secretariat;

h) Misrepresenting, impersonating, adulterating, disclosing, removing or misusing internal documents of OLADE or the Permanent Secretariat;

i) Theft or any other kind of attack on the assets of the Permanent Secretariat;

j) Workplace or sexual harassment of any OLADE authority, officer, or consultant that is duly proven by the affected person;

k) Divulging of classified or sensitive information themselves or through intermediaries, that is relevant to the organization; and

l) Making any public statement themselves or through intermediaries that involves aspects of the Organization without the prior written authorization of the Executive Secretary.

A permanent suspension from the Suppliers Registry shall result in inclusion in the list of unreliable contractors and early termination of the contract. A natural or legal person, which, for any of these causes, is included in the list of unreliable contractors, shall not be involved with OLADE in the future in any of the ways mentioned in the Regulations. Article 20.- The Procurement Observatory consists of relevant information on all processes for the procurement of goods and services by OLADE once these Regulations take effect, and shall remain posted for six years. In keeping with the principles of openness, transparency and due process, relevant information shall include following:

a) The Call b) Specifications and/or terms of reference of the services c) List of participating suppliers d) Queries, clarifications, additions and modifications of calls e) Bids/proposals submitted by suppliers of goods or services f) Results of the qualification of bids g) Signed contract h) Supplementary contracts or amendments, if applicable i) Schedule and implementation of activities and/or delivery of products j) Delivery- receipt memorandums of products (goods or services) k) Digital copy of invoices, receipts and other documents showing payments made l) Follow up and evaluation indicators of the procurement m) Scoring and classification of the supplier according to the evaluation

The Observatory of Bidding Competitions shall include a list of non-compliant contractors and the cause; due to its sensitivity, this information shall be restricted to the Executive Secretary of OLADE or whomever he/she authorizes.

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CHAPTER VII

PROCUREMENT COMMITTEE Article 21.- The Procurement Committee was conceived as the administrative body that advises the Executive Secretary on criteria of economy, efficiency and transparency in the procurement of goods and services by the Organization. It is responsible for the preparation and conduct of procedures for awarding contracts to meet corporate objectives and ensure the administration of its own and third party resources that are under the responsibility of OLADE. This Committee has an Evaluation Commission for analyzing and evaluating bids submitted in procurement and contracting processes. Article 22.- As part of these responsibilities, the Committee has the following specific functions:

a) To assist Advising the Executive Secretary on the design of procurement and contracting policies, including, if necessary, the preparation of manuals and instructions to supplement the procedures laid down in these Regulations;

b) To assist Advising the Executive Secretary on the analysis and evaluation of the need to request goods and services according to the Annual Work Plan and Budget of the Organization;

c) Familiarity with all procurement processes not excluded by the provisions of these Regulations;

d) Ensuring the proper preparation of the specifications of calls that determine the aspects to be fulfilled by the parties involved in procurement and contracting procedures under OLADE Regulations;

e) Producing recommendations for the optimization and rationalization of resources allocated for the procurement of goods and services by the Organization under applicable regulations;

f) To assist the Executive Secretary in approving Approving the selection procedure and the report issued by the evaluation commission through a prior opinion submitted to the Advisory Council before the contract is awarded by the Executive Secretary;

g) Ensuring compliance with the Organization’s rules and regulations on procurement;

h) Proposing and observing criteria that promote administrative simplification in goods and services procurement processes to optimize response times;

i) Ensuring that goods and services that are to be purchased meet quality, safety and design requirements in accordance with institutional goals on strict compliance with the law and other relevant provisions;

j) Evaluating the Supplier based on its fulfillment of contractual obligations and commitments; and

k) Analyzing and recommending solutions to problems encountered in the performance of contracts for the procurement of goods and services under these Regulations.

Article 23.- The Procurement Committee is composed of officials from the senior management of OLADE Organizational Units. This Committee is permanent and consists of five (05) seven (7) members with voice and vote:

1) Chair: the Executive Secretary of OLADE or whomever he/she designates from among the staff of the Permanent Secretariat.

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2) Director of Administration, Shared Services and Finances Coordinator: the Manager of Administration and Finance of the Organization or his/her representative.

3) Director of Integration, Energy Security and Access: or whomever he/she designates.

4) Director of Studies, Projects and Information: or whomever he/she designates.

5) Director of Sustainable Energy Development: or whomever he/she designates

6) Contracts Supervisor: or whomever he/she designates

7) Area Technical Expert: responsible for monitoring the project or whoever he/she designates. The Procurement Committee may request the presence of officials or guests from the Organization at its meetings who have knowledge of the matter under discussion, without the right to vote. Voting at meetings of the Procurement Committee shall take place at the request of the Executive Secretary, if necessary, as a mechanism to complement the selection process. Article 24.- The Chair of the Procurement Committee:

a) Defines the guidelines of the procurement policy of the Committee according to the Annual Work Plan and Budget of the Organization

b) Presides at meetings of the Procurement Committee. c) Approves the notice and agenda of the meeting. d) Convenes meetings of the Committee through the Coordinator. e) Casts the tie breaking vote in case of a tie or if the results of the vote of the Committee are

contrary to the interests of the institution. Article 25.- The Coordinator of the Procurement Committee:

a) Convenes meetings of the Committee that have been requested by the Chair of the Committee, at least two days in advance.

b) Prepares the invitations and lists of issues to be addressed, and sends them to the Committee members.

c) Ensures that the Minutes of meetings and other administrative acts of the award are prepared.

d) Submits the decision of the Committee to the Advisory Council for its information.

Article 26.- The Evaluation Commission of the Procurement Committee consists of three (03) officers as follows:

a) Official in charge of the Procurements or Services Provision Forms Procurement or Human Resources Manager of the Organization depending on the nature of the proposals to be evaluated. He/she shall be responsible for preparing the technical report on the selection.

b) Legal Representative: An officer with legal training appointed by the Executive Secretary, who shall act as the legal advisor.

c) An officer from the area responsible for monitoring the project or procurement that is related to the contract.

If funding for the contract is from an external source of cooperation with a permanent representative in OLADE, he/she must may participate in this Commission with voice and vote.

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All sessions of the Evaluation Commission shall have a technical person responsible for implementing the planned standard evaluation procedures, such as the method of analysis for comparing prices and the selection process based on the PhD multiple criteria model. The Evaluation Commission may seek advice on technical or administrative aspects of questions that are submitted during the session. Article 27.- The Evaluation Commission is responsible for the following functions:

a) Analyzing the documentation relating to procurement and contracting services and issuing the corresponding opinion;

b) Ensuring compliance with the Organization’s rules and regulations on procurement;

c) Applying evaluation and weighting criteria according to the requirements of the specifications and terms of reference;

d) Implementing the planned standard evaluation procedures such as the analysis methodology based on the PhD multiple criteria model; and

e) Submitting a Report to the Chair of the Committee on the outcome of price comparison, competitive bidding, shortlist and direct contracting processes.

Article 28.- The Meetings and Minutes of the Committee and its Commission shall be governed by the following general rules:

a) Meetings shall be held to discuss vendor selection processes, analyze and recommend

solutions to problems with the fulfillment of contracts for the procurement of goods and services that are not excluded by the provisions of these Regulations, and other matters that are under the responsibility of the Committee;

b) The Evaluation Commission shall meet prior to the Procurement Committee Meeting convened by the representative of GAF;

c) The Invitation, the agenda of the meeting, and other related documents shall be provided to the members at least two (02) days prior to the date of the meeting;

d) The quorum for holding meetings shall be all the members, and absences shall be filled by alternates;

e) The Committee Meeting shall be valid only if attended by the Chair or his/her alternate;

f) Decisions shall be adopted by an absolute majority vote of the members present. In the case of a tie, the Chair or his/her alternate shall vote;

g) Minutes shall be taken at each meeting and be signed by the participants. They shall record the agreements reached and provide a summary of the relevant comments, together with the Report or Decision, as appropriate;

h) These documents and others associated with the contracting and procurement process will be included in the Procurement Observatory in due time.

CHAPTER VIII

GENERAL AND SPECIFIC CONDITIONS FOR PROCUREMENTS

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Article 29.- Each of the processes implemented by the Permanent Secretariat for the selection and evaluation of procurement of goods and services will be defined internally, according to the case, and to the criteria needed for its evaluation to guarantee the quality and technical specificity consistent with the need which is intended to cover. An analysis methodology based on the PhD multiple criteria model shall be used to select and evaluate purchases of goods and services. The minimum acceptable score for Procurement shall be 75/100 points, based on the scale of that model. Article 30.- A maximum of two contracts per consultant or consulting firm performed simultaneously, and no more than four contracts during the same year shall be considered in the award. The results of previous evaluations shall be considered in future procurements, and the result shall not be less than 75/100 points. Article 31.- The situation set out in paragraph b) of Article 18, and those mentioned in Article 19 of these Regulations, shall constitute sufficient grounds for early termination of the contract for the acquisition of goods or services, as appropriate, including consulting, without any compensation from OLADE. Article 32.- For contracting consulting services, the following specific conditions shall be taken into account: The Executive Secretary shall evaluate the need to hire consultants according to the area of assistance and expertise based on the provisions of these Regulations. The selection and hiring of instructors for virtual training shall be governed by the provisions of these Regulations on consulting services. The selection and qualification of consultants shall take into account their professional and technical suitability, specific experience in the area, immediate availability and methodological proposal, if applicable, and other pre-defined criteria included in the PhD methodology. Given the nature of the contractual relationship, the provision of consulting services shall involve only the payment of fees. A Consultant shall not have any right to receive the benefits specified in the Internal Personnel Rules of OLADE. It is the responsibility of the Consultant to obtain medical, life, social or any other applicable insurance. OLADE will not accept responsibility for risks that occur during the consultancy. If required by the project, the contract may be renewed for periods not exceeding the duration of the initial contract, and by mutual agreement between the Consultant and the Executive Secretary of OLADE according to the available budget and in accordance with the provisions of these Regulations. However, if the consultant’s contract is financed with OLADE funds, the contractual relationship between the Organization and the consultant shall not exceed two years. Since the Consultant’s obligation is measured by results, it will not be necessary to establish workdays, and his/her obligations will be limited to performing the services agreed in the product delivery schedule that is specified in the Contract. If required for the project, OLADE may assign physical space for performing the activities of the consultancy. Depending on the characteristics of the contract, if the Consultant that is hired resides outside the Host country of the Organization, economy class airfare shall be paid for them to come to the Headquarters country and for their return to their place of origin. Moreover, if the Consultant travels outside their home city or headquarters country while providing Services, tickets for the fastest, most direct and economical route shall be paid as well as a per diem based on the system used by OLADE, or created by the organization that funds the project to which the Consultant is assigned. The provisions of these Regulations shall be applied according to the conditions stipulated by the agencies that fund the Project to which the Consultant is assigned. If the agreement made between OLADE and the Agency that finances the project contains a specific process for selecting consultants,

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this shall take precedence over the above-described process. If the conditions are divergent or they are not covered by these Regulations, they shall be included in the contractual agreement between OLADE and the Consultant, and shall have full validity. The contract of a Consultant from the host country shall take effect the day he/she begins work. For Consultants who reside outside the host country, the contract shall take effect on the day it is signed. The Consultant must necessarily sign a confidentiality clause in his/her contract. Payments agreed as fees shall be paid upon submission of an invoice in the name of OLADE together with an activity report. Either party may terminate the contract by giving written notice to the other party with due time in advance at least thirty days in advance, and neither party shall have any right to compensation.

CHAPTER IX

TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS Article 33.- Pending the total operability of the OLADE Purchasing Website, information about calls shall continue to be published in messages on the OLADE web page and relevant information on bidding processes shall be provided by OLADE National Coordinators when requested.

CHAPTER X

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 34.- Any matter not covered by these Regulations or which results from their application shall be interpreted and resolved by the Executive Secretary of OLADE in accordance with the principles contained herein, taking into account the need to protect the public interest and the proper performance of the contract. Article 35.- OLADE Regulations for Hiring Consultants of 28 October 2011 are annulled because they are covered by these Regulations. Article 36.- Administrative Resolution RAD-178/2014 is repealed since its provisions are contained in these regulations. Article 37.- All regulations, rules and provisions that are contrary to or contradict these Regulations are annulled.

CHAPTER XI

FINAL PROVISIONS Article 38.- These Regulations shall take effect once they are approved in the session of the XLVI

Meeting of Ministers of the Organization on November 25th, 2016.