IEL Director Professor Martin Trybus co-moderated one of three themes  (on administrative burdens in defence procurement) at the recent "jumbo workshop" organised by the European Defence Agency (EDA) and held at its headquarters in Brussels on 28 February 2017.

This was the first gathering of its kind bringing together EU Member State and industry representatives from the four EDA networks on defence market and industry issues (the Defence Acquisition Expert Network, the Defence Industry Expert Network, the SMEs Point of Contact, and the Defence Supply Chain Network). More than 80 experts from 25 Member States were represented.

Jumbo Workshop

The workshop discussed proposals aimed at improving the transparency of the European Defence Equipment Market (EDEM), the competitiveness of European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB) and promoting cooperation in defence procurement. Discussions focused on three central themes: cooperative defence procurement, cross-border contracting and supply chains and administrative burdens in defence procurement in view of collecting recommendations on potential concrete future actions.

To facilitate the discussions, participants were provided with related ‘food for thought’ papers ahead of the workshop. Many of the recommendations centered around the need of information sharing and the enhancement of trust among suppliers across national borders. The proposals drawn-up from the workshop will be forwarded to the concerned EDA networks to examine their further implementation within future EDA activities and projects.

Professor Trybus has participated in EDA studies, presented his research to the EDA Defence Acquisition Expert Network in November 2015, and taught a the EDA course for national experts in November 2016. One of his main research interests is European defence procurement regulation and he is the author of Buying Defence and Security in Europe (CUP, 2015).

https://www.eda.europa.eu/info-hub/press-centre/latest-news/2017/03/13/eda-workshop-on-defence-industry-and-market-matters