MLIT to hold the 2nd meeting on construction bidding and procurement on November 2A discussion on how public works are handed out
On October 28 the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism announced that the 2nd Bidding and Procurement Working Group of its Study Group on the Construction Industry as a Sustainably Growing Industry will meet on Monday, November 2, 2026, from 13:00 to 15:00 at Joint Government Building No. 3. The group will discuss issues and possible improvements in the bidding and procurement system for public works ordered by local governments, and the meeting materials are to be posted on the ministry's website afterwards.
- 1. IssuesOrganise the issues in light of the 1st working group
- 2. HearingsHear the views of stakeholders
- 3. Normal timesDiscuss the shape of bidding and procurement in normal times
- 4. Contract typesDiscuss open-book and cost-plus-fee contracts
Key points
- Date and place: Monday, November 2, 2026, 13:00 to 15:00, shared meeting room on basement level 1 of Joint Government Building No. 3 (Kasumigaseki 2-1-3, Chiyoda City, Tokyo)
- Agenda: organising the issues raised at the 1st working group, hearings with stakeholders, the shape of bidding and procurement in normal times, and open-book and cost-plus-fee contracts
- The subject under review is the issues and the direction of improvement for the bidding and procurement system for public works ordered by local governments
- The meeting materials are scheduled to be posted on the MLIT website after the working group ends
What to do in practice
- Note what is being discussed (bidding and procurement in normal times, open-book and cost-plus-fee contracts) and check the materials published after the meeting
- List the contract types used in the local government tenders your company takes part in that could be affected by a review
Roads, schools and other works ordered by a city or prefecture are given to a contractor through a system called bidding. On October 28 the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism announced that a meeting to discuss problems with this system will be held on November 2. Nothing has been decided yet; the discussion is only starting. The materials are to be published after the meeting.
- October 28The ministry announced that a meeting will be held
- November 2The 2nd meeting organises the issues and hears the people involved
- After the meetingThe materials go up on the ministry's website
Points
- What is discussed: the problems with how cities and prefectures hand out works, and how to fix them
- The group will organise the points raised at the first meeting, hear the views of the people involved, and also discuss types of contract
- This is a notice that a meeting will be held. Nothing has been decided yet
What the words mean
- Bidding
- A system for choosing who takes on a work by comparing terms and prices
- Procurement
- Ordering work from an outside company
- Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT): MLIT, Notice of the 2nd Bidding and Procurement Working Group of the Study Group on the Construction Industry as a Sustainably Growing Industry
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