ABSTRACT
When private individuals or corporations buy things, they may use the terms “purchasing” or “buying” to describe their actions. In government organizations, many different terms and definitions are used when referring to the buying function, from “public procurement” to “contracting” or “acquisition” and many other variations. The wide variety of terms and definitional ambiguities permeate the practice and profession. Despite the fact that public procurement has a centuries-old history, clarity in what practitioners and scholars mean when they refer to “public procurement” is sometimes lacking. Nevertheless, there are common themes, roles, and responsibilities that span the wide range of governmental organizations involved in procurement.
