Title: Open Data, E-Procurement, and Anti-Corruption in Public Administration: A Scoping Review of Evidence, Mechanisms, and Implementation Barriers
Authors: Richard C. Pasco
Volume: 10
Issue: 6
Pages: 169-177
Publication Date: 2026/06/28
Abstract:
Public procurement is particularly exposed to corruption risks because it joins high-value public expenditure, complex rules, and repeated interactions between buyers and suppliers. Open-data and e-procurement initiatives are widely promoted as digital governance tools that can make contracting more visible, traceable, and contestable. This scoping review mapped recent evidence on how open data, electronic government procurement (e-GP), and open-contracting approaches are used to strengthen transparency, accountability, and corruption prevention in public administration. Guided by Arksey and O'Malley's framework, Levac and colleagues' refinements, JBI guidance, and PRISMA-ScR, the review applied a Population-Concept-Context lens. The population included public institutions and contracting stakeholders; the concept included open government data, e-procurement, open contracting, procurement analytics, integrity, transparency, accountability, and corruption prevention; and the context covered public-sector contracting across the procurement cycle. A targeted search of web-accessible peer-reviewed studies, evidence reviews, and authoritative policy publications from 2012 to June 2026 was undertaken. Twenty-nine substantive sources were charted. Five themes emerged: (1) end-to-end e-procurement reduces information asymmetry and discretionary contact, (2) open and standardized contracting data enables public and institutional scrutiny, (3) linked data and red-flag analytics support early risk detection rather than proof of wrongdoing, (4) outcomes depend on complementary legal, institutional, and enforcement arrangements, and (5) data-quality, capacity, political, accessibility, and privacy barriers can recreate opacity or exclusion. An emergent Data-to-Integrity Framework is proposed. The review concludes that open data and e-procurement are most effective when they operate as part of an accountable governance system that combines interoperable data, meaningful disclosure, active oversight, responsive remedies, and inclusive access for suppliers and the public.