How competitive is government purchase of social work service? An empirical study of three cities in Guangdong Province, China

ABSTRACT Competition is a core element in systems of government purchase of services. Using government procurement data collected from three cities (Zhuhai, Zhongshan, and Foshan) from 2011 to 2018, this study develops a rigorous competition measurement index to interpret the quality of bidding entities. We find most procurement projects in social services to contain policy-driven and market-driven competition. Significant differences are observed in competition among cities due to purchase scale, geographical location, and government protectionism. Moreover, competition gradually decreases over time. The paper also presents implications for China’s welfare governance.