Can we trace, in one place, why an infrastructure project was initiated, how much it was expected to cost, who is delivering it, how its cost and schedule have changed, and what the final outcome is?

Every infrastructure project generates a vast amount of information – on needs, budgets, public procurement, contracts, participants, design, construction, schedules, costs, payments, changes, oversight, acceptance, assets and operation.

The problem is often not the lack of information, but its fragmentation.

Some of the information is held in public procurement systems, some in accounting and project management systems, and some in document management systems, BIM models, registers, PDF files and spreadsheets. Different stakeholders use different identifiers, structures and terminology.

As a result, the public may have access to numerous documents but still find it difficult to obtain a comprehensive picture of the project.

PPP.BG places good data governance at the heart of effective infrastructure management.

This includes clear accountability for data, standardised definitions, unique identifiers, data quality rules, interoperability, traceability of changes, machine-readable formats and the ability to reuse information.

OCDS provides a common model for publishing data and documents across the different stages of the contracting process. (standard.open-contracting.org)

The CoST Infrastructure Data Standard defines core information on infrastructure projects that supports monitoring and accountability. CoST’s updated 2026 guidance emphasises the timely and reliable proactive and reactive disclosure of infrastructure data. (CoST)

OC4IDS connects the project and contracting levels and enables information on an infrastructure project to be structured and traced throughout its life cycle. (standard.open-contracting.org)

These international frameworks do not replace national legislation. They provide a structure and common language for data on which better public registers, oversight mechanisms, analytical tools and digital services can be built.

Publishing a PDF document is not the final stage of transparency.

True digital transparency means that information can be searched, compared and analysed.