Public-sector green procurement in the United Arab Emirates: Innovation capability and commitment to change

Abstract

This paper examines various internal factors that influence green-procurement implementation in the public sector of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by investigating the relationships between the innovation capability of organizations and green-procurement implementation with the mediating impact of employees’ commitment to change. A structural model is proposed using scales from literature. Primary research data was collected using a cross-sectional survey involving 50 respondents from public-sector organizations in Abu Dhabi. Results revealed that the innovation capability of the organization has a positive influence on green-procurement implementation. In addition, employees’ commitment to change influences green-procurement implementation. This paper contributes to the literature by studying green-procurement implementation in the UAE's public sector, in which new constructs to existing concepts are introduced and tested. This paper also complements contemporary knowledge on green procurement, organizational innovation, and environmental practices. The paper emphasizes that top management and government officials must reevaluate their own personal values and commitment to certain issues as they formulate green-procurement policies, regulations, and training programs designed for procurement officials within the UAE's government organizations. This paper is expected to have multiple theoretical and practical implications to the study of green procurement in the UAE public sector and beyond and could set the stage to conduct more studies this field in the UAE in order to support the changes to come.