By Olawunmi Ashafa
Mr Mamman Ahmadu, Director-General, Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) says procurement process of any kind remains a determinant factor for the development of a nation.
Ahmadu said this on Monday in Lagos at a capacity development training organised by the bureau for procurement officers drawn from various ministries and agencies of the Federal Government.
Addressing participants at the opening ceremony of the three-week 2023 Continuous Procurement Capacity Training (CPCDTP), he said the training was for procurement officers in ministries, departments and agencies.
“You go through this mandatory training so that you are certified capable of doing it.
“It does not stop here, it is just a bridge you cross so that you continue to learn procurement. This is a bridge for you to get to change your cadre to procurement,” Ahmadu said.
Ahmadu, who was represented by Mr Aliyu Aliyu, Director, Regulations and Database, BPP, said that the procurement officers had a big role to play in achieving the President’s vision of fighting corruption.
Aliu said that the officers also assist the economy to get stronger by following the standard procurement procedures in their dealings.
He charged the officers to adhere strictly to the procurement process in their various organisations.
“This is a beginner’s course and does not amount to total professional training. Every officer must undertake continuous mandatory capacity development courses which will be the basis for professional development.
“BPP will not take lightly to complaints on officers found to be involved in underhand practices,” Ahmadu warned.
He, however, urged procuring entities to consult with BPP prior to recruitment and promotion of their certified procurement officers.
Ahmadu, while commending organisations that allowed their officers to partake in the training, urged the beneficiaries to share challenges and successes of their work.
He noted that doing so would enable others to benefit and the nation at large would be better for it.
Director, Research, Training and Strategic Planning, BPP, Mr Adebowale Adedokun, in a remark, said that the training was primarily to ensure that officers had the practical skills to be timely and efficiently deliver without compromising quality.
“Knowledge is not static; we expect that people involved in this training are constantly being given additional capacity.
“So, we must constantly improve their knowledge and capacity. This training is unique because anybody coming into procurement will not assume that he or she understands procurement process within the federal government and even state,” he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that no fewer than 400 procurement officers are attending the CPCDTP.
In his goodwill message, Mr Fatai Idowu, Managing Director, Lagos State Public Procurement Agency, commended the bureau on the training efforts that had boosted capacities in various MDAs.
Idowu thanked the management of the bureau on the collaboration with the Lagos State Government, while ensuring that the nation had certified procurement officers.
He advised the participants to ensure they improved themselves while focusing on the mission of their various agencies.
The manging director urged them to be more emotionally intelligent to achieve the change desired of their agencies.
He noted that the training had been one of the strategic activities of the bureau to institutionalise the public procurement reform in Nigeria.
“This capacity building programme will also help to export capacity to other sub regions in the area of public procurement,” he said. (NAN)
