COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AT THE END OF THE FOURTH PHASE SENSITISATION AND ENLIGHTENMENT OF STAKEHOLDERS IN THE NORTH CENTRAL ZONE ON THE PUBLIC PROCUREMENT ACT HELD AT THE HYDRO HOTEL ON MONDAY JULY 9TH 2012 IN MINNA NIGER STATE NIGERIA
Preamble
The Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) through its appointed coordinator, Auwal Ibrahim Musa (Rafsanjani) of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, CISLAC organized the fourth phase sensitisation on the Public Procurement Act. The sensitization was held at the Hydro Hotel, Minna, Niger State on 9th July 2012. The programme was attended by
the Acting Governor of Niger State Hon. Ahmed Musa Ibeto, the Secretary to the State Government, Niger State, Mr. Anthony Ikor, Director Training and Research, who represented the Director General of Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Engr. Emeka Ezeh, FNSE. Others included members of the Niger State House of Assembly, His Royal Highness the Etsu of Lapai, State Commissioners, Permanent Secretaries, members of organized professional groups, the Media, contractors, Civil Servants, and Civil Society Groups.
The sensitisation is an ongoing process aimed at educating stakeholders across the country on the provisions and issues in the Public Procurement Act, 2007. It is also set against generating stakeholder discourse on the Act. During the meeting various speeches and presentations were made to set the tone for discussions.
The papers presented include the following:
· An Introduction to PPA 2007
· Operationalization of PPA 2007 Regime, Issues, Challenges and Way Forward
· Increasing Effective CSO Participation in the Public Procurement Process
· NPWP and its achievement
ZCC – Minimizing Corruption through Public Procurement Act Implementation
Key observations and recommendations from the sensitisation include;
Observations
· Nigeria’s development over the years has been stalled by a corrupt procurement and expenditure management framework.
· There is a dearth of information on the Public Procurement Act and its provisions especially amongst Civil Servants and contractors that are amongst the high end users of the PPA
· The success of the PPA depends on a holistic application at all levels of governance. The present scenario where some states are yet to domesticate the Act only negates the
Possibilities and potentials of the PPA to engender a culture of transparency in government expenditure
· The culture of waste and non-performance of capital projects are usually the result of selection of contractors through a non transparent procurement process. Usually the contractors do not have the technical competence or capital base to deliver on the projects.
· There is an overwhelming resistance to the procurement reform process due to the sleaze
surrounding the contracting process in government. People who benefit from the non-transparent process of procurement continuously try to undermine the process.
Recommendations
· For Nigeria to meet its development potential, it must create a regime of transparency and
accountability, one that delivers value for money and responds to the needs and aspirations of Nigerians.
· The PPA remains a viable tool for delivering on the dividends of democracy in the face of
dwindling state resources. It should therefore become the centre-piece of government reforms targeting the mobilisation and expenditure of government resources
· The PPA provides the best opportunity for stamping out corruption through best practice in the procurement process. This should be the focus of its custodians and all stakeholders
· Information is critical to reforms. The BPP should continue its robust sensitization agenda
that covers all range of stakeholders, its sensitization should employ diverse tools and means including; drama, music, IEC materials in local languages amongst others. This would enable a broader reach.
· The PPA by its participatory nature would help to deepen participatory governance. Therefore; the various State Houses of Assembly in the North Central states where the
Public Procurement Act have not been domesticated should as a matter of urgency initiate the process of domesticating the Act. This is very important to strengthen accountability and deepen democracy
· The Media, Civil Society, civil servants, Contractors and members of the public all have a
significant role to play in the PPA Act and to do this effectively, all stakeholders must make personal effort at understanding the PPA and its provisions for it to be relevant in the citizens struggle for accountable and productive governance
· The PPA has the potential to shape and deepen the local economy. Contractors and business concerns begin to specialize, develop technical capacity and build strategic alliances to be able to compete with an edge in the bidding process. This in turn develops local capacity and open up opportunities for growth. Contractors should therefore support and nurture the PPA to deliver the needed reform
Conclusion
The participants at the North Central sensitization on the PPA thanked the organizers and called for more support in building capacity on the PPA to enable the application and adherence to its provisions. The sensitization the participants reiterated was timely and would help broaden the discourse on the PPA amongst stakeholders in the North Central Zone.
Signed by:
Engr Ezeh M.Emeka(FNSE)
Director General
The Bureau for Public Procurement
(BPP)
Auwal
Musa (Rafsanjani)
North
Central Coordinator
