PPDA changes to ease bidding
The introduction of e-procurement is likely to ease the bidding process that has been taking days. FILE PHOTO.
Many district local government procurement officers believe the proposed amendments of the PPDA Act will improve and ease the process of bidding in Uganda.
At a recent forum in Mukono District, procurement officers said the amendments are likely to eliminate fraud and corruption.
In 2016 President Museveni directed that all legal frame works that affect service delivery be reviewed, among which was the PPDA Act.
Thus Ministry of Finance appointed a committee to fast track the amendments with the view of eliminating bottlenecks.
The amendments will target the need to minimise delays in the procurement processes, ease market price assessment, introduce collaborative procurement, and introduce e-government procurement and promotion of local content, among others.
David Amolo, the Buyende District senior procurement officer, believes the amendments will reduce procurement durations as well as eliminate bureaucracy.
“I particularly got interested in the promotion of local content. This will really make Ugandan companies have an upper hand in procurement processes,” he says.
However, he urges that government must sensitise local contractors on embracing e-procurement since many of them in the rural areas do not know much about process.
The head of procurement in Jinja District, Fred Gulaale, says the amendment will bring about efficiency in public procurement which previously faced problems like awarding of bids.
“The new amendment will address bottlenecks that we have been facing in public procurement such as delays of awarding bids, corruption and a faster ways of submitting bids through e-procurement,” he says.
She says some of the indicators of purchasing fraud included unexplained increase in inventory, regular supplier visits, suppliers being familiar with top staff and supplier payments going unchallenged.
Criminal
Mr Moses Ojambo, the PPDA director capacity building and advisory services, foresee creation of efficient systems and improvement of service delivery once the amendments are completed.
“Issues such as delays will be solved, which will lead to improvement in budget absorption to increase participation in procurement processes,” he says.
