By Kebba AF Touray
Mr. Phoday Jaiteh, the Director General of the Gambia Public Procurement Authority (GPPA), has said that procurement drives values in managing resources.
DG Jaiteh was speaking at a retreat conducted by the authority in Kanilai, aimed at reviewing GPPA standard forms, with the primary objective to validate the newly developed forms, which have been meticulously prepared based on the new Public Procurement Act of 2022.
He said, “Procurement is no longer just about buying goods and services, it is about identifying opportunities to drive value in the public sector through strategic sourcing and managing resources.”
He informed the participants that the 21st century “is changing fast,” adding that “the last 50 years witnessed more change than ever in human history.”
He disclosed that the current procurement forms and templates are more than 24 years old, “a long time in a fast evolving procurement world.”
He said, “I’m here today to present to you the revised Forms and Templates. These tools are crucial in streamlining the purchasing process. The structured Forms and Templates ensures compliance with the legal framework. These documents will improve efficiency and transparency in our national procurement system.”
He explained that, firstly, they have “consolidated certain forms, each procurement method has a special form where possible we combined multiple Forms into one.”
Secondly, he said that the Public Procurement Act 2022 introduced new procurement methods, “we have created new attendant forms.”
He continued that thirdly, some forms run into multiple pages, and they have streamlined most without compromising quality.
Fourthly, DG Jaiteh stated that the citations in the old forms occasionally misaligned with the stipulations of the Public Procurement Act 2022, “these misalignments have been rectified.”
Fifthly, he averred, the new form explicitly requires declaration of conflict of interest and consequently recuse from the procurement due to the potential conflict of interest, e.g., Contracts Committees and Evaluation Committees.
“Procurement, the process of acquiring goods and services relies heavily on well-structured Forms and Templates. These tools serve as a foundation for a transparent and efficient purchasing system,” DG Jaiteh said.
Over the past two years, he reported, they have developed the regulations, the procurement manual, and bidding documents, and have also successfully implemented a new e-procurement portal, streamlining the business registration process and reducing transaction times.
He quoted the World Bank as saying, “the economic development of any country is significantly dependent on the efficiency of its public procurement system and the effectiveness of its public expenditure. The public procurement system cuts across all sectors of the economy.”
He said that looking ahead, “we will continue to focus on strategic sourcing, leveraging technology to optimize our processes and create more value for economic operators. We will also prioritize building strong collaborative relationships with our stakeholders to drive innovation and achieve mutual success.”
He thanked development partners, such as the World Bank, the AfDB, and the government of H.E. President Adama Barrow, for the continuous support to their digital transformation process.
He encouraged participants to actively participate in the review and validation process and “share your ideas and suggestions for improvement. By working together, we can ensure that procurement continues to be a strategic asset for the public and the private sector organizations.”
He emphasized, “This review and validation retreat will safeguard harmonization of Procurement practices with government policy and reinforce compliance with regulatory frameworks. Ultimately, engender good governance, better service delivery and greater value for public expenditure.”
