PRAZ launches e-govt procurement system

BUSINESS REPORTER

 

The Procurement Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (PRAZ) on Monday launched Zimbabwe’s electronic government (e-government) procurement system, meant to enhance the State procurement process as well as plug loopholes and eliminate rampant corruption bedevilling the country’s public procurement system, Business Times can report.

 

Speaking at the launch at the on-going PRAZ annual conference in the capital Harare, President Emmerson Mnangagwa, said the launch marked  a critical  turning point in modernisation of public procurement procedures.

 

“We are achieving this after 43 years of independence. It’s a shame. However, this (e-government procurement system) will modernise government  procurement procedure,” President Mnangagwa said.

 

He said that as public procurement plays a significant role in the economy, it is critical for the government to take advantage of the continuous improvements coming from the internet to make procurement of goods and services more efficient through electronic means.

Adopting e-procurement, President Mnangagwa said would result in the government drastically altering the way it interacts with suppliers of goods and services.

In fact, the e-government procurement system removes the human interface as humans are bound to be corrupted when dealing with bidders.

This effectively means that any tender of goods and services shall be taken up only via the e-procurement process.

The system would ensure that submission tenders by bidders and evaluations of tenders would be done online, a move that would change the face of public procurement in Zimbabwe.

It will connect all State entities on one portal, curbing corruption which is rampant within the sector.

The e-system is also aimed at reducing bureaucratic procedures, unwarranted delays and inefficiencies which ultimately become a fertile ground for uncontrolled corruption and other forms of malpractices within the public procurement system that diminish efficiency in public service delivery, at the expense of the ordinary Zimbabweans.

In the past, failure to implement the electronic system has resulted in severe consequences.

According to several reports by the  former Auditor General,  Mildred Chiri over the past decades, the procurement of goods by State-owned entities violated procurement contracts and is being down in the absence of approved procurement plans in most cases.

PRAZ, which was established in 2018 under the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act [Chapter 22:23], which repealed the Procurement Act [Chapter 22:14] and dissolved the State Procurement Board, regulates the public procurement proceedings to ensure transparency, fairness, honesty, cost-effectiveness and competition.

The e-procurement system is critical as it will address historical loopholes in the current public procurement system and will ensure fairness, honesty, cost effectiveness and competition.

It will also bring in efficiency and enhance transparency.

The system will also result in increased disclosures of procurement data, monitoring and oversight of procurement activities and increased participation.

The e-government procurement system will also strengthen public financial management, meaning that there will be availability of real time expenditure data and improved service delivery to the citizens.

Statistics will also be available to the government on how it is spending money and reducing government procurement costs

 

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