Forum on public procurement held

28-01-08
Page 38

THE Public Procurement Authority (PPA) has embarked on a move to adopt a sustainable public procurement (SPP) approach aimed at ensuring that public funds are spent on projects that foster sustainable development in the country.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the PPA, Mr Adjenim Boateng Adjei, who made this known, said with sustainable issues becoming vital in the development agenda of nations, it was time to shift the focus of government procurement from mainly economic advantages to SPP systems which resulted in long-term benefits .
Mr Adjei said this in Accra on Thursday at a forum to introduce the concept of SPP to key stakeholders and establish a task force to manage the country’s SPP approach.
He said the task force, which would comprise representatives from civil society, the Trades Union Congress (TUC), industry, commerce, the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), among other groups, aimed at bringing SPP on stream in the country.
Mr Adjei said the functions of the task force included drawing up an implementation plan, carrying out public education on SPP and identifying procurement that had significant sustainability issues. It would also infuse SPP issues into the existing procurement process and establish indicators to measure SPP operations and impact.
“SPP implementation will not be without challenges; there will be hurdles to be surmounted,” he said, adding that they included getting a reasonable budget, the availability of SPP compliance inspectors, a legal framework and contractors.
He indicated that SPP was one major way of seeking to achieve the good governance goal of realising development that gave priority to the poor, advanced women, sustained the environment and created the needed opportunities for employment and other livelihoods.
Mr Adjei stated that government procurement needed to consider sustainability issues, as it was the only way it could be sure to offer real value for money over a long term, without compromising environmental and social responsibilities, adding that “this will ensure that development targets are achieved through the acquisition of goods, works and services”.
He said with the government being the largest single buyer, it was evident that what and how it bought and acquired goods and services contributed significantly to its ability to deliver sustainable development, saying that many countries used public procurement as a technique for tackling social disadvantage and exclusion.
“The PPA, being the only African representative on the Marrakech Task Force on SPP, has the responsibility of leading the implementation of SPP in Ghana and Africa. Ghana stands to benefit in the long term if SPP is implemented,” he explained.

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