Evaluators of multi-million dollar bids are likely to be paid more than GYD$3,000 per bid, even as government moves to hire more such personnel, Chairman of the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB), Berkley Wickham said.
“I have spoken to the Minister (of Finance) about it and we are actively dealing with that,” he said. Wickham could not immediately say how much the payment would be increased by, but he said that should not be seen as a means of discouraging corruption.
“People can be influenced regardless of what they pay…The monies that are being paid, they are not paid to ascertain people’s honesty. It is just to defray any expenses they may have because the evaluators presently come from within the public sector and they are not being paid,” he said.
The NPTAB said government is relying on persons with integrity and are willing to do a good job that can withstand scrutiny. Wickham said background checks would be conducted on the potential evaluators.
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The United States Embassy has been made aware of an ongoing tender scam in which the Embassy’s name and logo have been fraudulently used to target businesses for the provision of solar generators and equipment. This is according to information disseminated by the Embassy by way of a press statement yesterday.
According to the statement, “If your business receives a tender request from a “Ronnel Fisher, Tender Section of the Embassy of the United States” from the following email addresses:
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The first ever meeting of the Heads of Procurement of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) took place on June 20-21 in Barbados with the dark storm clouds of Tropical Storm Bret as the backdrop. Fittingly, the discussion focused on how to create a common market for public procurement and to use procurement as a tool to better prepare for and respond to the natural disasters endemic to the region.
The meeting, which the World Bank and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) jointly organized at CDB’s headquarters, brought together Chief Procurement Officers from eight Caribbean island nations. Representatives from the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID), the OECS Commission and the CARICOM Single Market and Economy Program also participated.
“The workshop served as a constructive platform for straightforward discussion on procurement and its attendant issues. The OECS countries were afforded a worthy opportunity to share experiences, consolidate a common understanding and set a path to further advance practical and realistic measures to modernize our respective procurement systems,” said Mr. Sean Cenac, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance of Antigua and Barbuda and Chairman of his country’s Tenders Board.
In 2010, the seven full member states of the OECS signed the Protocol to the Revised Treaty of Basseterre – the OECS’s founding agreement. This protocol established an Economic Union between OECS countries, including a single currency and a Central Bank. However, with regards to public procurement, significant barriers to inter-island trade and cooperation remain.
During the meeting, the Heads of Procurement concluded that their national procurement systems were developed without coordination with the other OECS countries. This means that a patchwork quilt of disparate laws, regulations and guidelines now exists, creating a confusing and uncoordinated procurement system.
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The University Council of Jamaica has given approval for the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service (MoFPS) and the International Procurement Institute (INPRI), Jamaica Limited to launch Jamaica’s first accredited training and certification series in Public Procurement.
The Public Procurement Training and Certification Series; is a training programme designed by INPRI Jamaica Limited to provide current and practical coverage of internationally recognized best practices, key concepts, principles and applications in the field of Public Sector Procurement (PSP).
The Series is a single undertaking consisting of four levels that will equip participants with the information necessary to enhance their knowledge from the basic essentials of good procurement to international cutting-edge value enhancement strategies. At the close of the series, participants will have completed a total of 96 hours of instruction and performed 4 hours of examinations.
Financial Secretary (Assigned) Everton McFarlane notes that, as part of the broader Government of Jamaica’s (GoJ) modernization programme, the stakeholders in the field of public procurement, are considered to be important links in the chain as GOJ seeks to create greater efficiency in the delivery of service. In this regard, the Government has embarked on a comprehensive re-structuring and institutional strengthening exercise geared towards making Procurement officers more aware of international best practices in their field. It is anticipated that the outcome will result in more effectively managed public funds and satisfied customers” he said.
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The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is encouraging the government to bring its procurement systems in line with international best practices so as to enhance the quality of public investment.
The global body made this statement in its 2017 report on Guyana’s economy.
According to the IMF, enhancing the efficiency of public investment management could help foster economic growth. It noted that public investment has been relatively low for the past two years. The IMF believes that this is due to the 2015 elections, and delays in the procurement and execution of projects in 2016.
It said, “This has been a drag on construction, with spillovers to other sectors. It is therefore important to avoid similar delays in 2017. Bringing project selection, public procurement and investment management in line with international best practices would enhance the efficiency, timeliness and quality of public investment, including through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs).”
In the near term, the IMF said that the government could help to unlock additional external concessional financing, reduce domestic financing needs and bring foreign exchange into the economy.
The officials noted that the IMF’s Public Investment Management Assessment (PIMA) could help streamline the appraisal, selection and execution of projects. So far, the Government has expressed an interest in that assessment.
Perceptions of corruption and favouritism have for years, sullied the image of Guyana’s public procurement system.
However, the APNU+AFC Government and top officials at the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) have made it clear that while there remains room for improvement, they are very satisfied with the progress they have made in arming the system with effective anti-corruption mechanisms.
This was supported and reiterated by NPTAB Head, Berkley Wickham.
Wickham had informed this newspaper on some of the key initiatives and interventions made since he assumed office as Chairman of the NPTAB.
He said that every initiative or intervention undertaken thus far was aimed at changing the long held perception of a tainted public procurement process.
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