Government loading previously signed contracts into new e-procurement system
Bahamas
The government is loading previously signed contracts into its new Bonfire e-procurement system, so that contracts already awarded since the Davis administration took office almost two years ago, will be available to the public, Financial Secretary Simon Wilson told members of the media yesterday.
Wilson reiterated that the old system the government used to keep such records did not “keep good records”, and insisted that all contracts the government signs are a matter of public record.
The Progressive Liberal Party-led government revamped the public procurement legislation and is now putting its new Bonfire system to work.
The Ministry of Finance launched the improved e-procurement portal last September, in order to fulfill its “commitment of transparency and ease of access to procurement opportunities required under the Public Procurement Act, 2021”.
The new platform allows for registered vendors to only receive notices for tenders they are eligible for, to search for opportunities across all government agencies, and to download and receive access to all government procurement opportunities.
“The previous system we had did not keep good records. It’s a very old system,” said Wilson.
“So, what we’re doing is we’re back-filling our information in the new Bonfire system to publish contracts and so forth. To to be clear, all government contracts are public knowledge. So, we don’t have any black budget. So, if the government signs a contract, obviously the government wants you to know. It’s the public’s money. But it is the reporting format that’s the challenge. So, that’s what the issue is. The government doesn’t sign any contract in the dark.”
There have been complaints, though, that the government has not yet disclosed many contracts that have been signed since coming to office.
The Ministry of Finance held a workshop yesterday to assist Bahamian businesses in ensuring their documents for bidding processes are up to par when they apply for an opportunity locally or internationally.
Wilson said it has been found that many Bahamian businesses are passed up for opportunities because of deficiencies in their documentation.
Yesterday’s workshop focused on the energy sector in The Bahamas.
“Renewable energy is very, very important for us,” said Wilson.
“This workshop is because the IDB [Inter-American Development Bank] rules for bids are kind of different. What we’ve found in the past is that Bahamian firms, for whatever reason, don’t do well in the bid process. So, we have the pre-bid workshops to get Bahamian firms to understand the opportunity… understand the rules. We can do the work, but we need to give Bahamians the opportunity to get the contracts.”
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