ZIMBABWE will have a new law by year-end, which will decentralise purchasing to procurement management units in government departments, parastatals, State-owned enterprises and local authorities in far reaching reforms meant to ensure efficiency and quality service delivery.
Source: Zim sets year-end target for procurement reform law – NewsDay Zimbabwe October 19, 2016
BY NDAMU SANDU
Solomon Mhlanga, senior principal director in the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC), told journalists attending a procurement and contracting out workshop in Kariba yesterday the reforms would transform the State Procurement Board (SPB) into an authority responsible for setting standards and guidelines, as well as performing a monitoring and evaluation role over procurement.
“We expect the Bill to be gazetted and presented to Parliament by next week. We expect the Bill to be assented to by President (Robert Mugabe) before the end of the year,” he said.
Mhlanga, who is in charge of public sector modernisation, performance management and State enterprises, said parastatals and State-owned enterprises would become more accountable, hence, improving service delivery.
Senior procurement executive in the OPC, Nyasha Chizu said the review of the Procurement Act was in line with section 315 of the Constitution, which decentralises procurement. He said the SPB will no longer review tenders, as there would be an executive review before the awarding of the tender by a team involving the Accountant General, Auditor General, Attorney General and a representative from Public Works.
“In the case that the units fail, the licence is withdrawn. There is also licensing of procurement personnel. Under the current legislation, a procurement person is fired from one organisation and gets a higher job in another organisation,” he said.
The wheels have been moving slowly in public procurement reforms despite the existence of a country procurement assessment report. The report culminated from an integrated fiduciary assessment project undertaken by government in 2010 with the support from the World Bank.
Reforms will be done in two phases: legislative review and capacity building and e-procurement in line with the e-government agenda, Mhlanga said.
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