The Public Procurement Authority (PPA) has ended a five-day training workshop for 18 Municipal and District Procurement Officers (MDPOs) in the Volta Region at Ho. It was meant to improve efficiency and transparency in procurement through the Ghana Electronic System (GHNEPS).
Speaking at the closing ceremony, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer (DCO), Mr. Kwame Prempeh, explained that the training was to enable them roll out the system (GHNEPS) onto the 700 public institutions in the country.
Mr. Prempeh stated that the electronic procurement system had many advantages, including cost effectiveness, transparency and accountability, and also saved time for transacting business. This, he argued, would go a long way to promote productivity at the various Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs).
He said under the new electronic procurement system, there was no need for the supplier to visit the premises of government institutions to engage in business, but could do so electronically. Adding that evaluation would also be done electronically, saying the situation where personnel absenteeism affected productivity had been removed.
Mr. Prempeh said the new system was cost-effective, because meetings would no longer be held to solicit the payment for allowances, saying the tender documents used in the past would still hold, but this time through the electronic system.
The Volta Regional Minister, Dr. Archibald Letsa, said the training programme, which was being done on monthly basis, was aimed at transforming the public sector services to paperless, and this included the PPA, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA), the Scholarship Secretariat and the Passport Office.
He said the implementation of the e-procurement system was a means to reduce the incidence of corruption in the procurement process to the barest minimum, if not to eradicate it completely by reducing human interface.
The Regional Minister advised the beneficiaries of the electronic procurement training programme to effectively put the new skills acquired to improve upon quality of service delivery at their various workplaces.
Participants at the programme, lauded the new procurement system, but were quick to remind the Authority to, as matter of importance, provide internet services at the various MDAs, since the new electronic system would largely depend on internet services to function.
The participants also appealed to the Authorities to provide the relevant equipment to the personnel at the various municipalities and districts, such as computers, which would enable them to put their newly-acquired skills to effective use, saying the new would not be effective without the provision of computers and internet services.
