Abuja: The Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) is renewing its partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to drive digital innovation and institutional reforms in the procurement sector. Dr Adebowale Adedokun, Director-General of BPP, disclosed this in a statement issued by Zira Nagga, Head of Public Relations.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Adedokun emphasized during a visit by a UNDP delegation that the partnership would enhance efficiency, transparency, and service delivery. The collaboration, which began in 2000, has facilitated procurement capacity building, stakeholder engagements, workshops with Civil Society Organizations, study tours, and the production of jingles and advertisements.
Adedokun noted that while previous collaborations faced setbacks due to funding and prospective changes, the current focus would be on modernizing procurement processes. This includes improving efficiency, transparency, and service delivery. With 80 percent of UNDP's work involving procurement, BPP is considered a crucial partner in these efforts.
The Director-General highlighted ongoing reforms such as the digitization of procurement, development of a local framework for the Nigeria First Policy, health sector procurement reform, and capacity building. Additional areas of focus include procurement professionalism, revising the Procurement Act, monitoring and evaluation guidelines, audit guidelines, price intelligence, community-based procurement, and affirmative procurement for inclusivity.
Adedokun stressed the importance of adequate support to equip the bureau with necessary infrastructure, such as a monitoring dashboard system to track procurement status and expenditures across Nigeria.
Mrs. Elsie Attafuah, Resident Representative for UNDP in Nigeria, expressed appreciation for the collaboration invitation and praised BPP's reforms in digitalization, transparency, and accountability. Attafuah pointed out areas where UNDP's reforms could complement BPP's efforts, including structural transformations, innovation, digital reforms, digital public infrastructure, data forecasting, and community development acceleration.
She emphasized the significance of inclusivity in the partnership to drive meaningful change in Nigeria. Attafuah reiterated UNDP's commitment to sustainable procurement policies and its CIPS accreditation, underscoring its expertise in procurement implementation. "This partnership aims to drive meaningful change and support the BPP's mission," she stated.