Description |
: |
Policy makers need to have clear idea about the process of public procurement because they are involved in decision making in development activities of the government.
The Cabinet Secretary, Mohammad Shafiul Alam, made the observation while opening a half-day orientation on public procurement management at the Conference Room of the Cabinet Division in the Bangladesh Secretariat on August 11, 2016, Thursday.
The Cabinet Secretary underscored the need for knowing the procurement process as ensuring value for money requires efficiency, economy, competition, transparency and accountability in public procurement.
A total of 22 high officials of various ministries and divisions attended the orientation organized by the Central Procurement Technical Unit (CPTU) of IMED, Ministry of Planning, in cooperation with the Fineurop, a consulting firm, and the Cabinet Division.
Secretaries who were also present on the occasion are Farid Uddin Ahmed Chowdhury of IMED, Monowar Islam of the Power Division and Md Sohrab Hossain of the Ministry of Education. All other officials who attended the orientation are in the rank of Additional Secretary.
The IMED Secretary said public procurement is done with public money. So citizens also have the right to know about the quality of procurement. Mentioning the need for citizen engagement in public procurement he said it is being examined by CPTU now. He sought cooperation of all policy makers in the smooth implementation of electronic government procurement (e-GP) in the country. The Secretary said IMED has introduced Project Monitoring Information System (PMIS) for digital reporting on implementation status. He also requested all concerned to have training on PMIS and make it a success.
Director General of CPTU Md Faruque Hossain conducted the orientation session on public procurement management. His presentation covered the issues rule of law, good governance in public procurement, sustainable procurement, rights of government procuring entities, eligibility of tenderers, qualification, responsiveness, market comparable prices etc.
Participants raised various questions and the DG, CPTU clarified those in light of the Public Procurement Act and Rules. Earlier another similar orientation was conducted at IMED. In total about 90 such high officials will be given orientation on public procurement management under the Public Procurement Reform Project-II being implemented by CPTU. A total of 18 categories of training on public procurement are going on for various stakeholders under the project. |