World Bank Hails Rivers Procurement Reforms

A consultant on procurement with the World Bank(WB),Mr Rogati Kayani, has hailed the due process reforms so far carried out in Rivers State.

Mr. Kayani gave the commendation while delivering a dinner speech on the topic, ‘The Role of Public Procurement System in Service Delivery by Governments’, as part of three day Public Procurement Forum organised by the Rivers State Bureau on Public Procurement held in Government House last Thursday in Port Harcourt.

The World Bank procurement specialist disclosed that the level of savings recorded by the state since 2009 when it adopted the due process in its activities had swollen tremendously, stating,” In 2009, 61 percent of Rivers State budgetary resources passed through the procurement process. In dollar terms, this translated to 57 million dollars”.

Aside from the gains made economically, Mr Kayani explained that due process also stimulates governance, as he tasked political leaders to delegate the contract approval function so that it would instil accountability in the system.

The procurement expert further counselled that for the procurement process to make its required impact, it must be divested from bureaucratic influences and given independence of operations, “experience in other countries has shown that full decentralisation of the procurement has greatly enhanced the efficiency of the process”, he said.

Consequently, he maintained that for the procurement process to play its rightful role, it must be aligned in line with realities while taking into consideration the need to decentralise the approval process in tune with budgetary specifications.

Mr Kayani also stressed the need for training of staff responsible for procurement, this, he said would help in quick service delivery according to modern standards.

Later on, speaking through the Secretary to the State Government, Governor Chibuike Amaechi remarked that the state had recorded huge success, explaining that the bureau had been enjoying full support of the government since its was given free hand to operate..

Governor Amaechi assured,” we will continue to improve on the process so that we will have more money for projects”.

He expressed appreciation to all the delegates who attended the forum from about 12 states of the federation. including Abuja.