Government has again stressed the need for efficient procurement planning, saying it is the foundation of successful project delivery and budget implementation. Olusegun Aganga, finance minister, challenged the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) to ensure that effective planning is made central to the procurement process within every part of the government.
Aganga, who spoke in Abuja at the Procurement Planning Sensitization Workshop organized by the BPP, noted that in the absence of such planning, “there will be no set targets or deliverables against which to measure progress or performance.” He described procurement planning as a “necessary step to enhance the quality and efficiency of our spending on capital and other outlays as well as delivering value for money to Nigerians.”
“Fiscal and budgetary reforms are one of the pillars of this administration’s economic growth strategy,” he said. “The need to protect, maximise and diversify our revenue base has to be combined with rationalising spending without sacrificing quality and ensuring value for money at all times.”
He noted that planning not only saves money but also ensures a high level of quality and implementation. The minister disclosed that government will effect from the current fiscal year, introduce the principles of performance based budgeting, pointing out that the new initiative will ensure a shift from mere resource commitments to the MDAs towards actual execution, delivery and performance.
Aganga stated that the very first step in the public procurement process should be efficient procurement planning that is driven by a proper Needs Assessment. According to him, procurement planning should entail the identification of what is to be procured, how project needs can best be met, the scope of goods, works or services required, the procurement strategies or methods to be employed, the time frame for execution and a breakdown of responsibilities for the full procurement process.
The minister therefore directed that procurement planning process is to be used by all MDAs to plan procurement activities for a specified period of time. According to him, “each year, MDAs are required to prepare a budget for all activities to be executed within the financial year and this should be immediately followed with a detailed procurement plan”.