From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) and the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) have begun discussions on the proposed amendment of the Public Procurement Act, 2007, to align procurement processes with current realities and ongoing reforms.
The discussions took place during a strategic engagement between the two agencies at the NRS headquarters in Abuja, where the Director-General of BPP, Dr Adebowale Adedokun, led a delegation to meet with the NRS leadership.
The Executive Chairman of NRS, Zacch Adedeji, said the proposed amendment would help address challenges in public procurement and ensure that government spending delivers value to Nigerians.
Adedeji called for stakeholders’ contributions to the review and said a technical committee would be needed to examine the law and identify areas requiring amendment.
He said, “We need to look at the Public Procurement Act and see how we can revalidate it to reflect the current realities. This is an engagement, and we need everybody to contribute to the process.
“We are just starting this engagement, and we need to set up a technical committee that will look at the Act and make recommendations on what needs to be done.”
The NRS chairman stressed that effective procurement was essential to ensuring that public funds were properly utilised, noting that abandoned projects amounted to a waste of taxpayers’ money.
According to him, “When people pay taxes, they expect to see the value of what they have paid for. If projects are abandoned or do not deliver what they are meant to deliver, then the money collected from the people has not achieved its purpose.”
Adedeji added that better procurement practices could encourage tax compliance by giving citizens confidence that public revenue was being spent responsibly.
The Director-General of BPP, Dr Adebowale Adedokun, said the bureau was committed to supporting reforms that would improve public procurement and speed up project delivery.
Adedokun said the proposed amendment would provide an opportunity to address challenges in the existing framework and introduce measures to make procurement more responsive to government and economic needs.
He said, “The Bureau of Public Procurement is not a bottleneck. We are an enabler. We are here to solve problems and ensure that procurement supports the delivery of government projects.
“We want to have a system where the entire procurement process, from needs assessment to payment, can be digitised. This will improve transparency, accountability and efficiency in the way government conducts procurement.”
The BPP boss identified electronic procurement, community-based procurement, sector-specific procurement and affirmative procurement for youths, persons with disabilities and veterans among the reforms being considered.
He said procurement approaches should take into account the peculiarities of different sectors rather than apply the same process to every industry.
Adedokun stressed that procurement decisions should prioritise value for money rather than simply choosing the lowest bidder.
He said, “We are not after the lowest cost; we are after value for money. The objective is to ensure that what government pays for delivers the quality and benefits expected.”
He added that reviewing procurement thresholds and approval limits could help accelerate project execution while maintaining compliance with established rules.
Adedokun also said a national contractor database would improve oversight and accountability by providing better information about businesses participating in public procurement. He said a more effective contractor registration system could also support revenue generation by strengthening the government’s ability to identify and monitor contractors operating in the public sector.
Also speaking, the NRS Group Director, Support Services, Kunle Ogidi, commended the BPP for its support and training of NRS personnel on procurement procedures.
Ogidi said the engagement would strengthen cooperation between the two agencies and improve the capacity of public institutions to deliver their responsibilities.
He said, “We appreciate the support the Bureau of Public Procurement has given to the NRS, particularly in training our staff and guiding us on procurement processes.
“This collaboration will help us strengthen our processes and support the work of the NRS and other Ministries, Departments and Agencies in delivering on the Renewed Hope Agenda.”
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