The Chairman of the Nigerian House of Representatives’ Committee on Public Procurement, Reps. Unyime Idem, has charged Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) to transit fully to automated e-procurement system in order to effectively regulate, review, and monitor public procurement in Nigeria.
The charge formed part of Reps. Idem’s address at the opening of the budget defence session of the Bureau of Public Procurement with respect to the Appropriation Bill, 2025, at the National Assembly, Complex, Abuja.
The Public Procurement committee chairman cited other countries like Rwanda, which have transitioned to 100% automation and e-procurement system, noting that, this has helped them achieve effective procurement, saved the government huge sums and is effective in achieving efficiency, transparency and real-time results.
In his words, “I urge the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) to expedite action on leveraging technology to enhance its operations. To effectively regulate, review, and monitor public procurement, the BPP must deploy cutting-edge IT assets, digital platforms, and artificial intelligence.
“I charge the BPP to prioritize the upgrade of its outdated digital infrastructure, including the National Contractors Database Intelligence, Price Intelligence and Monitoring, Asset Tracking and Management, and other critical systems, to ensure seamless and transparent public procurement processes.”
Idem however decried BPP’s inability to discharge very critical constitutional responsibilities, stressing the need for adequate budgetary provisions for the agency to function effectively.
He hinted that having perused the Needs Assessment conducted by the BPP preparatory to the presentation of the extant budget, the actual needs of the Bureau stands at about 73 billion naira.
“I have noted that there are some major critical needs of the Bureau, for example, the Bureau does not have a befitting and functional Office accommodation. An important institution like the BPP that is reviewing huge projects and regulating all the major capital projects in Nigeria should have a befitting office.”
“The BPP is statutorily required under Section 5(q) of the Public Procurement Act 2007 to perform procurement audits and submit such reports to the National Assembly.
“However, inadequate funding has hindered the BPP’s ability to effectively discharge this responsibility. To address this, the Committee emphasizes the need to ensure adequate budgetary provision to enable the BPP to carry out procurement audits and submit timely reports to the National Assembly, thereby enhancing transparency and accountability in public procurement processes.”
On revenue generation, the Ukanafun/Oruk Anam legislator cited relevant sections of the Public Procurement Act 2007 which gives the Bureau powers to generate IGR and therefore urged it to “think outside the box on ways it can generate its own IGR.”
