he Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) and the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) have begun discussions on amending the Public Procurement Act, 2007, as part of efforts to align public procurement with ongoing reforms.
The engagement took place at the NRS headquarters in Abuja, where the BPP delegation was led by its Director-General, Dr Adebowale Adedokun, and received by the Executive Chairman of the NRS, Zacch Adedeji.
Adedeji said the Act needs to be updated to match the country's current situation. "We need to look at the Public Procurement Act and see how we can revalidate it to reflect the current realities," he said.
"We are just starting this engagement, and we need to set up a technical committee that will look at the Act," Adedeji added, calling for contributions from stakeholders.
He linked better procurement to tax compliance, noting that citizens are more willing to pay taxes when they see public funds used well. "When people pay taxes, they expect to see the value of what they have paid for," Adedeji said.
Areas proposed for review include: electronic procurement, community-based procurement, sector-specific procurement, affirmative procurement for youths, persons with disabilities and veterans, procurement thresholds and approval limits, and a national contractor database with a more effective registration system.
Adedokun said the Bureau's aim is to speed up delivery while protecting value. "The Bureau of Public Procurement is not a bottleneck. We are an enabler," he said. He added that the Bureau wants the entire procurement cycle digitised, from needs assessment to payment, and that evaluation should focus on outcomes rather than price alone.
"We are not after the lowest cost; we are after value for money," Adedokun said. Group Director, Support Services at the NRS, Kunle Ogidi, thanked the BPP for training NRS staff on procurement procedures.
