Govt. moving to close more loopholes in public procurement …forges ahead with debarment procedures for shoddy contractors

Nov 30, 2018 News

The Government said it has prioritised the modernisation of the public procurement process and plans to effect several changes in the coming months to ensure improved accountability and effectiveness.
Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan, has said that the revision of the public procurement legal framework was completed, recently. The next step is to undertake the legal drafting.
He said that while this is being awaited, amendments to the existing law and regulations will be pursued, in 2019, to give recognition to the Government’s intention to provide 20 percent of procurement going to small businesses.
Jordan noted that debarment procedures for contractors who do shoddy work will also be pursued along with mandatory procurement plans, clarifying bidders’ registration data and amending thresholds for restrictive tendering and the quotation method.
He explained that Guyana is expected to commence utilising the CARICOM Public Procurement Notice Board for all public procurement.
“This will allow entities to advertise on a regional site while registered local bidders will have free access to the advertisements,” Jordan stated.
He noted that in keeping with the technological advancements in procurement, the strategy for the long-awaited e-procurement will be completed in 2019, with implementation envisaged to commence in 2020.
The Public Procurement Commission (PPC) has launched consultations to familiarise public authorities on proposed regulations which would make it easier to debar contractors who do substandard work.
There is already Draft Debarment and Suspension Regulations. The Public Procurement Act, makes references in the Procurement Act to the suspension and debarment of errant contractors, but the required regulations for the debarment process were not included.
Guyana’s procurement entities are responsible for the management of over $110B.
Last year’s Auditor General’s report said that a consultancy firm was hired to draft regulations under the Procurement Act, outlining the procedures to be followed by the Public Procurement Commission or NPTAB, in adjudicating debarment proceedings.
The firm examined and made recommendations on revisions to the regulations, with a view to increasing government’s threshold limits, in light of current prices and the fact that the last increase in limits was in November 2004.
The National Procurement and Tender Administration Board provided a copy of the draft Debarment and Suspension Regulations to the commission for its review. Once the process of consultations is completed, the draft document will be presented in the National Assembly.

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