President Ali mulls opposition, civil society to scrutinise bids for contracts

Aug 19, 2026 News

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By Davina Bagot

(Kaieteur News) Government spending this year has jumped a massive 307% compared to spending just five years ago in 2021. Guyana’s budget in 2026 reached $1.558 trillion compared with $383.1 billion in 2021. A significant chunk of the revenue passes through the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB), making it increasingly important for systems to be put in place to scrutinise the use of money from the national purse.

To offer an added layer of scrutiny in light of the massive growth in contracts being awarded through NPTAB, the government of Guyana (GoG) is considering including the opposition and civil society on the board.

This was revealed by President Irfaan Ali on Tuesday in response to media questions. In his opening remarks, the head of state told reporters that government will roll out a modernisation of the national procurement system.

He said before the end of this year, an e-procurement system will be completed and integrated. According to the president, this would include a digital bidders’ register, an e-tender life cycle module, a national e-tender portal and an e-market place.

“Now this will remove all of the need for the massive papers and move from a paper based system to a complete electronic system that is trackable throughout the process,” Ali explained.
Additionally, he said the digital bidders register which already exists at NPTAB will be expanded to include details on supplier/ contractors such as beneficial ownership, GRA and NOS compliance, classification (small, medium or large), past performance, debarments and suspension.

With regards to including opposition and civil society members on the tender board, Ali sought to explain that there the body already features multi-stakeholders with little involvement by government.

He said, “Remember in terms of the decision-making of the contract, the present law is that the evaluators and the tender board make a recommendation. The government or cabinet has no role in saying that this contract will be awarded. We can offer a no-objection or not, so that is the current system. The tender board itself is made up of multi-stakeholders, persons representing private sector, different interests. So that is already there in terms of the tender board.”

As such, he noted that when government moves to launch the digital platform, it will require amendments to the procurement law to give effect to systems such as blacklisting of contractors that fail to deliver on time among others.

At this stage, he said government can review the law to include representatives from the opposition and civil society.

“The modernisation of the procurement system is ongoing. A major component is the digital procurement system. When that is completed, it will necessitate amendments in the legislation. We already have a board with multi-stakeholder representation…what we can do is to look at the representation that is there and to see whether it is adequate given the growth that is taking place or whether we need to amend and add on to what is there because of the load of work and the growth and expansion in projects,” the President explained.

In this year’s budget, $145.2 million is set aside to support the strengthening of NPTAB.

The A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Members of Parliament (MP)s Ganesh Mahipaul and Christopher Jones in March 2025 submitted a motion to the National Assembly to seek an amendment to the procurement act to include members in the work of the NPTAB.

The motion stressed that it is essential to ensure that all segments of the society, including the parliamentary opposition, are able to contribute to and oversee the procurement process, fostering a spirit of inclusivity and strengthening the overall trust of the public in the government’s actions.

As a result, the motion highlighted the need for the participation of the leader of the parliamentary opposition in the NPTAB to provide an additional layer of scrutiny, enhancing the transparency and accountability of the procurement system and ensuring that the views of the opposition are considered in decisions that affect public spending and procurement policies.

The motion states “Be it resolved, that the Procurement Act of 2003 be amended to include, as part of the membership of the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB), one member nominated by the leader of the parliamentary opposition. This would serve to ensure a more balanced representation in the NPTAB, fostering greater accountability and contributing to the continued strengthening of Guyana’s democratic processes.” As a result, it called on the Government of Guyana to initiate the necessary legislative amendments to the Procurement Act of 2003, thereby aligning the NPTAB’s structure with the democratic principle of broader participation in governance, particularly in the vital area of public procurement.

Mahipaul told this newspaper on Tuesday evening that the motion did not reach the order paper in parliament but he intends to resubmit upon the reconvening in October.
In a brief comment, he insisted that all state boards and commissions that require accountability, transparency and good governance to prevail must include opposition representatives. He said,

“We are of the opinion that proportional representation should prevail. In the same way it is allowed in parliament, it should flow into all boards that exist to enhance transparency and accountability and build trust with the Guyanese people.”

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• amend, Board, Law, NPTAB, opposition, procurement

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