New procurement committee to tackle tender bending
View(s):A new National Procurement Committee (NPC) is to be set up soon aimed at streamlining procurement of items for government institutions and proper monitoring of tender procedures.
It will comprise experts and professionals in the field of tender procedure and purchasing but its composition is yet to be finalised.
The new committee will also investigate mega development project contracts granted for unsolicited project proposals without calling for tenders during the previous regime, official sources revealed.
Sri Lanka’s National Procurement Agency (NPA) was shut down in 2008 due to political reasons but it had nothing to do with the NPA’s lack of performance or effectiveness.
The functions of the NPA have reverted back to the Public Finance Division of the Treasury Department. But after the setting up of the committee all government contracts will go through it, the Business Times reliably learns.
The new committee will be entrusted with the task of formulating a National Procurement Strategy and streamline the National Procurement System and Procedures.
The aim of the new government is to eliminate corrupt practices, wastage of time and funds and improve transparency and efficiency pertaining to government procurement activities, the sources said.(Bandula)