The National Public Procurement Authority (NPPA) yesterday launched the first quarter of the 2023 public procurement price norm as part of an effort to bring uniformity in the prices of commonly used tools across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) when undertaking their procurement activities and ensure value for money.
The Price Norm is a required blueprint document that is aimed at enhancing a prudent public financial management system to achieve value for money in procurement activities; according to the Director of Procurement, Public Procurement Directorate at the Ministry of Finance.
As prices of commonly used items keeping soaring frequently, Mr Konneh called on all public procurement officials to use the Price Norm which is a legal requirement for every procurement activity in Sierra Leone by public procurement officials.
Mr Konneh said the publication of the usual public procurement Price Norm ensures checks and balances between the private sector and MDAs. He added that it has also ensured transparency and accountability in doing business with the Government. Speaking during a news conference at the Ministry of Planning and Economic Developmentโs Conference Hall in Freetown, the Chief Executive of NPPA, Ibrahim Brima Swaray said the usual launch of the procurement document by the Authority is part of Government efforts to judiciously manage the countryโs meager resources and prevent it from drowning in bad procurement deals.
He added that the sacred document which usually updates prices of goods and services every quarter updating newer frequently used commodities in newer editions will change the dynamics and also narrow the disparity in the prices of goods and services, whilst achieving uniformity in the process.
Meanwhile, Mr Swaray implored procurement professionals to ensure fairness and transparency in procurement dealings; saying that it is a fight in the interest of the country to protect its meager resources.
Seemingly angry, Brima Swaray implored procurement professionals to internalize the reference document which helps to guide their work to avoid embarrassment from auditors as reports from Audit Service Sierra Leone keep implicating procurement officials yearly.
