Saki Calls for Stakeholder Consultation to Strengthen BPPA, Modernise e-GP

State Minister for Planning Md. Zonayed Abdur Rahim Saki, MP, has underscored the need for broad-based stakeholder consultation to strengthen the institutional capacity of the Bangladesh Public Procurement Authority (BPPA) in response to its expanding oversight responsibilities in public procurement. Addressing a stakeholder consultation workshop as the chief guest at the BPPA conference room on the Bangladesh Planning Commission campus today, the State Minister said such consultations are essential to identify the institutional and regulatory reforms required to build a stronger, more effective procurement authority.

The workshop, organised by the BPPA, focused on enhancing the electronic Government Procurement (e-GP) system, strengthening e-GP monitoring, and expanding the institutional capacity of the authority. It was chaired by BPPA Chief Executive Officer (Secretary) SM Moin Uddin Ahmed while Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) Secretary Shirajun Noor Chowdhury attended as special guest. 

Dohatec New Media conducted the workshop. The State Minister said the consultation aimed to assess the capacity requirements of the BPPA and explore ways to ensure greater fairness and competition by creating opportunities for new entrants in public procurement, said a press release. "To achieve this, we need to amend both the Public Procurement Act and the Public Procurement Rules," he said.

He observed that public procurement had gradually become concentrated among a limited group of participants over the years and stressed the need to remove barriers to ensure a more competitive and inclusive procurement environment. More than 30 representatives from procuring entities, business associations, government agencies, the private sector, academia, and the media participated in the consultation.

To facilitate the discussion, BPPA Director Shah Eyamin Ul Islam delivered a presentation titled "Legal Framework of Public Procurement, Achievements of the e-GP System, Challenges and Way Forward". The presentation highlighted Bangladesh's public procurement reform journey, the establishment and organisational structure of the BPPA, progress and achievements of the e-GP system, existing challenges, and future reform initiatives.

BPPA CEO, SM Moin Uddin Ahmed, said the authority is committed to transforming the existing e-GP platform into a technology-driven, citizen-centric, and fully automated procurement system. "We also plan to organize consultations at the divisional level involving users from district and Upazilla levels so that the reform process reflects the experiences and expectations of stakeholders across the country," he said.

He added that the government intends to revise the Public Procurement Act and Rules by incorporating recommendations received through the consultation process. Participants also reviewed the proposed 110-member BPPA organogram and opined that the proposed staffing strength would be inadequate to discharge the authority's growing responsibilities, including regulatory oversight, compliance monitoring, training, research, policy development, and nationwide capacity-building activities.

They further emphasized the need for greater interoperability between the e-GP platform and other automated public-sector systems to improve efficiency, transparency, and service delivery. Speaking at the workshop, IMED Secretary Shirajun Noor Chowdhury said delays in project implementation are primarily caused by two factors-land acquisition and procurement.

The government is placing the highest priority on timely implementation of development projects and, therefore, strengthening the institutional capacity of the BPPA and modernizing the e-GP system with advanced technologies have become imperative, he noted. The IMED Secretary also stressed the importance of expanding procurement training for ministry-level officials, saying that effective supervision of procurement activities by ministries requires a sound understanding of procurement act, rules, and procedures.