BPP’s public procurement boot camp
To start with, the programme was expected to be tough and highly intensive with at least two tests, and a mandatory examination at the end to determine whether the 251 participants will qualify with certificates to be referred as Procurement professionals. The various participants knew the score, or at least it was drilled into them […]
To start with, the programme was expected to be tough and highly intensive with at least two tests, and a mandatory examination at the end to determine whether the 251 participants will qualify with certificates to be referred as Procurement professionals. The various participants knew the score, or at least it was drilled into them from the onset by Debo Adedokun and his crew or remarkable secretariat and facilitators. But then, the Administrative Staff College of Nigeria (ASCON) failed to keep its own part of the bargain.
A plaque conspicuously placed on the massive premises of the institution boldly indicates that it was commissioned in 1976 by General Olusegun Obasanjo, when he was the military Head of State Olusegun Obasanjo, but in reality ASCON was established by decree No. 39 of 1973. Under normal circumstances, it should be next only to the Nigeria Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, in terms of stature and prestige among such institutions stragigically established for leadership training and capacity building for the sort of public service that Nigeria desperately required for effective national development.
But like a bad referee in a match between two competent teams, ASCON, somehow, contrived to become the focus of attention for the duration of the programme. Like the rest of Nigeria itself, the present facilities at ASCON is a pathetic reflection of decay and obvious neglect. It is incredible that while it boasts of s serene and conducive training environment on its website, ASCON still concluded the message by claiming to have standard hostel facilities, classrooms and constant water and electricity supply to match its vision of being a world class Management Development Institute (MDI).
Perhaps if ASCON had not suffered the kind of neglect that is so obvious in its present state, it would have fit the description on its website perfectly. The signs were everywhere. Those who envisioned and planned for the institution meant well. It was constructed to ensure that the public servants sent there at different times remained focused on what took them there.
With its own mini power plant, water and sewage treatment facilities; along with an Olympic sized swimming pool and tennis courts, ASCON was designed to avoid distraction to all who were sent there for capacity building. Added to its own staff quarters and a health clinic, the potential of ASCON is undeniable but try telling that to the participants of the second batch of the two-week conversion training for Procurement Officers in the various Ministries, Departments which ended last Friday.
The ASCON of today is a relic of the glorious past that those who frequented the place in the 1970s and 1980s once relished. The water from the treatment plant flowed quite alright, but it was brown in colour and clearly unfit for consumption. The gigantic swimming pool complex is an eyesore and totally out of commission. The massive electricity generator set frequently broke down.
The situation unsettled the 251 participants who had to cope with the grueling schedule of lectures, tutorials, and the two tests conducted each day as part of their continuous assessment. It took the valiant efforts of the Adebowale Adedokun who meticulously conducted the programme and Ibrahim Jibril Mason who was the elected Class Governor to maintain the peace between the management of the institution and the participants. It did not have be so except for the fact that the sordid situation of the facilities reminded many of the corruption that they were being trained to fight in their individual and collective capacities.
The hostels were not offered free of charge after all. Given half a chance, most of the participants would have preferred commuting from hotels in Badagry to Topo – the exact location of ASCON – but the punishing schedule of the lectures precluded that. All the problems aside, the participants also demonstrated high degree of maturity a fact that was not lost on the Coordinators in closing remarks after the final examination.
To those who do not know it, the Procurement Conversion certification training – which was more like a booth camp for its punishing schedule- was in fulfilment of one of the core mandates of the BPP as reflected in the Public Procurement Act (PPA, 2007). The second batch of participants this year also benefitted from new innovations to the training curriculum in the form of the continuous assessment for the entire duration of the programme which added up to the final score of participants. Participants were also encouraged to create an on-line platform for the exchange of knowledge and ideas.
The new strategies, and the use of group formations for the dissemination of information, strongly appealed to the participants who remained focused throughout the duration. The net impact was noticed in the quality and content of the interactive sessions with the various facilitators.
Today, the reality is that whether Nigerians like it or not, the PPA, 2007, has come to stay. It has radically impacted on how public procurement processes are executed in Nigeria. That was why the sentiments against the poor facilities at ASCON resonated so negatively with the participants. There were some who openly asked questions about what was done with the accommodation fees they paid when the institution could not guarantee regular power supply for the duration of their stay at least.
At the beginning of the programmer, participants were informed that before the enactment of the PPA, 2007 a study conducted by the World Bank in 2003 concluded that for each Naira appropriated for projects in Nigeria at least 60 kobo was lost to corruption. Nearly ten years since the enactment of the Act, it will be impossible to reach the same conclusion if another study were to be conducted today. The BPP is entitled to share in the credit for that even though, much could still be done to strengthen the capacity of the agency.
Inevitably, the two-week programme also provided a platform for participants to exchange some views with the facilitators on the scope and application of the Act. There were questions on how the activities of the new Efficiency Unit could interface with the activities of the bureau. Some participants expressed the view that most of the measures already announced by the Efficiency Unit have been effectively covered by various sections of the PPA, 2007. It was gratifying to learn that the BPP is already discussing with the Efficiency Unit to streamline their operations.
My personal worry on the measures already announced by the Efficiency Unit is that in its quest to cut costs and wastages in the operational activities of MDAs, it may not be paying sufficient attention on how their various expenditures impact on their given mandates. Before we can determine how and where the MDAs should cut their operational costs, we need to pay more than a passing interest on their key mandates. Activities which the Efficiency Unit may consider to be wasteful in some MDAs may be integral to the execution to the mandates of others.
It was also for the same reason that I am of the strong opinion that the critical stage of “needs assessments” which precedes the articulation of Procurement Plans, must be predicated on the mandates, objectives, and strategic initiatives which the various MDAs have outlined to meet the needs of their stakeholders. That will make the nature of all procurement activities ‘strategic’ in nature. It will also make the functions of the BPP and the Efficiency Unit in the Federal Ministry of Finance much easier.