The Lagos State Public Procurement Agency has been commended for the giant milestones it has attained in the public procurement process by a team of officials of Bayelsa State Due Process Bureau who were on a two-day study tour to the Agency.
Speaking on behalf of the 15-man delegation, the Director-General of the Due Process Bureau, Bayelsa State, Aaron Timiye, noted that the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency was identified as “one of the leading sub-national public procurement agencies in Nigeria, especially in the expansion of citizens’ participation in public procurement processes, disclosure of procurement information, capacity building, among others, to promote good governance and public confidence” in the management of public resources.
He added that it was the achievements of the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency that inspired and informed the decision of the Bayelsa State delegation to embark on the study tour to Lagos to learn from the experience of the Agency in public procurement regulation and identify possible areas of collaboration between the two bodies.
While welcoming the visiting Bayelsa delegation, the Director-General, Lagos State Public Procurement Agency, Fatai Idowu Onafowote, emphasized the need for regular interaction and collaboration among regulatory public procurement agencies both within and outside the country.
Onafowote pointed out that knowledge and experience sharing among regulatory public procurement bodies would facilitate expansion of the frontiers of knowledge and evolvement of creative ideas and strategies that could further enhance the public procurement system of the states of the federation and even beyond.
The director-general added that his agency was ready to make presentations and give tips on some of the practical steps taken by his Agency and the Lagos State government, which he said, were working for the agency and the state government.
“I believe your Bureau will find the tips useful. And if the ideas are working for Lagos, they will surely work for Bayelsa. All that is needed is the will and the determination, which I believe, you have demonstrated by embarking on the long journey to Lagos”, Onafowote noted.
He further pointed out that strict adherence to the implementation of the law setting up the Agency enables the Agency to conduct public procurement process and the business of government transparently.
The Director-General also attributed the modest achievements of the Agency to the commitment of a well-trained crop of procurement personnel in the state, the synergy forged with key stakeholders, as well as the unwavering commitment and support of the state government to the agency.
During the two-day study tour, officials of the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency made presentations on Procurement Process, the Lagos State Public Procurement Law and Regulations, Monitoring, Contractor Registration and the e-Procurement system.
The Bayelsa State officials were also taken to the Ojota–Opebi Link Bridges and Approach Roads currently under construction as part of their knowledge sharing experience.
At the construction site, members of the visiting Bayelsa State team were able to ask a series of questions bothering on the public procurement process adopted for the project, which officials of the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency and the site engineer for the project, Tokunbo Ajanaku, explained extensively.
At the end of the tour, the Director-General expressed satisfaction and appreciation to the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency and the Lagos State government for the opportunity given his Bureau to learn from the Lagos experience.
“We have learnt a lot. We are going back home loaded”, Timiye stated.
The 15-man delegation included the Bayelsa State Head of Service, Biobelemoye Charles-Onyeama, Commissioner for Education and Chairman, Bayelsa State Due Process Bureau, Dr. Gentle Emelah, Permanent Secretary, General Services, Office of the Secretary to the State Government and Secretary, Central Tenders Board of the State, Anthony Ikobho, the Director-General, Due Process Bureau, Aaron Timiye, Director, Ethics and Compliance of the Bureau, Stella Rane and Director, Price Intelligence Department of the Bureau, Richard Afenfia, among others.
