THE Ministry of Finance, on Wednesday, intensified discussions on the Guyana Road Map and Action Plan for the implementation of the Electronic Government Procurement (e-GP) system.

At the Finance Ministry’s Main Street, Georgetown Office, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Consultant, João de Almeida, gave a detailed overview of the roadmap and action plan to representatives of the Ministry of Finance and the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB).

Ahead of João de Almeida’s presentation, Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan told those present that while the Procurement Act has been in place since 2003, the country is lagging behind in terms of modernisation of procurement processes and practices, when compared to other CARICOM member states. The Electronic Government Procurement Roadmap and Action Plan, therefore, is intended to bring Guyana’s procurement regime in line with international best practices.

“There are many benefits expected from the implementation of an electronic government procurement system. Foremost among these is that it will facilitate easier access to suppliers, contractors and consultants, resulting in reduced administrative cost. Making the country’s procurement operations accessible for public scrutiny will enhance transparency, accountability and efficiency in the procurement process,” Minister Jordan explained.
Referencing to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) 2015 Report– Making Public Investment More Efficient–- the Finance Minister said, on average, a country loses about 30 per cent of the returns on its public investments due to inefficiencies in its public investment management process.

He said Guyana, cognizant of its inefficiencies, has embarked on an enhanced Public Financial Management Reform, involving an electronic approach to the management of public funds. “Ladies and gentlemen, Guyana is on the cusp of an economic transformation that will result in significant increases in public spending, and public procurement has a key role to play in the process. President Granger has also earmarked the period, 2020- 2029, as the Decade of Development, which will entail significant investment in public sector projects,” Minister Jordan said as he underscored the importance of modernizing the procurement system.

The Finance Minister said the developments in the petroleum sector also increases the role of the country’s procurement system and the need for a more modern and efficient process.

“Just recently, we embarked on the first bidding process for the sale of Guyana’s crude. It is also likely that at the conclusion of the reform to the Production Sharing Agreement, international oil companies can begin bidding for oil blocks,” he said. The country’s economy, he reported, performed exceptional with an “impressive” 4.1 per cent Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate recorded in 2018 with NASDAQ classifying Guyana as the fastest growing economy in the world in June, 2019.

“We are projecting to have attained a growth rate in excess of 4 per cent in 2019. And the International Monetary Fund has projected a growth rate of 86 per cent in 2020. While the IMF’s projection is based largely on developments in the oil and gas sector, we envisage a more moderate, non-oil growth. This growth of the economy will precipitate a surge in small and medium scale businesses in Guyana. Therefore, the implementation of an electronic procurement system is timely, as it will provide opportunities for the development of these businesses by removing obstacles to the acquisition of government contracts,” Minister Jordan reasoned.

NPTAB Chairman, Berkley Wickham, in his remarks, made it known that ‘Digital Transformation’ is on the global agenda, and is intended to achieve sustainable improvements in the quality of services provided by public administrations to their communities.

As such, he said the completion of the road map and action plan sets the stage for the full implementation of the Electronic Government Procurement (e-GP) system. It was noted the establishment of the e-GP platform forms part of an IDB Technical Cooperation Agreement on the Public Procurement Modernisation and Financial Management Strengthening in Guyana.

To ensure there is a smooth transition, NPTAB has put an interim system in place to facilitate the training of government officials on the use of the CARICOM Public Procurement Notice Board, which allows for all government procurement activities to be published on a regular basis.

According to Wickham, consultation on the road map and action plan for the implementation of e-GP system commenced in October, 2019. Approximately 20 entities were consulted since then, including the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Public Procurement Commission, the Small Business Council, NPTAB, the National Data Management Authority, Office of the Budget, the Private Sector Commission, the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Public Health, Ministry of Public Infrastructure, the Ministry of Business and the University of Guyana, among others.