The Honorable Minister of State, Ministry of Planning, Mr. Md Shahiduzzaman Sarker MP, on 12 May 2024 appreciated the electronic Government Procurement (e-GP) system introduced by Bangladesh Public Procurement Authority (BPPA) in public procurement.

“e-GP has turned the procurement process 180 degree,” he observed while speaking as the Chief Guest at a seminar titled, “Public Procurement Act-Challenges and Opportunities’ organized by International Business Forum of Bangladesh at its conference room in Dhaka

He said that the current government introduced e-GP to ensure transparency at the very primary level of procurement. However, there are more ways to go in terms of transparency and accountability, the State Minister added.

The State Minister said the country requires people of high morality to ensure transparency and accountability in public procurement. He also pledged to extend all-out support to take into cognizance the recommendations, complaints and demands that came up in the seminar from the stakeholders.

Some of the speakers observed that the government should remove discriminatory tax structure for the local companies to ensure a level playing field for all domestic and foreign firms in the public procurement process.

Speaking as the designated discussant, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of BPPA Mr. Mohammed Shoheler Rahman Chowdhury said they want to bring 100% of public procurement in the country under the e-GP system.

He said BPPA has been identifying challenges of procurement and amending them from time to time. The CEO of BPPA also said they will bring down existing three-step complaint resolution to one step to make redressing simpler.

Former Lead Procurement Specialist of World Bank Dhaka Office Dr Zafrul Islam presented the keynote paper titled ‘Governance and Competitiveness in Public Procurement Practices: Bangladesh Context’.

He said conflict of interest is a major concern in procurement processing in Bangladesh. “COI arises out of possible informal or undisclosed relationships between public officials and the contracting or consulting industry,” he observed.

Mr. Islam said there are instances of public officials or their family members operate business that participate in same procurement process in the organization. He called upon BPPA to consult with stakeholders before formulating any law or rules.

Adviser to IBFB and former NBR Chairman Mr. Muhammad Abdul Mazid recommended reforms in financial year to reduce waste in resources and time in implementing construction projects.

He emphasized the need for imposing equal tax on local and foreign companies instead of existing discriminatory tax structure for local firms.

Vice President of IBFB MS Siddiqui urged the government to impose uniform tax at all levels including public imports. He stressed the need for being competitive for sustainability in the long run in procurement process.

Professor of Economics at Dhaka University Mr. Muhammad Shahadat Hossain Siddiquee urged the authorities to ensure equity in the awarding process. Adviser to Bangladesh Association of Construction Industry (BACI) Engineer SM Khorshed Alam urged the government to abolish the clause of awarding the lowest tenderer in public procurement process.

He said capacity of the prospective awardee of procurement should be considered instead of the amount of tender. Former President of Manufacturer’s Association for Transformer and Switchgear (MATS) Engineer Rabiul Alam urged the government to remove discrepancies to local companies in project award process.  

IBFB President Mr. Humayun Rashid delivered the address of welcome at the seminar.