The electronic government procurement (e-GP) system is friendly to all concerned, particularly to women tenderers and entrepreneurs, as they can participate in tendering online from home. No physical travel is required and there is no hassle of carrying a pile of documents in hand.

The Public Procurement Act 2006 and the Public Procurement Rules 2008 are also gender neutral. Such observations were made at an e-GP awareness workshop for women at the conference room of the Central Procurement Technical Unit (CPTU) of IMED, Ministry of Planning, on 19 September 2023.

The CPTU organized the workshop under its Digitizing Implementation Monitoring and Public Procurement Project (DIMAPPP) supported by the World Bank. Bangladesh Center for Communication Programs (BCCP) facilitated the workshop. 

Secretary, IMED, Mr. Abul Kashem Md. Mohiuddin, graced the workshop as the Chief Guest and Director General of CPTU, Mr. Mohammed Shoheler Rahman Chowdhury, presided over it.

Director of CPTU, Ms. Laboni Chakma, moderated the workshop. Officials of IMED, CPTU and BCCP were also present. A total of 30 women tenderers and entrepreneurs, among 50 women, participated in the workshop. Procurement Specialist of the World Bank Dhaka office Mr. Arafat Istiaque also spoke in the workshop.

The objective of the workshop was to help increase the number of women tenderers in public procurement and to let them know the convenience of using digitalized procurement system which is popularly known as e-GP.

The DG CPTU gave an overview of public procurement and e-GP system in Bangladesh in his elaborate presentation. He explained security operations system, business intelligence module and the recently introduced modules to the e-GP system. He said e-GP is a self-sustainable system.

The Information Security System for e-GP has obtained ISO certification, he said adding ISO certifications regarding quality and environment have also been achieved. Another ISO certification for Business Continuity Management has also been achieved.

Some women tenderers raised the issue of speed of the e-GP server. The DG CPTU said the server is capable of accommodating a large number of hits together. However, he suggested them not to wait up to the last date of tender submission.

Some female officers dealing with procurement in some large procuring agencies were also present in the workshop. They suggested women tenderers to come forward in more number in e-GP. They said e-GP is women-friendly. The female officers demanded more such workshops with women tenderers to inspire them and also procuring entities so that PEs feel confident to award contracts to competent women tenderers.

The Secretary appreciated the women tenderers and said women in many cases are doing better than men. “We need changes in our mentality and give women chances to work in all sectors including public procurement,” he observed.

He gave some examples on how efficiently women performed in public procurement and other jobs. The Secretary put stress on highlighting the success stories of women tenderers to inspire other women who aspire to participate in public procurement