PPADB fights corruption in procurement

 Batswana have been called upon to take an active part in fighting corruption in tenders by reporting suspicious conduct. Since December 2017, PPADB has received four tip off reports trough their Tip-off Anonymous Service; all of which are under investigation; Business trends has learnt. The service that was launched last year in July has a proven track record in preventing and fighting corruption. It is currently implemented through a third party, Deloitte. In an interaction with the media on Monday, the Executive Chairperson of PPADB, Bridget John said corruption thrives on secrecy.

“Through this service, we wish to make transparency and accountability recognised, key conditions for promoting integrity and preventing corruption in public procurement.” This whistle blowing policy, is viewed as key in public procurement to enable stakeholders to be able to report matters relating to improper, unethical and inappropriate conduct in tendering. Amongst other means of eliminating corruption talk, an Integrity Office is still being established to provide more focus on ethical conduct and come up with anti-corruption measures.

“Efforts are ongoing to identify a suitable candidate to head the office,” John highlighted. She further urged the media to encourage the public to use the service to report any unethical or inappropriate conduct in tenders by contractors, PPADB staff, and those holding public office. “Corruption perception in licensing and public contracts is becoming a major concern as per the Global Competitiveness Study and needs to be addressed,” she says, and further alludes that transparency, proper procurement planning, adherence to plans, and competitive bidding will go a long way in improving public confidence in tenders and reducing corruption perception. Amongst its yearly milestones, the IPMS (e-Bidding) is also slowly gaining momentum with up to 34 tenders processed online since inception last year.

“Uptake expected to increase in 2018 with more training and awareness building as well as system agility and availability. The e-Bidding roll out plan is expected to run for three years until all Procuring Entities are able to manage online bidding without much support. She noted one major challenge as internet connectivity, accessibility, and availability of suitable ICT infrastructure equipment which she says slows down the IPMS roll out. “PPADB is poised to become a high performing organisation that will more effectively facilitate value for money procurement for Botswana to realise its development goals,” John said.