Enhancing capacity & professional development in public procurement

There was a time when tender notices occupied a large section of daily newspapers. During my student life, I used to read newspapers regularly, but I used to skip the tender notices because the technical terms and instructions in them were too difficult to understand.

These long advertisements were actually part of the public procurement process.

Due to the digitisation of public procurement process, these notices have now become much shorter. With the widespread use of the e-Government Procurement (e-GP) system, this trend is expected to grow further.

Public procurement plays a vital role in ensuring timely supply of goods, implementation of works, and provision of services. It contributes to socio-economic goals such as infrastructure development, professional services, employment creation, and poverty reduction. These expenditures are mainly implemented through projects under the Annual Development Programme (ADP).

Globally, public procurement accounts for about 12 to 20 per cent of a country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In Bangladesh, it constitutes about 8 per cent of GDP, with an estimated annual expenditure equivalent to approximately 30 billion US dollars. Notably, nearly 75 per cent of the total ADP and about 40 per cent of the national budget are spent on public procurement. Given the volume, public procurement is considered a cornerstone of good governance.

The current government has emphasised proper implementation of ADP-funded projects and ensuring value for money in public procurement. The quality implementation of projects largely depends on the proper and timely execution of procurement contracts. On average, about 1,500 projects are included under ADP each year. For effective monitoring of project implementation progress and real-time information-based oversight, the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) has launched the electronic Project Management Information System (e-PMIS).

The four core principles followed in the public procurement process are efficiency, effectiveness, economy, and equity. Ensuring value for money in public procurement depends on the proper execution of five key factors: the right price, the right time, the right place, the right quantity, and the right quality.

All these factors are related to procurement efficiency. This can be achieved through capacity building of all stakeholders involved in the procurement and its implementation process. Ensuring appropriate use of resources and preventing waste in public procurement falls within the responsibilities of government officials.

Efficiency in public procurement has significantly increased compared to before. However, due to poor management in many cases, waste of money still occurs.

Over time, Bangladesh Public Procurement Authority (BPPA) has played a vital role in developing the country's procurement system by providing training to tenderers, procuring entities, government officials, and media professionals. This initiative is ongoing and will continue in the future, as currently, there are more than 1,500 procuring agencies and over 25,000 procuring offices under them. Therefore, there is still ample opportunity for capacity enhancement.

Various reforms, capacity development initiatives, and use of digital systems in public procurement have resulted in notable improvements in several performance indicators such as reduction of lead time in completing procurement processes, awarding contracts within initial tender validity periods, and publishing tender notices.

CAPACITY BUILDING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Public procurement is a highly technical area that requires specialised training. Realising its importance, the government had established the Central Procurement Technical Unit (CPTU) under the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) of the Planning Ministry in 2002.

Over time, the volume and value of public procurement in Bangladesh have increased significantly. The launch of e-GP in 2011 brought many benefits through digital transformation but also introduced new challenges due to rapidly evolving technology. With limited manpower, the former CPTU had struggled to meet this increased demand.

In this context, on September 18, 2023 the government transformed CPTU into Bangladesh Public Procurement Authority (BPPA). This transformation aimed to institutionalise procurement reforms and emphasize institutional capacity and professional standard enhancement in this sector.

From 2003 to December 2024, a total of 13,713 government officials received three-week training on public procurement management, where the Public Procurement Act 2006 and the Public Procurement Rules 2008 served as the main guidelines. Additionally, since the introduction of e-GP (from June 2011 to 2024), 41,697 participants, including tenderers, have received training on digital procurement. BPPA has also provided training to policymakers, tenderers, auditors, and media professionals. e-GP training programs are expected to resume soon.

To promote professionalism, BPPA has facilitated Master's degrees in Public Procurement from the University of Turin in Italy for 25 government officials and supported 150 officials in attaining MCIPS qualifications from BRAC University. Since 2003, the number of trainers has gradually increased, and currently, there are 73 national-level public procurement trainers.

ONGOING TRAINING ACTIVITIES: BPPA is currently conducting a three-week training course titled "Public Procurement Management (PPM)" for government officials. The training is being held on the campuses of Engineering Staff College Bangladesh (ESCB) located in Dhaka and Gazaria. The training is conducted both as residential and non-residential, and is implemented under a contract with ESCB as part of the "Digitising Implementation Monitoring and Public Procurement Project (DIMAPP)." Each batch includes 3 to 4 female officers.

From 2017 to 2023, DIMAPP was supported by the World Bank. Since January 2024, it has been financed by the Government of Bangladesh. The World Bank is currently in the process of launching a new project with BPPA in 2025, aimed at modernizing the procurement system and improving service quality.

Non-residential training at ESCB City Campus (Ramna, Dhaka) started on February 8, 2025. Residential training at ESCB's main campus in Gazaria, Munshiganj began on 6 April 2025.

Each batch consists of an average of 30 participants from various government agencies. Female participation in these trainings is particularly encouraged.

According to the current agreement, the training programme will continue until December 2025. The targets are:

l Non-residential courses: 30 batches (900 participants)

l Residential courses: 11 batches (330 participants)

l Three-day refreshers course: 18 batches (about 540 participants who have previously completed the three-week training)

IMED Secretary Md. Kamal Uddin emphasised the application of knowledge gained from training in the practical workplace. BPPA's Chief Executive Officer Mirza Ashfaqur Rahman highlighted the effectiveness of training in enhancing the skills of government officials.

Training at ESCB campuses is being conducted by experienced national procurement trainers.

Md. Shahid Ibn Miraj, Senior Assistant Secretary of the Ministry of Law, completed the three-week training as part of the first batch in 2025. He stated that before the training, he had limited knowledge about the procurement process, but now he feels confident in handling procurement-related tasks efficiently. He plans to pursue further studies like MCIPS and expressed satisfaction with the training content and quality of trainers.

Rajib Debnath, Deputy Financial Comptroller, FC (Army), Pay-2, also recently completed the three-week training. He expressed satisfaction with the quality of the training.

Salma Begum, Deputy Project Director, DSHE, mentioned that since she is involved in project implementation, the three-week training will be highly beneficial for her. She expressed satisfaction with the trainers and content and showed interest in participating in e-GP training.

Helena Parvin, Senior Assistant Secretary, Local Government Division, stated after completing the training that the content and trainers were of appropriate quality. However, she opined that Saturday should be excluded as a training day. She also expressed interest in participating in more training, seminars, and workshops related to public procurement.

It is expected that BPPA will soon resume e-GP training programmes for stakeholders. If government agencies are interested in nominating their officials for the three-week training course, they may contact BPPA. Training schedules and detailed information are available on BPPA's website (bppa.gov.bd).

Md. Shafiul Alam is a senior journalist.

shafiul.alam.sac@gmail.com