From planning to end of contract: Procurement only through E-PADS, ministries told

ISLAMABAD: The Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) has asked all the ministries and their attached departments to make procurement from planning to the conclusion of a contract through the E-Pak Acquisition and Disposal System (E-PADS), official sources told Business Recorder.

The PPRA has informed all the ministries that e-government procurement is the backbone of e-governance that in turn leads to cost saving in public expenditure, brings transparency in transactions and promotes competitiveness in business processes.

According to studies conducted by international development organisations, at least 10-25 percent of saving in public expenditure is possible due to the adoption of the e-procurement system.

With that in view, the PPRA has launched the e-Pak Acquisition and Disposal System, which is a comprehensive, web-based software platform, designed to manage the entire procurement lifecycle starting from the planning phase to the conclusion of the contract. The e-PADS has been implemented in the federal government ministries/divisions and their sub-ordinate organisations including autonomous bodies and corporations.

The rollout of e–PADS is also in progress in the provinces.

According to the PPRA, the “e-Pak Procurement Regulations, 2023” have been notified and are available on the PPRA website to facilitate the efficient utilisation of the e-PADS, the authority has provided requisite training, as well as assigned user IDs and passwords to the officials of procuring agencies.

However, the record retrieved from the system reveals that some departments/organisations under the administrative control of ministries are not adhering to the e-procurement regulations and undertaking manual procurement.

In view of the existing situation, Managing Director PPRA Hasnat Ahmed Qureshi has requested secretaries/additional secretaries incharge of ministries to direct all departments, autonomous organisations, authorities, and affiliated bodies to carry out all procurement procedures through the e-Procurement System.

The Managing Director PPRA has also requested ministries/divisions to highlight that a dedicated Help Desk has been set up to facilitate the creation of login IDs and to assist relevant officials in case they encounter any challenges while operating the e-PADS.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024