ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Finance (MoF) has directed all the Ministries/ Divisions and their attached organizations/ departments to carry out procurement procedures through the e-Procurement System.
In a letter to all Secretaries/ Additional Secretaries-in-Charge, Secretary Finance, Imdad Ullah Bosal said 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 organizations, at least 10-25% of saving in public expenditure is possible due to adoption of e-procurement system.
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According to Secretary Finance, Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) has launched the e-Pak Acquisition & Disposal System (e-PADS), which is a comprehensive, web-based software platform, designed to manage the entire procurement lifecycle starting from the planning phase to the conclusion of 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.
The “E-Pak Procurement Regulations, 2023” have been notified and are available on the PPRA’s website. To facilitate the efficient utilisation of the E-PADS, the PPRA has provided requisite training, as well as assigned User IDs and passwords to the officials of procuring agencies.
However, some departments/ organizations under the administrative control of federal Ministries/ Divisions are not adhering to the e-procurement regulations and undertaking manual procurement.
After explaining the background, Secretary Finance has requested Secretaries/ Additional Secretaries–in-Charge to direct all departments, autonomous organizations, authorities, and affiliated bodies under the administrative control of their Ministry/ Division to carry out all procurement procedures through the e-Procurement System (https://eprocure.gov.pk/).
Secretary Finance has also highlighted highlight that PPRA has established a dedicated Help-Desk to facilitate the creation of login IDs and to assist relevant officials in case they encounter any challenges while operating the e-PADS. The contact details of the Help-Desk officials are available on PPRA website.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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