14. Charting Pathways to Growth and Development Through Transparent Procurement Management in Africa

Efficient government procurement system is significant in cases where public procurement accounts for a large portion of economic activity. While in major OECD countries, government procurement ranges from 12–14% of the gross domestic product, this range is substantially larger in Africa. Therefore, ensuring transparency in the procurement procedure is an essential determinant of good governance practice and efficiency, as it enhances the competitiveness of public procurement. In this chapter a review is offered of best practices in public procurement. The chapter also examines transformational procurement which refers to a type of organizational change management focusing on strategies to enable major and long-term improvements to procurement processes, activities, and relationships. As the public sector is becoming focused on procurement transformation, it is timely to strengthen the strategic value of the procurement function and highlight its vital role in increasing efficiency and maximizing the value of money spent. The chapter reviews the most common procurement transformation challenges agencies have been tackling with public procurement professionals across the African continent and a shared perspective on how to overcome them. The introduction of transparent practices is insufficient to ensure competitive public procurement, therefore in order to enjoy maximum benefits from the reform toward transformational and transparent procurement, African countries must simultaneously combat conspiratorial practices of firms in the public procurement tendering system. This chapter also helps us understand the reasons for agencies’ reluctance toward introducing transformational procurement in government purchasing.