President George Manneh Weah has hailed the three days annual procurement forums organized by the Public Procurement and Concession Commission(PPCC) that witnessed the convergence of people from the public and private sectors in Liberia, which was intended to identify challenges, implementation, support for electronic procurement system and shortcomings of PPC Act of 2010.
Speaking at the Third Annual PPCC Forum recently at the Ministerial Complex, President Weah pledged his government’s support for reform and full compliance of procurement laws in Liberia to help improve the country’s governance rating; but cautioned PPCC staff to continue on the path of integrity and fairness, which is commendable for the country’s image.
According to the Liberian leader, the importance of PPCC in reviewing and making assessments of what needs to be done to improve effectiveness, as the commission plays a cardinal role to bring integrity to the overall governance process of Liberia.
He mentioned that the essential work of PPCC cannot be overemphasized in Liberia’s economic and political governance process to ensure value for taxpayers and donor funds.
President Weah noted that Public Procurement and Concession Commission ( PPCC) has managed to ensure that the already scarce resources of Liberia are effectively and judiciously managed, coupled with contracts and concessions meeting all requirements in accordance with the law of the country.
“This became necessary in the aftermath of the civil war when systems broke down, along with the country’s infrastructure,” he said, commending the PPCC for working with partners to restore confidence in the system, while at the same time combating impropriety.”
President Weah further cautioned  PPCC and its staff to put integrity, fairness, as well as legally-applied procedures at the front-burner in the discharge of their duties, when reviewing procurement issues.
“As it is often said, ‘He who seeks equity must come with clean hands,'” PPCC should review procurement issues in a free, fair and according to the laws of Liberia, President Weah intoned.
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He said the commission over the years has established itself as one of the most vital institutions of Liberia’s governing processes.
According to him, holding an Annual Review Meeting at this time to make an assessment of what the Commission needs to do to improve its effectiveness is highly important to uphold integrity in every procurement process.
He stated that the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) and the PPCC, along with other anti-graft entities, are being given renewed focus by his administration, in an effort to improve their capacity and facilitate their work.
“This involves budgetary support and reforms to the way their work is done,” he emphasized.
Also speaking, PPCC Executive Director, Roseline Nagbe-Kowo, elaborated that the forum is designed to seek innovative ways to open new avenues for greater digitization in public procurement functions.
According to Attorney Kowo, the theme of the forum: innovation and reform are intended to strengthen Liberia’s public procurement system and scrutinize recommendations for subsequent action and improvement.
She mentioned that the forum is also aimed at as serving as a driver of public procurement modernization to establish a well-functioning procurement system in Liberia that employs the necessary tools to digitize procurement for effectiveness and efficiency in public procurement.
The PPCC Executive Director expressed optimism that the forum is serving as preliminary activities to inform the establishment of an electronic procurement platform in Liberia and remove the anomalies and individual discretions often associated with paper-based procurement.
Meanwhile, the third Annual PPCC Forum was held under the theme: “Innovations and Reforms: Strengthening Liberia’s Public Procurement System.”
The Forum is aimed at creating avenues to identify implementation challenges and shortcomings of the PPCC Act of 2010 as Amended.
It is to inform future amendments to the existing law as may be necessary to contribute to the overall development and improvement of our public procurement system.
Participants from all walks of life who live in the 15 counties gave their professional inputs about how to improve Liberia’s procurement system during the interactive business sessions.https://thenewdawnliberia.com/ppcc-business-owners-brainstorm-on-procurement-matters/
