14 Mar 2019

The centre coordinator of Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Board (PPADB), Mr Uwo Marobela has told a Central District Full Council (CDC) session that the organisation’s mandate is to adjudicate and award government tenders.

Mr Marobela, who was accompanied by the acting protectorate administration officer, Ms Seoketso Tsamae, said PPADB provides a wide scope of services and products aimed to help contractors and customers who do business with government. 

He said the PPADB has a training programme aimed to create awareness and appreciation of the requirements of the PPAD Act and Regulations as well as international best practices in public sector procurement. 

Councillors were told that the programme focuses on building the requisite knowledge and skills for applying the requirements of the Act and Regulations in the day to day management of public procurement and asset disposal. 

He said procurement practitioners and contractors are equipped with the skills to understand the structure of the legal and regulatory framework for public procurement and the key features of each component part. 

He stated that such include  procurement planning, procedures, processes and controls in tendering, debriefing, evaluation, adjudication and award of tenders. 

Mr Marobela said the Board is required to register contractors who intend to bid for government procurement and asset disposal in respect of works, supplies and services.  

He said the requirement only applies to contractors domiciled within Botswana, while internationally-based companies are currently not required to register with PPADB. 

Meanwhile, Ms Tsamae told councillors that the institution has reduced paper work by introducing a website that enables those wanting to register their companies or apply for tenders to PPAD to do so online.  

For their part, councillors complained about some contractors who always win tenders, saying there might be corruption. 

They also complained about big international companies that bring equipment as well as labourers from their countries rather than hiring Batswana.

Councillors mentioned that even though the government gave youth, people with disabilities and women companies first priority, it is not easy for them, more especially in rural areas. 

Applying using IPMS, they indicated, was not easy because the internet is always down, while registration fees are too high. 

Responding, Mr Marobela said a certain percentage is reserved for Batswana contractors, more especially for minor works, adding that the board encourages big companies to sub-contract small contractors belonging to Batswana for local empowerment purposes. ENDS