The passing into law of the Procurement Bill 2002 is expected to mark a significant step in regularising tender board procedures, especially with its provisions for the establishment of subsidiary bodies to guarantee greater transparency.
Among the boards to be established to oversee the administration of procurement at the various levels are the Regional, District and Departmental Tender Boards, as well as other such boards at the ministerial level. According to the bill, tabled in the National Assembly last Friday, the national procurement board will create within each administrative region a Regional Tender Board, which will comprise five members, three of whom will be appointed by the national board and two others by the regional administration.
Of these five, only one member from each Regional Board, appointed by the national board, will serve on a full-time basis for two years.
The law will provide that these members receive remuneration and allowances determined by the Minister and also, that they will have to declare all assets to the Integrity Commission. Tabled by Finance Minister Saisnarine Kowlessar at the 26th sitting of the National Assembly, the bill stipulates that the functions of the Regional Board will include nominating, for consideration by the national board, qualified individuals to serve on an evaluation committee.
Each Regional Board will also have to oversee the administration of procurement in its respective administrative region and prepare, using the standardised forms and criteria as have been prepared by the national board, solicitation documents for tenders subject to its jurisdiction.
However, the bill states that a Regional Board may, with the approval of the national board, be allowed to make minor alterations or modifications to these criteria as are deemed necessary on a case-by-case basis. The bodies must also determine whether suppliers or contractors satisfy these prequalification requirements.
For each procurement subject to its jurisdiction, a Regional Board will be given the mandate of selecting, from the pool of evaluators appointed by the national board, three evaluators with expertise and experience to serve as members of the evaluation committee for the procurement.
In the selection of evaluators to serve on the committee, the regional bodies will not be restricted to picking individuals from its administrative region.
Further, they will transmit to the evaluation committee, in a timely manner, all tenders timely received from contractors or suppliers for the completion of the evaluation report.
The bill also states that the evaluation committee, after surveying all tenders, shall, within a reasonable period of time, but not longer than 14 days, determine which tender best satisfies the evaluation criteria. It must then convey its determination to the Regional Board.
After this is done, the Regional Board will have to, if it agrees with the evaluation committee, publicly disclose the successful tender, if not, it may make its own selection for disclosure.
According to the bill, a Regional Board may, on a case-by-case basis, retain the services of agencies, procurement consultants or, with the approval of the responsible Minister, the staff of a related Ministry, provided such assistance is required in carrying out its responsibilities.
With respect to the District and Departmental Tender Boards, the law will allow these bodies to have four part-time members, two appointed by the Regional Board and two others by the district administration. Their term of membership on the District Board will be stated in their letters of appointment. The bill states that the Chairman of a District Board shall be appointed by the Regional Board from among the members already appointed and that person, along with two others, will form a quorum.
"A District Board with the approval of the national board shall discharge such functions as may be assigned to it by the Regional Board [and] every Ministry, Government Department or Agency shall, where necessary, establish Departmental Tender Boards. The National Board shall with the approval of the Minister, determine the composition and functions of the Departmental Board," the bill states.
The Ministerial Tender Boards, on the other hand, will consist of five part-time members, three of whom will be appointed by the Minister responsible for the Ministry and two by the national board. Their term of membership will be two years and, three members, including the Chairman, shall form the quorum, the bill states. This only pertains to the ministries that engage in procurement.
These boards, as with the Regional Boards, must, among other things, nominate, for consideration by the national board, qualified evaluators to serve on evaluation committees.
Each of these bodies, which shares the same functions as the Regional Board, will have to oversee the administration for procurement for its respective Ministry.
Tender board procedures have, for many years, come in for sharp criticism and reform measures have been under discussion for a long time.