Govt determined to ensure 100% e-GP coverage: Planning adviser

The current government is determined to ensure 100% coverage of electronic Government Procurement (e-GP) in public procurement across the country, said Planning Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud.

Speaking at a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Bangladesh Public Procurement Authority (BPPA), the adviser instructed BPPA to allocate resources and initiatives accordingly.

Md Kamal Uddin, secretary of the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) and vice-chairperson of the Board, attended the meeting alongside other nominated members of the 10-member Board, said a press release.

Member Secretary of the Board and CEO of BPPA, Mirza Ashfaqur Rahman, informed the meeting that, in terms of value, 65% of total public procurement in the country is currently conducted through the e-GP system. 

As part of the digitisation of public procurement, the Bangladesh Public Procurement Authority (BPPA), formerly the Central Procurement Technical Unit (CPTU) under the IMED, Ministry of Planning, introduced e-GP in 2011. 

Now, the entire cycle – from procurement planning and processing up to contract management – is conducted through e-GP, which has been applauded as a complete online system.

About 75% of the allocation of the Annual Development Programme (ADP) and 40% of the national budget is spent on public procurement of goods, works and services annually, which is equivalent to about $30 billion.

The first meeting of the 10-member BPPA Board was held on 7 December 2023, following the establishment of the Authority on 18 September 2023.  

Several decisions were made in the second meeting regarding the development of BPPA's own office in the city, the formation of a budget committee of the Board, the organogram, amendments to PPR 2008 and other miscellaneous matters.

A total of 1,30,814 tenderers have registered with the e-GP system as of 14 May.