South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"
By Benjamin Takpiny
The Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. Marial Dongrin Ater on Thursday signed the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Authority (PPDA) regulations and urged government departments to comply fully with these legal requirements.
“I would like to acknowledge this great effort that has seen the full legal setup of the Public Procurement Authority, I will not get into the importance of it because we have already talked about what we expect in terms of managing our procurement, the public procurement processes, with the intention to create efficiencies and transparency,” said Ater during the signing ceremony held in Juba.
The ceremony was witnessed by members of parliament, PPDA members, and development partners.
Ater said that they expect the government departments to take the PPDA regulations seriously, adding that they are part of the ongoing public financial management reforms.
He noted that the PPDA regulations are among the 11 key priorities that the government has been working on.
“Today is a great day that we have seen through one of the key priority areas of reforms, the signing of the regulations today concludes the legal framework for operationalization of the public procurement and disposal of assets in the Republic of South Sudan. We expect the team at the PPDA and the Ministry of Finance and the entire government to create public awareness about the processes, and that we are to be guided by these regulations,” said Ater.
He praised his predecessors at the ministry and development partners for laying the ground work for the PPDA regulations.
Ater said that the PPDA regulations are aimed at ensuring transparency in public procurement process.
“So we like to urge the government departments because we will not continue the way we have been operating, and now we have the law, we have the body established and we have the regulations and we have to comply fully with these legal requirements,” he disclosed.
Ayii Bol, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of PPDA, said that the signing of the regulations signifies the start of reforms in public procurement under the Public Financial Management System introduced by the government.
He asked the minister to priorities funding the operations of the PPDA so that it can deliver results.
Michael Ayuen, the Chairperson of the Finance and Economic Committee in the Transitional National Legislative Assembly said that the real work of the PPDA starts with signing of the regulations.
“Today, the salvation of assets of the public and the government of South Sudan is born, signified by the signing of this important law by the Minister, It was not easy to arrive at this point in time, but with the help of the World Bank and other stakeholders that were available to assist the PPDAA, we have achieved this,” said Ayuen.
He urged the PPDA members to strengthen to be bold enough in their work and save the resources of the people of South Sudan.
“A lot has been lost through procuring all kinds of assets of the government, from cars to food, procuring everything that we call our own. A lot of money has been lost, and the evidence speaks for itself, and it goes as far as whatever that is procured vanished in a thin air. But with this law, we put our hope in you,” said Ayuen.
Themba Bhebhe, the Country Manager of the African Development Bank (AfDB) in South Sudan, said that the PPDA regulations are very important, adding that the biggest challenge is in the implementation of these regulations.
Juvemal Nzambimana, the World Bank Acting Country Manager described the signing of the PPDA regulations as a significant milestone that sanitizes public procurement system.
He said that previously the Public Procurement and Disposable Assets Authority operated in absence of the necessary legal and regulatory framework.
“Even with the establishment of the Procurement Regulatory Authority, it has been challenging to operationalize the Public Procurement Act enacted in 2018,” said Nzambimana.
Nzambimana also noted that implementation of the PPDA regulations is crucial for the improvement of public finance management, governance, management, transparency and accountability.