The Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) says that more than 70 ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) are still awarding contracts from the 2024 budget, in a move it says risks saddling the government with “unnecessary liabilities.”
The Director General of the BPP, Adebowale Adedokun, disclosed this in a presentation to President Bola Tinubu ahead of Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting.
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The presentation was shared with PREMIUM TIMES on Wednesday.
Mr Adedokun said the law extending the 2024 budget was meant to ensure full implementation, but urged that all such contract awards be concluded by September 2025.
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PREMIUM TIMES reports that the National Assembly passed a bill extending the implementation of the 2024 budget to 2025.
In his presentation, the BPP chief also called for a presidency-led review of all projects awarded by ministers and their parastatals in the 2024 and 2025 fiscal years.
“Several MDAs are still carrying out procurement processes for projects captured under the 2024 Appropriation that should have lapsed since December 2024.
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“The law was extended to enable full implementation, but it is now over 20 months after, and more than 70 MDAs will still be carrying out procurement. It is recommended that awards should be concluded by the end of September 2025 to avoid unnecessary liabilities.
“Lists of projects that have been awarded by each ministry and their parastatals under the 2024 and 2025 fiscal years should be forwarded to the Bureau of Public Procurement for further consideration, in line with SGF Circular on projects,” the brief stated.
On the “Nigeria First” policy, the bureau said MDAs must prioritise Made-in-Nigeria goods and services that meet international standards and are certified by relevant authorities.
The BPP chief said the agency would work with the Central Results Delivery Coordination Unit to track compliance and report to the presidency.
To boost transparency, job creation and poverty reduction under the Renewed Hope Agenda, Mr Adedokun urged that a significant share of 2025 budget projects be procured through open competitive bidding.
READ ALSO: We’ve implemented bold, difficult reforms, Tinubu tells FEC members
He further recommended that his office be included in negotiations for bilateral infrastructure loans to ensure procurement decisions are not taken “without professional inputs from the Regulator.”
The DG warned that several government-owned companies were ignoring the Public Procurement Act despite a legal requirement under the Finance Act 2020.
He said this non-compliance “has been responsible for financial recklessness observed in those companies” and urged the president to compel them to follow the law.
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