The National Procurement Commission (NPC) is ready to facilitate and support the review and amendment of the National Procurement Act 2018, as directed by Prime Minister James Marape.
Chief Executive Officer, Simon Bole, made this statement during a stakeholder consultation workshop in Port Moresby.
According to legal advice from the State Solicitor’s Office, the review of the National Procurement Act 2018 (NPA) is a policy matter for the Finance Department to take charge and oversee the review, including the subsequent amendment.
Bole thanked the State Solicitor’s Office for providing the appropriate legal advice and said NPC is committed and ready to support and facilitate the review of the Procurement Act (NPA), to be headed by the Finance Department.
“The National Procurement Act was recently enacted by Parliament and commenced effective operation on April 1, 2019,” Bole stated.
“However, there are some amendments that the Prime Minister and the Government wanted to be done on the procurement act, including awarding of contracts up to the value of K50 million to only national companies.
“Though it’s a new act, the Government, through the leadership of Prime Minister James Marape, has seen the need to improve the act so it better serves our people and the country.
“That is crucial and as servants of our people and the country, we are duty bound to implement Government’s decisions and vision to serve our people.
“So NPC is very ready to support Finance Department and all other stakeholders to ensure the review and amendment is done at the earliest through wider consultation that captures the input of every stakeholder.”
Meanwhile, a stakeholder consultation workshop on the National Procurement Amendment Act 2020, facilitated by the Finance Department, is expected to be held in Port Moresby next week.
(Participants during the key stakeholder consultation workshop on the review and amendment of the National Procurement Act at the NPC Office in Port Moresby on Tuesday, November 10, 2020)