By Lucy Ogalue
The Director-General, Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Dr Adebowale Adedokun, says failure to adhere strictly to procurement timelines undermines efficiency and fuels waste in public sector operations.
Adedokun said this while presenting an update on Gender-Responsive Public Procurement in Nigeria and the National Policy on Affirmative Procurement (NPAP) at a training for policymakers on inclusive public procurement in Abuja on Tuesday.
He said that absence of defined and enforced timelines made procurement a wasted responsibility, adding that compliance with timeframes will now be strictly monitored.
According to him, any procurement file that remains unattended on an officer’s desk beyond 48 hours already constitutes a violation of established guidelines.
“Procurement without timeline makes procurement a wasted responsibility and results. We must be conscious of timeline.
“If a file stays on your table for 48 hours, you are already violating guidelines,” he said.
The Director-General said that the Federal Government had strengthened operational mechanisms to guide procurement implementation, including regulations, operational manuals and extant circulars.
He said that regulations served as offshoots of the law to provide legal basis for decision-making, while operational manuals provided step-by-step guidance on implementation of policies.
He said that executive orders and circulars also supported procurement administration where necessary.
The BPP boss said that the bureau had issued the 2026 Public Procurement Implementation Handbook to provide clear processes for reforms and procurement activities for the year.
“In that handbook, you begin to see features of some of these policies that we are talking about. It provides clear guidelines and processes for implementing different reforms,” he said.
He further said that Nigeria’s Standard Bidding Documents had been reviewed and transformed into a “living document” capable of periodic updates to reflect emerging realities and correct identified gaps.
According to him, a team of technical experts has been assembled to continuously update the documents to align with new findings and global best practices.
The director-general said that public procurement represented the use of public funds, including internally generated revenue and funds realised through Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs).
“As long as it is not your salary or private resources, it is a public fund and must be utilised in line with public procurement rules and regulations,” he said.
He said that strict adherence to procurement rules would promote transparency, improve service delivery and strengthen national development outcomes. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Kadiri Abdulrahman
