PROFESSIONALISM AND CAPACITY BUILDING FOR SUSTAINABILITY OF PUBLIC PROCUREMENT- A COMBINED EFFORT
Rwanda Public Procurement Authority (RPPA) on Thursday, May 24, 2003 held a consultative meeting with higher learning and training institutions. Participants were representatives of the Higher Education Council (HEC), the University of Rwanda (UR), Muhabura Integrated Polytechnic College, Rwanda Management Institute (RMI), the International Management Academy (IMA), the Institute of Legal Practice and Development (ILPD), Mount Kenya University, and the Association of Procurement Professionals, among other institutions. The theme of the meeting was: “Professionalism and Capacity Building for sustainability of Public Procurement- a combined effort”
During the consultative meeting, RRPA and representatives of the higher learning and training institutions discussed different issues, policies and strategies to build on and develop capacity in the procurement field. The meeting discussed about capacity building in procurement and collaboration between RPPA and higher learning and training institutions in this regard.
In her opening remarks, the Director General of RPPA, UWINGENEYE Joyeuse, stressed the role of procurement in the development of the country. "As Rwanda aspires to become a middle-income country by 2035 and a higher-income country by 2050, I believe procurement has a major role in terms of the principles of value for money, accountability and transparency. "We know that efficient procurement contributes a lot to the country's GDP through the implementation of Imihigo and the country's vision." she said.
In his presentation, Celestin Sibomana, the Division Manager for Research, Capacity Development and Monitoring at RPPA shared with participants an overview of the capacity building in the procurement field and collaboration with high learning institutions, training institutions and learning centers in this regard. He informed them that RPPA has a mandate to build and develop professionalism in public procurement in order to achieve the best value for money and make Rwanda the center of excellence in public procurement. To support this mandate and strategic orientation, in 2011, RPPA initiated the partnership and close collaboration with higher learning and training institutions for capacity building and development in public procurement field in the country.
He emphasized that people employed in the procurement field need to be well equipped professionally in order to do their job efficiently in awarding tenders and managing procurement contracts among other responsibilities. “You cannot ask people to do anything when you have not equipped them with required skills and this is one of the reasons why we need to think about capacity building in order to strengthen our organizations,” he said. “We need to have professional employees in order to have efficient procurement.”
The representatives of higher learning institutions and training centers made presentations on their role in developing professionalism in procurement, and highlighted challenges that still hinder the profession in Rwanda. Among the challenges highlighted include the lack of a body accrediting the professional programs in Rwanda, limited human capacity and expertise to do research and lack of effective policy, regulation, coordination and implementation framework for professional capacity development interventions. They also highlighted the role of higher learning institutions in offering advanced courses, professional development programs and executive education, in support to continuous learning and ensured that professionals have access to the latest industry insights and best practices.
After the presentations, participants in the meeting exchanged views and inputs and came up with key recommendations that will lead to the improvement of professionalization of the procurement profession.
The meeting recommended the harmonization of academic content in the field of procurement to respond to job market needs; the review of existing law and upgrade the Association of Procurement Professionals to become an institute with powers to accredit training and learning centers and award procurement professional qualifications; to identify in collaboration with HEC, knowledge areas to support the curriculum development at each level to match practical skills needed; to stablish a stakeholder’s platform for information sharing and partnership enhancement; to conduct institutional mapping for industrial attachment for students in higher learning institutions; to monitor the compliance with established job profiles on procurement positions in public service; and to advocate for review of the national qualifications framework and include professional qualifications in procurement.
In her closing remarks, the Director General of RPPA, UWINGENEYE Joyeuse, thanked everyone present for their participation and contribution and requested the representatives of the institutions to keep the partnership and collaboration in order to improve the development of the procurement field in Rwanda.
Charlotte Karangwayire