Procurement Ministry To Blacklist Non-Performing Contractors

The Ministry for Public Procurement is in the process of developing a database for contractors, consultants and suppliers who bid for government contracts, as well as develop software that will assess the performance of all such contractors.

Minister of State in charge of Public Procurement, Sarah Adwoa Safo, who disclosed this, explained that those who appear to meet the performance criterion will be motivated with more contracts while those who fail will be blacklisted.

Adwoa Safo was speaking on the sidelines of a final stakeholders’ consultation meeting to put together a policy on local content in procurement. 

Government intends to give 70 per cent of Government of Ghana-funded projects to local contractors.

Out of this, 30% is to be given to women, the youth and persons with disability.

These groups, she indicated, would have the opportunity to compete for government contracts after receiving training on how to bid for contracts.

She reiterated that the policy is a pragmatic action worthy of emulation and introduction in the country’s procurement system.

Adwoa Safo noted that the policy should be a rounded view from a cross-section of all Ghanaians and stakeholders. 

She further explained that the policy creates an avenue to reserve certain contracts such as flowering, catering, supplies of office furniture, cleaning, among others, for marginalised groups.

According to her, there has always en a resistance when changing a status quo, hence the need for the intensive stakeholders’ consultation for inputs to enable implementation.

She stated that the legal basis for debarring and suspending contracts as in Section 3 (q) and section 82 of the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663) and (Act 914) as amended respectively, and to this end, the President has shown his full commitment to implement fully the 70% of all government.

The President, she said, has shown his full commitment to implement fully the 70% local content policy that allows indigenous Ghanaians to take up 70% of all government procurements.

“He has further directed that 30% of all government procurements which find expression in the 70% local content should be given to companies owned by the teeming youth, women and persons with disability who are indentified as marginalised group in the country,” she reiterated.

Statistically, she said, about 70-80% of total revenue as a country, and in most developing countries, is spent on government procurement, and those figures show that a huge chunk of our money are spent through government procurements, hence making the area a veritable arena for corruption.