Treasury raps state agencies not following transparency rules in procurement

Despite strict regulations being issued to publish procurement notices on a digital portal if the cost exceeds Rs 200 million in keeping with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) guidelines, most of the state agencies have failed to publish them on the digital platform, the Treasury said.

According to a circular issued by the Treasury's Public Finance Department, the measure was taken to ensure transparency and accountability under the e-Government Procurement (e-GP) digital platform, where procurement activities, procurement of goods, works, and services, and management of contracts are listed and accessible to the people. "It is expected that all procuring entities adhere to the requirements. Regrettably, it is noted that only a few agencies have taken action to publish the requested information," the department's Director General, E.A. Rathnaseela, noted in the circular.

Instructing the heads of the departments to fulfil the requirement as a matter of priority, the senior official also noted that "the IMF's enhanced financial facility has identified this as a request to be fulfilled by the government."

As per the guidelines issued earlier, all state institutions are required to publish details of procurement activities and the awarding of contracts exceeding Rs 200 million from May 1 onwards. The relevant procurement entities are requested to register on the e-GP portal to facilitate this process.

The circular also said that when it comes to appointing project committees and technical evaluation committees by the public finance department, adhering to the regulations on procurement publications would be examined.