The
Gambia Public Procurement Authority (GPPA) on Monday commenced a four-day
intensive training of trainers (TOT) on public procurement processes and
procedures.
The
training at Sandele Lodge in Kartong is organised in collaboration with the EU
as part of support for the implementation of the public financial management
reforms (PFM Reforms) in the area of procurement in The Gambia.
At
least 20 procurement officers within the government ministries are
participating in the forum geared towards better services delivery at
workplace.
Jainaba
Faal, procurement specialist at the Ministry of Finance, said the training is
geared towards capacitating the key people who in turn will do step down
trainings for other procurement officers.
She
said during the training, the participants would be equipped with professional
skills that are very relevant to make them deliver better services.
“The
training will also help the participants to know their audience, what to impact
on them, how to ensure that every public procurement player in The Gambia
adhere to the new procurement laws and guidelines that have been enacted
recently,” Mrs Faal said.
Tijan
Jobe, executive secretary of Major Tender Board, said the training of trainers
is very timely “in the sense that public procurement in this country is still
developing and evolving”.
“With
this kind of training, I hope there will be a lot of positive changes in their
service delivery system,” he said.
Lalo
Danso, director of Public Procurement Policy at GPPA, said the training would
go a long way in addressing some of the lapses encountered during service
delivery.
John
Auma, procurement expert and training adviser, said there is a need for
continuation of such training in the procurement system in The Gambia.
Olivire
Barnouis, lead EU consultant in the implementation of PFM Reforms in the area
of procurement, said the project is an important component of Gambia’s PFM reforms.
