Dr. Okoe Boye (right) joined by officials of CIPS, PPA and Ministry of Public Procurement to cut tape, symbolizing the official opening of the office.

The Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS), a United Kingdom-based global professional organization, has opened its bureau at Labone, a suburb of Accra.

CIPS Ghana aims to promote good practice and provide services to procurement professionals, students, government institutions and other stakeholders, among others.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the bureau on Monday, October 9, 2017, Ghana Country Manager of CIPS, Stella Addo, explained that her outfit was going to collaborate with key stakeholders to fight against procurement-related corruption in the country.

She indicated that the bureau shall be open to procurement and supply chain professionals, students and other stakeholders.

Board Chairman of Public Procurement Authority (PPA), Professor Douglas Boateng, in a statement, observed that “the inauguration of the bureau was the beginning of the journey to truly professionalize local procurement in Ghana.”

He was of the opinion that the procurement profession has over the last decade gone through several transformations and that there was still lot more to be done to enable it contribute meaningfully to national development.

“In the light of these changing dynamics and critical needs, it is my hope that CIPS, now officially with an office in Ghana, shall strive to understand, respect and truly cater for the local needs of its current and future members. Champion the establishment of a truly world class, but local, professional body to represent as well as give a collective voice to Ghana’s procurement practitioners,” he urged.

“Contrary to popular belief, the challenges faced by procurement practitioners are not a Ghanaian or broader African issue,” he said.

“It is rather a worldwide conundrum that is gradually being corrected by a re-energised CIPS. Their efforts are increasingly being bolstered by pronounces from various functional areas, including finance, law, Information technology, marketing, engineering, and construction to name but a few.”

According to him, “Even the likes of the World Bank, African and Asian Development Banks, other developmental financial and supervisory institutions like the UN and other donor agencies are increasingly adding their voices to the much-needed procurement transformation initiative.”

“By end 2025, procurement shall become one of the most important functional instruments for industrialization and socio-economic development in emerging economies like Ghana.”

“Policy makers and C-suite executives shall progressively elevate functional custodians from the backroom into the boardroom, reporting directly to the Managing Director, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Director or Director General,” he said.

Making policy recommendation to ensure a strong procurement regime in the country, Prof Boateng said the government of Ghana must accelerate procurement related human capital development, especially within the public sector.

“In line with rapidly emerging global trends, C-suite executives and policy makers in Ghana by 31st December 2020 must elevate qualified procurement functional custodians from the backroom into the decision making room,” he stressed.

“It is important that the critical review of Act 663 and 914 be undertaken with funding from the government and not from donor agencies or AIDS money, according to Prof Douglas.

In attendance at the ceremony were Members of Parliament (MPs), Deputy Minister of Finance, Abena Osei Asare, among others.