By Arret Jatta
The Gambia Public Procurement Authority (GPPA), held a three-day retreat from August 2-4 2024 at the Abcas Lodge in Foni, to review the operations of its school Gambia Public Procurement Institute (GPPI).
The purpose of the retreat is to do a thorough review of the operations of GPPI, its policy, its framework, and its standards.
GPPA Board Chairman Mr. Habib Jeng said: “As we begin this retreat, let us remind ourselves of the vital role GPPI plays within the Gambia public procurement authorities and the procurement landscape of this country. GPPI is not merely an educational entity, it is the cornerstone of our mission to cultivate a culture of integrity, efficiency, and professionalism in public procurement.”
He added that through GPPI, they aim to empower individuals with the knowledge and skills necessary to uphold values and drive positive change within their procurement system.
He urged participants that the objective of the retreat was to do a comprehensive review of GPPI.
“We will conduct an in-depth analysis of GPPI’s current operations, assessing its strengths, identify areas of improvement, and reorganize growth opportunities. Corroborative engagement. This retreat shall foster collaboration and teamwork among all participants leveraging our collective expertise to address challenges and seize opportunities for innovation and excellence,” Mr Jeng told participants.
Mr Phoday Jaiteh, director general of GPPA recalled that over the past years, the authority has made significant strides in reforming public procurement in the Gambia.
“Thanks to initiatives like the electronic government procurement roadmap and strategy, the electronic government procurement regulations, development of procurement manuals, tender forms, and essential documents all of this has been accomplished with the help of the World Bank. Over the next few days, we will take a deep dive into the operations of GPPI, our goal is to put together the right tools to ensure that the institute takes a strategic direction necessary for sustainability and growth,” he said
For his part, Maurice J Gomez head of GPPI said that the timing of the retreat couldn’t have come at a better time than this.
“As it is, the visionary work of the Director General of GPPA who decided to set the bar higher, felt that there is no limit to the quality and this comes at a time through his effort and leadership that the GPPI was able to train 80 procurement practitioners through the World Bank project,” he said.