An Assessment of the Impact of the Public Procurement Act 663 (2003) of The Republic Of Ghana, Approaching A Decade Of Its Enactment

Abstract

The Public Procurement Act ever since its enactment about a decade ago has received mixed reactions from key stakeholders. Whilst some see it as a panacea to the numerous problems that bedevil public procurement in Ghana, others too see it as inadequate and lacking the needed punch to curb the various ethical concerns that characterize the sector. The time was due after nearly a decade of its enforcement to wholly assess the impact of the Public Procurement Act of the republic of Ghana. The research relied on both primary and secondary data. The targeted population was 70 which included the staff and managers of the procurement department, store officers, senior staff, head of department and personnel who constitute the Lower Manya Krobo district assembly procurement board. A sample size of 50 was chosen with the purposive sampling technique. It was found out that the benefits derived from using the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663) include the assurance of quality goods, timely delivery of goods, right delivery of right quantities, transparency, reduced corruption, value for money, right price is given and right place of delivery is assured, uniformity in performing procurement activities, economic and efficient use of state resources and harmonize public procurement processes in the district assemblies and also greater efficiency. Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663) comes with some benefits to district assemblies. The following difficulties were also revealed from the research; difficulties in applying and implementing the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663), lack of usage flexibility, lack of authority to dispose public assets, the lack of independent procurement auditing function, no central body with technical expertise and also threshold are too small for entities like a district assembly in case of emergency situation. The Public Procurement Act has been largely effective. However, it needs to be amended to include provisions for electronic procurement. This will improve transparency, accountability, and compliance within public procurement systems. This will mean the amendment of the current Act.

Key words: Public Procurement Act, Public Procurement, Procurement Law