Corrupt Practices in Procurement
(d)
There are many measures that can be put in place to ensure that corrupt practices are reduced or absent in procurement proceedings: • First of all, information must be collected on the range of products and services available in the market that would suit the requirements of the firm as well as information on the potential suppliers of the products so as to be able to design the procurement process to achieve value for money and to be aware of the characteristics of the market from which purchase will be made and recent industry activities or trends that may affect competition for the tender. By so doing, the risks and malpractices that may arise during the procurement proceedings will be known. Thus, the tender process can be properly designed to maximise the potential participation of genuinely competing bidders and to effectively reduce communication among bidders. Moreover, the requirements for the procurement of the 100 computers must be clearly defined and the criteria for evaluation and award of the tender must be carefully chosen so as to avoid predictability. • Unnecessary restrictions that may reduce the numbers of qualified bidders must be avoided. Minimum requirements that are proportional to the size and content of the procurement must be clearly specified. • Requirements must also be clearly defined in the tender offer. Specifications must be independently checked before final issue to ensure they can be clearly understood and so as not to leave room for suppliers to define key terms after the tender is awarded. • Performance specifications must be used, stating what is actually required rather than just providing a product description. • Avoid going to tender while a contract is still in the early stages of specification. A comprehensive definition of the need is a key to good procurement. • Specifications must be defined so as to allow for substitute products or in terms of functional performance and requirements
There are many measures that can be put in place to ensure that corrupt practices are reduced or absent in procurement proceedings: • First of all, information must be collected on the range of products and services available in the market that would suit the requirements of the firm as well as information on the potential suppliers of the products so as to be able to design the procurement process to achieve value for money and to be aware of the characteristics of the market from which purchase will be made and recent industry activities or trends that may affect competition for the tender. By so doing, the risks and malpractices that may arise during the procurement proceedings will be known. Thus, the tender process can be properly designed to maximise the potential participation of genuinely competing bidders and to effectively reduce communication among bidders. Moreover, the requirements for the procurement of the 100 computers must be clearly defined and the criteria for evaluation and award of the tender must be carefully chosen so as to avoid predictability. • Unnecessary restrictions that may reduce the numbers of qualified bidders must be avoided. Minimum requirements that are proportional to the size and content of the procurement must be clearly specified. • Requirements must also be clearly defined in the tender offer. Specifications must be independently checked before final issue to ensure they can be clearly understood and so as not to leave room for suppliers to define key terms after the tender is awarded. • Performance specifications must be used, stating what is actually required rather than just providing a product description. • Avoid going to tender while a contract is still in the early stages of specification. A comprehensive definition of the need is a key to good procurement. • Specifications must be defined so as to allow for substitute products or in terms of functional performance and requirements