Public contracts ministry sets new deadline for call of tenders

The Ministry of Public Contracts has introduced an innovation enabling Calls for Tender to henceforth be launched as early as January so that by the month May, all contracts would have been signed in order to allow enough time for contractors on the field to execute projects.

The innovation was revealed last January 28 at the National Advanced School of Administration and Magistracy, ENAM by Minister Delegate at the Presidency in charge of Public Contracts, Abba Sadou, as he opened a two-day Annual Conference of officials of the central and devolved services of his ministry.

For two days, officials of the Ministry of Public Contracts brainstormed on the theme “Public Contracts Reform: consolidation of the achievements and contribution to ameliorate the consumption rate of investment credits”.

Participants equally listened to exposés presented on sub themes such as “optimization of the award of Public Contracts as a lever of consumption of investment credits” presented by the Director for Services and Intellectual Services Contracts, Ngouh Salifou, “the issue of lowest-bidder in public contracts” presented by the Director of Other Infrastructures Contracts, Paldou Christophe, “control of the effectiveness of services and mechanisms to endorse payments of detailed accounts” presented by the Chief of Central Control Brigade for Infrastructures Contracts, Nyele Abanda Laurent and “proper implementation of the regulation by actors as a prerequisite for the enhancement of governance in public contracts” presented by the Inspector for the Evaluation of Performances of services, Fru Jonathan.

Speaking during the occasion, Minister Abba Sadou stressed that this innovation will have an impact only if all the stakeholders involved in the chain of execution of Public Investment Budget play their different roles well.

Talking to the press at the occasion, Minister Abba Sadou explained that, “For the first time, the process for programming the contracts to be awarded was achieved in December and for the first time, the launching of the call for tender can take place as from the month of January 2015.

We hope that by the month of May, all the contracts should have been signed providing for the very first time, a long period of about 7 or 8 months for the execution of contracts in the field.

And if indeed all the actors play their role well, we will for the first time in Cameroon no longer talk of under consumption of Public Investment Budget; this is a great innovation.”