DHAKA, March 4, 2023 (BSS) - A knowledge sharing delegation of public procurement officials from Egypt is going to start its learning sessions on procurement reforms and implementation of electronic government procurement (e-GP) in Bangladesh, tomorrow at the Central Procurement Technical Unit (CPTU).

Shoheler Rahman Chowdhury, director general of CPTU of Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED), Ministry of Planning, will chair the opening session at CPTU. 

The delegation's three-day visit from March 5 to 7, 2023 will take place under the auspices of the World Bank. It has been providing technical support to CPTU to implement the Digitizing Implementation Monitoring and Public Procurement Project (DIMAPPP), said a press release.

The overall objectives of the knowledge exchange is to build Egypt's preparedness to design, develop, and implement electronic government procurement, with a focus on strengthening the institutional and technical capacity of public procurement officials in Egypt. 

In December 2022, another such team from the Republic of Mozambique had a three-day visit to CPTU. Since 2011, Gambia, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Nepal, Ethiopia and Nigeria visited CPTU for knowledge and experience sharing on public procurement reforms and e-GP system in Bangladesh.

The specific objectives of Egypt team's visit are to learn from Bangladesh its journey to digitalize public procurement system, including design, development, implementation, and sustainability; gather advice/guidance from Bangladesh.
 
It is envisioned that the interventions from Bangladesh will include advice/guidance for the Egyptians. 

The CPTU has been implementing e-GP since 2011. Over the last several years it has added some new features to the system to make public procurement process and contract management fully digitalized. 

It has started inviting international competitive tender of goods through e-GP system, launched electronic contract management system (e-CMS), e-Audit manual and tenderers' database.

So far, about 6.70 lakh tenders have been invited through e-GP, more than one lakh tenderers and 1427 procuring agencies have registered with the e-GP system since 2011. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the e-GP Portal on June 2, 2011.

Bangladesh is now considered a global leader in electronic procurement. The CPTU is also working to fulfill the SDG targets on public procurement. It has already drafted a Sustainable Procurement Policy (SPP) under the DIMAPPP.

The release said Egypt is taking steps to strengthen public procurement, most notably via the 2018 Public Procurement Law, which aims to achieve efficiency of public expenditure and enhance the principles of good governance, among several other objectives. In 2022, Egypt is working with the Korean Development Agency (KOICA) to introduce electronic procurement.

The World Bank supports Egypt's efforts to introduce electronic procurement, as it is a key pillar to an efficient, transparent, and modern public procurement system. There are, however, serious challenges to designing, developing, and implementing electronic procurement, as evidenced by international experiences.