21 February 2017 12:03 am
Once the electronic government procurement (e-GP) system is introduced, it would help the government to make the public procurement more efficient and transparent, said Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake.
The minister was addressing the inaugural session of a four-day conference titled ‘Electronic Government Procurement (e-GP) in South Asia: Achievements, Opportunities and Challenges’, held under the patronage of President Maithripala Sirisena at Cinnamon Grand in Colombo, yesterday.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and several top-level local and foreign speakers are scheduled to address the conference.
This annual learning, knowledge and experience-sharing event is organised under the auspices of the South Asia Region Public Procurement Network, which comprises senior public procurement officials from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Speaking further, Karunanayake said that this conference is also hosted at the right time as the World Bank indicated its support to introduce an e-GP system to the public sector.
He said that the discussion to be held in this conference and the subsequent recommendations would help tremendously for all participants’ countries in implementing a better public procurement system thereby facing the existing challenges and improving the efficiency and transparency in the system.
Finance Ministry Secretary Dr. R.H.S. Samaratunga, Public Finance Department Director General P. Algama, World Bank Country Director for Sri Lanka and the Maldives Idah Pswarayi-Riddihough and Asian Development Bank Country Director Sri Widowati were among the participants.