1. Reference is made to the directive by the Minister of Finance, dated 31st August 2023, with subject “IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SANCTIONS REGIME IN RESPECT OF NONCOMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT REQUIREMENTS – ARREARS CLEARANCE AND PREVENTION STRATEGY”, with refence number MOF/LD/SLCAOA/20.7/23, and with particular reference to Point 7. The Public Procurement Authority would like to bring to your attention the status of the GHANEPS Roll-out and the support available to all Covered Entities.
2. Since the launch of GHANEPS on 30th April 2019 and the six-month pilot that followed, the Authority has commenced phase two of the implementation from November 2019 and has since rolled out the system to 869 entities (by September 2023). These are public entities in all 16 regions and consists of Special and Independent Constitutional Bodies, Central Management Agencies, Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs), Statutory Fund Management Bodies, Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDA)s, State Owned Enterprises (SOEs), Health Institutions, Tertiary Education Institutions, etc. Each of these entities, have gone through the Roll-out Phase which consist of Onboarding, Training, and Post-Go-Live Support stages.
3. Onboarding is the stakeholder engagement phase which commences with a sensitisation meeting with the Head and Senior Management of procurement entities. During the Training stage, training sessions are provided to all Procurement Officers, Management and Other Key Staff of the entities as well as Service Providers (Suppliers, Contractors, and Consultants) that provide goods, works and services to these entities. In the Post-Go-Live Support stage, a team from PPA visits the entities to set them up on the system and provide on-site support.
4. While the use of GHANEPS is mandatory, a grace period was allowed to train and prepare entities for the transition from manual to electronic procurement. As all Public Entities have been taken through the Roll-Out process, the grace period has come to an end. Hence, It is now mandatory for all Public Entities to use GHANEPS for their procurement activities.
5. In addition to the sanctions communicated by the Minister of Finance in the earlier refenced directive, The PPA will apply the following measures to ensure enforcement of the use of the system and increase the adoption rate.
a) PPA will monitor the procurement space and caution Entities who continue to carry out procurement manually and not through GHANEPS. This will also be communicated to the Ministry of Finance.
b) PPA will cease to process requests in respect of the Single Source and Restricted Tender approvals from entities who continuously fail to use GHANEPS.
c) The use of GHANEPS has been added to the appraisal criteria for Chief Directors of the Ministries. Therefore, it has become their responsibility to ensure the use of the system by the respective Ministries, Departments and Agencies under them. Hence, Entities that continuously fail to use GHANEPS will have to answer to the Chief Director of the Ministry the agency falls under.
d) GHANEPS is being integrated with GIFMIS after which payments will only be made in GIF-MIS for contracts that are procured through GHANEPS.
6. A nationwide publicity to sensitise the private sector and the public about GHANEPS will commence soon. In addition, about 50 Support Centres are being set up across the country to provide support to Procurement Entities and Service Providers who may have challenges adapting to the system.
7. The dedicated officers made available by PPA at the GHANEPS Secretariat remain available to support all entities in their transition. However, Entities that require additional or refresher training may write to PPA to request for same. This customised training will be provided to the entity at a cost.
Counting on your usual cooperation.
FRANK MANTE
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
PUBLIC PROCUREMENT AUTHORITY
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