The Centre for Public Accountability has said reforms introduced by the Bureau of Public Procurement, particularly measures targeted at inflated contract costs and procurement leakages, have saved the Federal Government an estimated N1.1tn.
The civil society organisation made the disclosure on Saturday while presenting findings of its Independent Service Delivery Assessment Report on selected government institutions, with a special focus on the Bureau of Public Procurement under the leadership of its Director-General, Adebowale Adedokun.
Addressing journalists in Abuja during a press conference, CPA Executive Director, Olufemi Lawson, said the establishment of a Price Intelligence Unit and digital benchmarking framework by the BPP had emerged as one of the most impactful reforms in Nigeria’s public procurement system.
According to him, the initiative had helped identify and eliminate inflated quotations in government contracts while strengthening value-for-money spending across ministries, departments and agencies.
“Our assessment identifies the establishment of the Price Intelligence Unit and digital benchmarking framework as one of the most impactful reforms introduced by the current leadership.
“The system has reportedly delivered savings estimated at over N1.1tn through real-time benchmarking and elimination of inflated quotations.
“The CPA considers this initiative a major anti-corruption mechanism capable of significantly reducing procurement leakages in government,” Lawson said.
He noted that procurement-related abuses, including contract inflation, weak oversight and due process violations, had contributed to waste and inefficiency in public spending, making reforms in the sector critical to national development.
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Lawson said findings from the assessment showed that within the first 15 months of the current administration at the bureau, the agency had embarked on some of the most ambitious reforms since the enactment of the Public Procurement Act in 2007.
The CPA also commended the BPP for revising procurement thresholds and operational guidelines that had remained outdated for years.
According to the organisation, the review had reduced bureaucratic bottlenecks, accelerated procurement timelines and improved oversight across government institutions.
It further praised the introduction of revised Standard Bidding Documents across MDAs, saying the initiative improved transparency, strengthened competition among contractors and reduced opportunities for manipulation of procurement processes.
On accountability, the group described the newly established National Debarment Policy as a landmark reform that creates an enforceable sanctions regime against fraudulent, unethical and non-performing contractors.
“For the first time in Nigeria’s procurement history, there now exists an enforceable sanctions regime targeted at non-performing, fraudulent and unethical contractors,” Lawson said.
The organisation also acknowledged investments in capacity building, revealing that over 4,000 procurement officers had participated in structured training programmes while more than 2,700 had been certified under the National Procurement Certification Programme.
Despite the progress recorded, Lawson acknowledged that challenges remained within Nigeria’s procurement ecosystem but maintained that available evidence pointed to a leadership committed to transparency, accountability and institutional reform.
