NRS backs procurement reforms to end abandoned projects
The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has pledged financial and technical support for proposed amendments to the Public Procurement Act 2007, aimed at reducing abandoned government projects and strengthening accountability in public spending.
The Executive Chairman of the NRS, Zacch Adedeji, made the commitment on Tuesday during a meeting with the Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Adebowale Adedokun, and his delegation at the agency’s headquarters in Abuja.
“I am also publicly promising that we will not only give you human resources, but God’s will, we will provide financial resources,” Adedeji said.
He said improving public procurement would encourage voluntary tax compliance by assuring Nigerians that government revenue was being spent effectively.
“Anytime I see abandoned projects, I see it as tax collected and being wasted, because it is either paid from the tax collected or the loan that we’ve taken that we’ll use tax to pay in the future,” he said.
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Adedeji questioned whether existing procurement regulations remained suitable for current economic realities, particularly restrictions on advance payments and contract approval thresholds.
He directed officials to establish a technical committee to support the proposed legislative amendments.
Speaking earlier, Adedokun disclosed that the bureau was pursuing at least 29 procurement reforms requiring amendments to the existing law.
“We are undertaking for the first time in history of this country, we are undertaking not less than 29 reforms in procurement,” he said.
The proposed reforms include electronic procurement, community-based contracting, sector-specific procedures and preferential opportunities for women, young people, persons with disabilities and military veterans.
Adedokun explained that community-based procurement would allow local businesses to compete for smaller government contracts without travelling to Abuja.
He said the proposed electronic procurement system would digitise processes from contract assessment to payment while strengthening tax collection and reducing revenue leakages.
The BPP chief also defended revised procurement approval thresholds, saying heads of government agencies could approve certain contracts below ₦10bn and goods and services contracts below ₦5bn, subject to established procedures.
He warned public institutions against circumventing procurement regulations, stressing the importance of obtaining certificates of no objection where required.
“We are not after lowest cost, but after value for money,” Adedokun said.
He also proposed establishing a comprehensive national contractors’ database to strengthen compliance and improve transparency.
The NRS Group Director of Support Services, Kunle Ogidi, commended the BPP for providing procurement training and technical assistance to the revenue agency.
Ogidi said closer collaboration would help both institutions identify regulatory challenges and develop practical solutions to improve public procurement.