Compliance Issues with Public Procurement Regulations in Ghana

Godwin Uzoma Chikwere,Mawuko Dza,Simon S K Dzandu

doi:10.5539/ijbm.v14n5p1

Abstract

This study examines compliance issues with public procurement regulations in Ghana. The simple random sampling technique was used to draw a sample size of 100 practitioners from public institutions in Ghana. The collected data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study revealed that although public procurement entities in Ghana have made some strides in improving compliance levels with the public procurement law, majority of public institutions disregard their management systems and contract management processes among others. The study indicates that familiarity (p-value = 0.020) though inversely related, incompetence (p-value =0.023), political interference (p-value =0.000) and poor monitoring (p-value =0.010) were significant factors in explaining non-compliance with the legal framework of public procurement in Ghana. The research further discovered that officials in charge of public procurement flout the rules and regulations with impunity. To address the issue of non-conformance by public officials, it is imperative for the Public Procurement Authority to desist from embarking on what could best be described as selective justice and apply the law equally on all non-conforming public institutions. The authority must also strengthen its monitoring systems to ensure that offenders are apprehended and adequately sanctioned according to the law.

Highlights

Public procurement remains an important component in the economies of countries across the world, accounting for an estimated 9-13% of emerging economies’ gross domestic product (Thai 2008)
A number of research output on the subject matter confirms the incidence of non-compliance to standards and procedures by procurement practitioners, very few of these studies have focused on the key determinants or factors that embolden practitioners to consistently flout procurement regulations with impunity
The study further investigates whether familiarity, staff competence, political interference, poor monitoring and instituting strict rules affect non-compliance with procurement regulations in Ghana

Summary

Introduction

Public procurement remains an important component in the economies of countries across the world, accounting for an estimated 9-13% of emerging economies’ gross domestic product (Thai 2008). Huge sums of tax payers’ money get wasted due to inefficient and ineffective procurement structures, poor monitoring systems, non adherence to policies and procedures, non-compliance to regulations as well as the failure of authorities to impose and implement sanctions for violations of procurement rules (Ntayi et al, 2010a). Ghana’s public procurement law sets out comprehensible rules and procedures for procurement entities to observe. A number of research output on the subject matter confirms the incidence of non-compliance to standards and procedures by procurement practitioners, very few of these studies have focused on the key determinants or factors that embolden practitioners to consistently flout procurement regulations with impunity. The study further investigates whether familiarity (knowledge of the regulations), staff competence, political interference, poor monitoring and instituting strict rules affect non-compliance with procurement regulations in Ghana

Methods

Results

Conclusion