By Sadique Bamwita
ENTEBBE
The Deputy Director General Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA), Ms. Olive Lumonya Birungi, on November 29, 2024 urged airport service providers to embrace sustainable procurement to enhance efficiency in the procurement process hence reducing the cost of doing business with government agencies.
She noted that following the introduction of E-procurement, in the last two years a lot has changed at the authority in terms of bidding and payment for contracts. She made these comments during the annual suppliers meeting held in Entebbe.
She challenged airport service providers to comply with the new rules and regulations set up by the Public procurement and disposal of public Assets (PPDA).
The Director Airports and Aviation security, Eng. Al-Hajj Ayub Sooma disclosed that so far the authority has 500 registered suppliers and that the government remains committed to supporting procurement supplies. He called on suppliers to recruit competent workforce that catch up with new technological advancements.
Eng. Sooma also implored airport service providers to make bids which don’t exceed their financial capacity to avoid stressing themselves with huge bank loans which they can’t pay in time.
The Director performance monitoring at the Directorate of Public procurement and disposal of public Assets (PPDA), Ms. Mercy Kyoshabire, said her office is working tireless to ensure procurement delivers for all adding that to achieve this in 2021 PPDA Law was amended and the new law came into force in February 2024.
“We want to use procurement as a tool for socio-economic transformation. The new procurement Law provides for full payment before a contract is awarded. The Law provides that entities have to advance more than 30% unlike the previous one when it was only 30%. The law comes in to address some of these bottlenecks.
‘ In the previous Law changing orders within the contract required the contract manager to do it within 0.1% and cumulatively 1% which meant that the contract manager and accounting officer could not make any change that exceeded 1% cumulatively. But the new law provides for 1% and cumulatively 1.5%.
‘For the case of restricted procedures for entities, it has to be above Shs.800m and not below Shs 400m. There is also a reduction in costs of bids and performance security from 2% to 1%. Performance securities previously were at 10% and now are 5%.
‘Bid validity period, if you want to extend your bid security you can now do it using a bid securing declaration. Also procurement being used as a tool for socio-economic transformation in the new law we have reservations for women, youth and persons who are abled differently. UCAA annual procurement budget of 15% must be allocated to youth, women and persons who are abled differently. When you breach these procurement laws you are suspended from doing business with the government for a period of 3years, “Ms. Kyoshabire strongly warned suppliers.
The Director Finance at Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA), Mr. Hassan Musinguzi, told suppliers that the authority is doing 100% paperless business and that this is intended to reduce traffic congestion and to promote transparency.
The Acting manager procurement at the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority(UCAA) Ms. Hannah Tumuhimbise, commended PPDA for providing a new legal framework saying it would go a long way in promoting sustainable procurement. She added that the authority will explore all possible ways to implement sustainable procurement.
In other news, Ms. Olive Lumonya Birungi disclosed that the authority has now switched to using electric Kayoola buses as way of reducing carbon emission at the airport adding that Entebbe International Airport is the first airport to implement green energy to protect the airport.
