As government moves to embark fully on
electronic procurement process for suppliers and service providers, the risk to
the process according to Minister of State for Works and transport Gen. Edward
Katumba Wamala is electronic waste management aimed at protecting the
environment, which the minister says must be elaborated to all the stakeholders
in procurement systems of Uganda.
During the 4th Procurement Summit held at Imperial Royal on Friday 24th May 2019, organized by the Institute of Procurement Professionals Of Uganda (IPPU), Katumba told procurement professionals that sustainable development is supported by effective sustainable procurement, urging procurement officers to embrace innovation such that waste products are not disposed to the environment but rather recycled, adding that as a country, there is need for an elaborate way of disposing e – products.
“It is role of the buyer to procure sustainable solutions. How are we going to manage the e – waste disposal? You are buying phones and computers every other day so where do we dispose all this. I hope they don’t end up in the lakes,” he said.
Richard Mugambwa, Chairman of the National Technical Committee, Switch Africa Green, who led a delegation from NEMA called on procurement officers to make it a norm in Uganda that everything purchased, economic, social and environmental aspects are put into consideration.
Grace Musoke from The World Bank while presenting on e-sourcing says that online procurement needs to bring all stakeholder on board to appreciate and adapt to the e-sourcing system which she say if not done may break or make the system if not stakeholders are not well prepared.
“As you go online, we need to stakeholders on board to use. Stakeholder adaptation can make or break e-sourcing systems if not prepared to receive the e-sourcing system” she said
The summit which was organized under the theme “Procurement: Balancing economic, social and environmental considerations”, attracted government agencies including the government agencies that attended the summit included Bank of Uganda, Parliament of Uganda, Uganda Registration Service Bureau, UMEME, National Identification Registration Authority, Kampala Capital City Authority among others.
By Drake Nyamugabwa
