Innovations to Accelerate Public Contract Award, Execution

 By Godlove BAINKONG, Cameroon Tribune, 06-08-2013

A Presidential Ordinance of August 5 modifies seven of the 31 articles of the March 8, 2012 decree specifying the rules of actors.

The rules of different actors of the public contract award chain have been redefined and the procedures modified. In effect, a Presidential decree of Monday August 5, 2013 modifying seven of the 31 articles of a March 8, 2012 decree beefs up the competences of public award commissions, giving ceiling amounts of contracts each committee has to handle. 

 What Has Changed?

The modification touches articles 5, 6, 8,10,11,29 and 31 on the competences of the different contract award committees which are technical organs to ensure transparency in the award and execution of public contracts. These are Central Committees, Ministerial Committees, Regional Committees and Local and Internal Committees.

Central Committees

The modified article 5 of the decree no. 2012/074 of March 8, 2012 stipulates that the central committee for the award of public contracts will henceforth deal with projects from government ministries, public administrations, decentralised local collectivities and public and para-public institutions whose amounts range from FCFA 100 million to FCFA 5 billion. These include FCFA 5 billion for roads, FCFA 1 billion for other infrastructure, FCFA 500 million for public buildings and other equipment and FCFA 250 million for general supplies as well as FCFA 100 million for services and intellectual works. This is an evolution from the March 8, 2012 decree which gave the central committees for the award of public contracts the power to take care of projects whose amount range from FCFA 500 million for roads, FCFA 500 million for infrastructure, FCFA 200 million for buildings and collective logistics, FCFA 100 million for general supplies to FCFA 50 million for intellectual consultancy.

Ministerial Committees

Initially, ministerial committees took care of contracts in the ministries whose amounts equal or surpass FCFA 5 million but did not attain FCFA 50 million. With the modification, especially article 6, the committees now have the right to control contracts whose amount equal FCFA 5 million but are below FCFA 5 billion for roads and other infrastructure whose amounts are equal to FCFA 5 million but do not surpass FCFA 1 billion, public buildings and other equipment ranging from FCFA 5 million but below FCFA 500 million. They also have the competence on general supplies whose amounts are equal to or above FCFA 5 million but below FCFA 250 million as well as services and intellectual consultancy with amounts equal to or above FCFA 5 million but below FCFA 100 million.

Regional Committees

They are in charge of projects whose amounts vary from FCFA 50 million and below FCFA 1 billion for roads, other infrastructural projects to the tune of FCFA 50 million but below FCFA 500 million and public buildings and equipment amounting to FCFA 50 million but below FCFA 250 million. General supplies ranging from FCFA 50 million and below FCFA 100 million as well as services and consultancy works amounting to FCFA 15 million but below FCFA 50 million are also within the competence of the regional committees.

Who Awards What Contract?

With the modification, on the proposal of different committees, the Minister in charge of Public Contracts launches calls for tenders and awards contracts for projects equal to or above FCFA 5 billion for roads and FCFA 1 billion for other infrastructure, among others. Ministers are responsible for launching calls for tenders and awarding contracts, for example on road projects, whose amounts are equal to FCFA 5 million but below FCFA 5 billion. The decree specifies that the Minister of Public Contracts has a seven-day deadline to visa the signing of contracts under his competences. The Minister also has the right to award contracts without tenders (emergency purposes) but which must align with the laws in force. In case any other Minister or vote holder wants to do same for contracts within his competences, the Presidential Ordinance obliges him or her to obtain authorisation from the Minister of Public Contracts.