Times Of Swaziland: DIGITAL PLAN TO STOP TENDER OVERPRICING

DIGITAL PLAN TO STOP TENDER OVERPRICING
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 BY KWANELE DHLADHLA  on 16/05/2019 08:33:00


MBABANE – To eradicate overpricing in government tenders, plans are well
underway to install a digital system that will compare prices with what the
market has to offer.
This is anticipated to ensure that the State does not pay far more than what the
product costs as a strategy to minimise uncalled for over-expenditure in the
quest to provide efficient services to the citizenry.
Minister of Commerce, Industry and Trade Manqoba Khumalo disclosed that
government had already sought professional advice from a company, which he could
not reveal, to secure a system that would enable government to achieve its goal.
“As government, we intend to review procurement policies with the intent to
ensure that allocated funds get used for the desired purposes and efficiently.
We will also put in place a digital system to benchmark with what the market has
to offer to avoid overpricing,” said Khumalo during an interview shortly after
a tour of the Eswatini Industrial Development Company (EIDC) offices at the
Dlanubeka Building, fifth floor yesterday.
The minister acknowledged that companies had in the past overpriced the State
primarily because payments were not processed on time. He said this prompted
government suppliers to mark up their prices to cater for the costs arising from
delayed payments since some of the goods which get supplied were sourced from
wholesalers through credit, which accumulates with time.
Payments
The minister also pointed out that the late payments also provided the major
reason why certain companies were shunning government tenders.
He noted that it was only companies that could withstand the monetary
complications arising from the lack of timeous payments that eventually went for
State tenders. “Soon after all arrears have been settled, we will make sure
that payments are made on time going forward in order to ensure that while we
complain about overpricing, companies are also at ease that their monies will be
paid on time to avoid any complications,” Khumalo explained.
It should be mentioned that government has made an undertaking to settle its
arrears in full within a year.
This commitment was made by Prime Minister Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini in the
2019-2023 strategy road map on Monday.