Abstract
This study interrogates the factors that influence Value for Money (VfM) in the public procurement system (PPS) of developing nations, using Nigeria’s federal government procurement system as a case study. Nigeria’s federal government procurement system is guided by the Public Procurement Act, 2007 (PPA). The primary objective of the PPA is to promote VfM in the public sector. However, the PPS in Nigeria has been fraught with various cases of irregularities, mismanagement, corruption and political interference. Most of the studies exploring PPS have focused on advanced economies, with strong institutions. Only a few studies on public procurement have been conducted in developing economies, and these have mainly focused on corruption, leaving the inherent challenges of key regulatory frameworks and VfM largely unexplored. Consequently, this study seeks to examine why major regulatory frameworks have not been able to enhance public procurement to create VfM in developing economies.This study employed a mixed methodological approach of qualitative research methods, such as in-depth interviews, and quantitative research methods, such as an online survey tool, to collect primary data from the key stakeholders in the federal government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs). The stakeholders in the study included middle-level procurement officers, senior management officers (including their executives), federal government contractors and non-governmental organisations (NGOs). The study used 18 participants for the interviews 126 participants for the questionnaires. The participants were selected based on purposeful sampling approach. The qualitative data was analysed thematically, following the study objectives. The quantitative data was analysed using the statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS) software, the results were tabulated in frequency distribution tables, following the study objectives.
Following the various debates in PPS’s, the study interrogated the concept of VfM by adopting the public value theory, to provide in-depth discussions on it and found that the concept is subjective and ambiguous. Although, the author found that the definitional ambiguity is not just specific to the country of context alone, it is a subject that other nations also grapple with. The study also shows the impact of the PPA, to ascertain if the concept of the Es (effectiveness, efficiency, economy, and equity) is realised. The PPA falls short of effectiveness, efficiency,
economy, and equity, which are the basic requirements for VfM. In considering the fundamental factors that influence procurement systems and which deprives the system of the realisation of the set goal, the study identifies various factors, such as political interference, weak institutions, and poor regulations, as factors that undermine the delivery of public procurement goals in Nigeria. Other factors that were complementary include the poor attitudes of the stakeholders, the lack of an e-database, poverty, and poor infrastructure.
The study also examined how VfM can be ensured in government spending. The findings show that efforts at ensuring this in the PPS may be difficult due to the aforementioned challenges, especially the lack of political will. The study equally shows that developing nations, especially Nigeria, will need to reposition their regulations and institutions to tackle their peculiar challenges with regard to ensuring VfM in the public sector. The study offers contributions to the existing literature by exploring the institutional framework of the public procurement
system to give insight into the factors that influence VfM in developing countries. It further offers insights into specific challenges that confront VfM policies in emerging economies
| Date of Award | 2023 |
|---|---|
| Original language | English |
| Supervisor | Hefin Rowlands (Supervisor) & Ama Eyo (Supervisor) |