Staff Reporter

Government has further strengthened procurement measures in a bid to improve the management of payment cycles for Ministries, Departments and Agencies.

Speaking through a statement yesterday, Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Professor Mthuli Ncube said that the pricing of commodities by suppliers to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) was characterized by a tendency of forwarding pricing models to front parallel market exchange rates.

“Additional comprehensive measures to further strengthen procurement systems and to improve management of payment cycles for Government contracts are therefore an urgent imperative.

“Government has noted with concern pricing of goods and services offered by suppliers to Ministries, Departments and Agencies as well as Parastatals and Local Authorities. The pricing framework adopted by suppliers is characterized by a behavioral tendency for forward pricing models and benchmarking prices to front loaded parallel market exchange rates. These pricing models are leading to extortionist pricing of goods and services supplied to the Government Ministries, Departments and Agents not anchored on economic fundamentals,” said Professor Ncube.

Professor Ncube said that Government had also noted with concern the fact that substantial differences in pricing were obtaining in the market for goods and services supplied to the Government as compared to other customers. He further said that the MDAs through the various procurement management units, had not been exercising due diligence, especially with regards the value for money in terms of pricing. He said that they had been merely following procurement rules to the letter, without due regard to established value for money practices already enshrined in the Procurement laws of the country.

Furthermore, he stressed that the combined effects resulted in the rapid erosion of Budgeted resources and hence prompted the Government to come up with a raft of measures to deal with the menace.

He added that the Government through the Treasury, would be strict in enforcing measures to enhance economic stability and that punitive measures will be taken against officials found to be complicit to overpricing and procurement malpractices; while suppliers would be blacklisted for future supply contracts. He added that all existing contracts were now subject to a value for money audit review before payments are made.

Meanwhile, Professor Ncube reiterated that the Government of Zimbabwe remained committed to maintaining macro-economic stability and the elimination of harmful and destabilizing arbitrage conditions that have pervaded the economy at the expense of the generality of citizens.