Billions on the line, but the public can’t see the deals
Nigeria buys everything from roads and textbooks to hospital equipment through public contracts. That spending is massive—an estimated 10–25% of GDP—yet too much of it still happens out of sight. New research by governance experts Sope Williams and Adedeji Adeniran says the system needs a serious reset: routine disclosure of procurement data, a federal e-procurement backbone, and a clear way to resolve disputes. Without those fixes, public procurement Nigeria remains vulnerable to waste and abuse.
The first problem is simple and damaging: low publication of procurement information across federal and state institutions. When plans, tenders, awards, and contract performance data aren’t public, competition shrinks, prices rise, and accountability fades. The cure is not exotic—publish by default, and publish across the full contracting cycle. That means posting annual procurement plans, tender documents, bidder lists, evaluation reports, award notices, signed contracts, variations, milestones, and final completion data in formats the public and auditors can actually use.
Digital tools make this possible. A single federal e-procurement platform, properly funded and implemented, can create an auditable trail from planning to payment. It reduces human discretion at sensitive points—like bid submission and evaluation—where fraud and favoritism tend to creep in. The platform should handle vendor registration, electronic bid submission, automated time-stamping, evaluation logs, contract management, and performance tracking. Done right, it makes it easier for honest officials to do their jobs and harder for bad actors to game the system.
Other countries show what’s possible. Ukraine’s ProZorro system, for example, is widely credited with boosting competition and savings by making every stage of the process open by default. Several African governments now run centralized electronic procurement portals that log tenders, awards, and contract changes in real time. The point isn’t to copy and paste someone else’s software. It’s to use tested design choices—like full-cycle transparency, open data, and audit-friendly logs—that have already proven their value.
Williams and Adeniran also flag a gap that rarely gets attention: what happens when bidders feel the rules weren’t followed. Today, complaints can drag on, spill into the courts, and freeze projects. The research calls for a specialized dispute resolution body with clear timelines, published decisions, and an online window for filing and tracking complaints. That means amending the Public Procurement Act (PPA) to spell out processes and deadlines. It also means giving suppliers confidence that a fair review will not cost them future business.
Transparency rules need teeth too. Agencies should face consequences for late or missing disclosures. Procurement heads should sign off on data quality and timeliness, and internal auditors should certify compliance. If disclosure isn’t enforced, it won’t happen. And if it doesn’t happen, neither will trust.
People, institutions, and the political will to see it through
Technology won’t fix a skills shortage. The research is blunt about staffing: many procurement units are understaffed, undertrained, and sometimes sidelined. That’s risky when billions of naira flow through their desks. Three basic steps can change the trajectory: hire on merit (not politics), make continuous professional development mandatory, and open up training to officials at all levels of government.
There’s momentum to build on. In March 2024, a workshop in Abuja brought federal and state officials together to swap experiences and stress-test ideas. The team behind the study is developing training materials that cover planning, evaluation, e-procurement basics, and contract management. This isn’t just classroom work. It’s a push to create a professional community that shares tools, learns from mistakes, and applies common standards.
But lasting reform isn’t about a few champions. It’s about institutions. The PPA of 2007 set up the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) and a basic framework for modern contracting. Implementation, however, has been uneven, slowed by political interference, inconsistent monitoring, legal bottlenecks, and an anything-goes mix of procurement methods. Fixing this means turning values into systems—clear rules, enforced consistently, backed by data, and led by managers who own the outcomes.
How do you know reforms are working? By measuring them. Agencies should set simple, public targets and track them monthly:
- Share of tenders run through open competitive processes
- Average procurement cycle time, from advertisement to award
- Percentage of single-source awards (kept to a tight, justified minimum)
- Average number of bidders per tender (higher is better)
- Savings achieved versus initial cost estimates
- On-time, on-budget completion rates for projects
- Timeliness and completeness of data publication
- Number of complaints resolved within set timelines
If those numbers move in the right direction, citizens will start to see the difference: more bidders, quicker awards, lower unit prices, and fewer abandoned projects. That’s the kind of progress taxpayers can feel.
A realistic rollout plan helps. Start with pilots in a few high-spend ministries, departments, and agencies—works, health, education—before scaling the e-procurement platform nationwide. In parallel, draft the legal amendments for a dedicated review body and digital-by-default disclosure. Budget for the transition (software, integrations, training, helpdesks) and set up a change-management team to support agencies through the switch. Vendors need support too: hands-on onboarding sessions, simple user guides, and helplines for small businesses that are new to digital bidding.
Security can’t be an afterthought. Role-based access, tamper-proof logs, secure hosting, routine penetration tests, and regular external audits are non-negotiable. Procurement data should be open to the public, but the systems that hold it must be locked down. Whistleblower channels—the fastest early-warning system—should be easy to use and safe to trust, with protections guaranteed in policy and practice.
Civil society and the media are part of the machinery. The 2007 Act envisioned a role for non-state actors, but the gap between the law and day-to-day practice remains wide. That’s fixable. Publish machine-readable data that watchdogs and analysts can query. Invite citizen groups to pre-bid forums and post-award reviews. Hold periodic briefings where the BPP and major procuring entities present performance data and take questions. Formal structures take time; informal engagement can start now.
Politics still matters. Reformers often face resistance from those who benefit from the status quo. The counterweight is public demand and a promise leaders can sell: better procurement saves money quickly. With oil revenues volatile and costs rising, cutting leakages is one of the fastest routes to fiscal breathing room. Governors and ministers who deliver visible savings and quicker projects can claim wins that voters and investors understand.
Coordination between federal and state systems is the next big hurdle. States should be encouraged to align with federal standards through peer learning and practical incentives—like conditional transfers tied to transparency milestones. A shared supplier registry, interoperable data formats, and common templates make life easier for vendors and auditors. For micro, small, and medium enterprises, a fair shot matters: reasonable bid security, quick payments, and clear evaluation criteria help local firms compete without lowering the bar.
Dispute resolution deserves a closer look. A credible review mechanism should be fast, independent, and transparent. Think firm timelines (measured in weeks, not months), an expert panel insulated from procurement units, and decisions published with reasons. That keeps complaints out of court, prevents project paralysis, and gives losing bidders a fair hearing without blacklisting their future chances.
What would success look like in practical terms? Tenders draw more bidders from more states. Prices inch down as competition rises. Contracts get signed sooner, projects start on time, and change orders stop ballooning costs. Agencies publish data routinely, watchdogs scrutinize it, and the public can trace money from budget to delivery. Procurement turns from a black box into a predictable system that rewards competence and value for money.
Reform is a choice. The research by Williams and Adeniran lays out a blueprint that’s hard to argue with: open the data by default, digitize the process, professionalize the people, and build institutions that outlast any one champion. Nigeria has tried piecemeal fixes for years. The task now is to tie those pieces together and make them stick.
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