At an estimated R27-billion a year, the cost of corruption equates to about 10% of the country’s total budget for health in 2022. With procurement understood to be a government’s single greatest corruption risk, health contracts are especially vulnerable. This is why reform related to safeguarding public procurement and resources is now beyond urgent, argues Zukiswa Kota.
for health in 2022. With procurement understood to be a government’s single greatest corruption risk, health contracts are especially vulnerable.
Currently receiving public attention are the recommendations emanating from the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, Corruption, and Fraud in the Public Sector that make explicit reference to public procurement. Another is the release for public comment of the draft Public Procurement Bill by the National Treasury. A third is the tabling of the National Health Insurance Bill.
However, given deep-seated corruption involving webs of private and state players, the Presidency and Treasury’s seeming lack of urgency to implement critical reform is worrying. A range of civic actors forming the Procurement Reform Working Group has, for instance, about the government’s lax approach to procurement reform and anti-corruption interventions.
The State Capture report highlights the abuse of provisions of the Public Finance Management Act allowing entities to deviate from regular procurement practice. The report said that, instead of proper planning and effective contract management , deviations appear to be the norm rather than the exception.
Both the NHI and Procurement Bills should respond to the Open Government Partnership and African Peer Review Mechanism commitments to transparency. Both the OGP and APRM involvesigned by the government to foster multi stakeholder collaboration and accountability to improve governance and deepen democracy. This is particularly important for the publication of fiscal and procurement data.
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