Treasury on the spot for delaying e-procurement system, Ruto orders rollout by 2025

The National Treasury has been put on the spot as President William Ruto criticised the prolonged delays in implementing the e-procurement system.

Ruto, while delivering his State of the Nation Address in Parliament on Thursday, accused the department of dragging its feet for nearly a decade.

The President, who said was determined to tackle corruption in government procurement processes, has given the John Mbadi-led ministry a firm deadline for the system's rollout and made it clear that only procurement done through this system will be approved going forward.

"Today, I direct the National Treasury to roll out the e-procurement system by the end of the first quarter of 2025," Ruto said.

He pointed out that this system would be a crucial tool in the fight against corruption, a battle he vowed to take on with full resolve.

"Let this serve as notice to all. Independent institutions charged with this responsibility must up their game, pull up their socks and match up to the expectations of the people of Kenya," Ruto said.

The e-procurement system has been seen as a critical step in reducing corruption in government contracts. However, the Treasury's failure to implement it for nearly 10 years has sparked widespread criticism.

President William Ruto while delivering the State of the Nation address in Parliament on Thursday. (PCS)

According to the President, the delays have undermined efforts to ensure transparency and accountability in the public procurement process.

In his address, Ruto made it clear that the fight against corruption will be a priority for his administration.

He warned that government agencies and institutions responsible for oversight must now meet the expectations of the people.

"Of the many difficult assignments I have undertaken, this fight against corruption is one I now take on with resolve going forward," he stated firmly.

Last month, the Treasury boss announced that the government is in the process of acquiring a Sh560 million e-procurement system to automate the process and save taxpayers billions lost to procurement fraud.

CS Mbadi said he had approved the budget for the end-to-end system that will do away with manual procurement.

The CS said the system should be in place by January and has the potential to save the country billions of shillings lost to procurement fraud.

Mbadi stated the system will cure a broken procurement system in the country by minimising human interaction during the procurement process.

"By automating the procurement process from budgeting to expenditure, we will be able to reduce wastage. If we automate our systems properly, I believe we can save more than Sh100 billion," he said.

"We have been dragging our feet for too long. It must come to an end. I have already given the go-ahead because there was no funding for it so it is fast-tracked," Mbadi added.

He acknowledged that much of the procurement process is still manual, hence the need for an end-to-end system: "If you minimise human interaction with a system, it becomes more efficient. It can easily reduce corruption in our procurement system," he said.

Last year, the Institute of Economic Affairs (IA) reported that the country loses billions of shillings annually to procurement fraud. The report said procurement fraud was a major breeding ground for corruption in the country.