The President of the Republic, His Excellency Mr. Paul BIYA has undertaken, since the 9th of December 2011, a profound reform on the institutional and normative architecture of the Public Contracts sector, notably with the creation of a Ministry specifically in charge of the organization and good functioning of Public Contracts.
Many Presidential texts have thus come rapidly as well, to materialize the reforming will of the Head of State, concretizing in a visible and tangible manner the articulations of the action of the President of the Republic for the advent of a public procurement system entirely renewed and devoted to the search for performance thanks to the speeding up of procedures, the quality in the selection of successful bidders, and through the efficient control and execution of Public Contracts on the field.
Thus, on the 8th of March 2012, a series of three Presidential Decrees have put in place a legal and organizational framework which henceforth, govern the activities of the Public Contracts sector. They include: Decree No. 2012/074, 2012/075 and 2012/078 patterning respectively to the establishment, organization and functioning of Tenders Boards for the first, organization of the Ministry of Public Contracts for the second, and the one to amend and supplement some provisions of the Decree organizing the Public Contracts Regulatory Agency (ARMP) for the third.
These basic texts were then supplemented on the 5th of August 2013 by Decree No. 2013/271 to amend and supplement certain provisions of Decree 2012/074 on Tenders Boards to increase substantially the competence thresholds of the various Contracting Authorities.
Other important texts as well helped to put in place all the structures created and to appoint the officials assigned for the duties of the said structures.
In an analysis of the new arrangement, it appears that the Ministry of Public Contracts is in the heart of the system, with the duty to animate the new system and work so as to achieve fully the objectives set. In fact, these objectives are clearly defined. They are realistic and essential to insure to our economy a growth level necessary for Cameroon’s emergence by the year 2035. In general, it is a question of:
- reaffirming and reinforcing the attachment to the quest for efficiency of the new system of Public Contracts rendered more visible and more responsible by the reform, and resolutely based on international standards in this domain which consecrate free access to public procurement, equal treatment of candidates and transparency of procedures ;
- Increasing effectiveness and efficiency in the sector by inducing more adequate controls in view of a better quality of infrastructures and government acquisitions, thanks to the optimal contribution of the contract award link in the chain of responsibilities that contribute to the continuous amelioration of the PIB consumption rate, a determining factor for a sustained economic growth, necessary for the harmonious and accelerated development of Cameroon.-
Minister Delegate in charge of Public Contracts, ABBA SADOU
