Sanwo-Olu calls for strengthening Nigeria’s procurement systems

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Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the governor of Lagos State, has urged experts and important players to vigorously support the creation of a strong and open procurement system throughout Nigeria.

Governor Sanwo-Olu reiterated Lagos State’s longstanding dedication to procurement reforms and best practices while speaking during a courtesy visit by Mr. Ben Farrell, Global Chief Executive Officer of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply, or CIPS, and Mr. Sam Achampong, Regional Director for Africa, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific for the Institute.

Lagos has continuously prioritized an accountable and structured procurement system, the governor said, adding that the government is keen to share its extensive knowledge with the international procurement community.

He noted: “For us, especially in Lagos State, we have been a strong advocate and a convert of a well-coordinated, transparent procurement process. We pride ourselves that we are one of the first governments and bodies to have institutionalised and started a public procurement process.

“I was privileged to be in government 15 years ago when the conversation started, and we were quick to set up relevant agencies. But over time, one of the things we realised is that we need to also continue to spread out competency. We need to continue to ensure that capacity is deepened and is enriched.

“There is a need for us to ensure that we do it rightly. Here in Lagos, we understand fully the value of a very good, robust procurement system. It helps to anticipate. It helps to negotiate better.”

Mr. Ben Farrell reaffirmed CIPS’s dedication to working with Nigeria to raise procurement professionals’ standards. He emphasized the Institute’s willingness to offer long-term programs for capacity-building that are suited to the public and commercial sectors.

“We have members in 180 countries, and we share competency, best practice, and build capacity around nations. We are here to support you for the prosperity of Nigeria, to build on the great work of the team in recent years,” he said.

“We came to say that we are going to establish a permanent presence here to work with the Nigerian public and private sector to provide capacity building to drive competence for the benefit and the prosperity of Nigeria. We feel that spreading the knowledge and the competency will really benefit this nation.”

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