NASENI tasks procurement officers on high-level expertise to achieve corporate goals

*Khalil Suleiman Halilu, Executive Vice-Chairman/CEO of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, emphasises the attainment of NASENI’s overall mandate and goals requires a high level of professional proficiency and technical expertise in procurement management

Gbenga Kayode | ConsumerConnect

In line with its commitment to achieving the overall mandate and goals of the agency, Mr. Khalil Suleiman Halilu, Executive Vice-Chairman/Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO), National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), has emphasised that achieving such objectives requires a high level of professional proficiency and technical expertise in procurement management.

Halilu stated this while stressing the importance of achieving the overall mandate and goals of NASENI in his welcome address at the opening of ceremony of the 2024 three-day in-house training for procurement officers and other participating staff from NASENI system-wide Tuesday, October 8, in Abuja, FCT.

The EVC/CEO of the agency asserted that the agency wanted to be “the best in everything” it does in order to deliver quality services to achieve the overall goals of Mr. President’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

Highlighting the significance of the training, he noted that programme was designed to equip officers involved in procurement with the professional capacity needed to manage NASENI’s procurement processes effectively and in full compliance with the Public Procurement Act 2007.

He as assured that the agency is committed to complying with everything outlined in the Act.

Mr. Olusegun Ayeoyenikan, Director of Information at NASENI, in a statement issued Tuesday, quoted Halilu as saying: “The importance of the workshop cannot be overstated, particularly for newly hired or deployed officers.

“It is essential that incumbent officers are trained and retrained to align with NASENI’s vision and mandate.”

The Executive Vice-Chairman admonished participants to put into practice what they would learn in their daily work to make a difference in how they carry out their roles and responsibilities.

He urged them to take the training serious and gain from the extensive knowledge and experience of the resource persons, leading to improved service delivery.

In his keynote address at the event, Barr. Olusegun Omotola, Acting Director-General, Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), represented by the Director of Training, Dr. Adebowale Adedokun, said NASENI has a crucial role in national infrastructure development, thus building skills and competencies is critical to the execution of transparent and efficient public procurement which guarantees good value for money.

Barr. Omotola noted that every government agency must comply with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Circulars on procurement plans and procurement records and that no procurement process could commence without properly approved procurement plan via the use of the NOCOPO system and must have a full-fledged procurement department/unit/division manned by BPP trained/certified officers.

He as well urged NASENI to be very thorough and careful in the discharge of its responsibilities in the public procurement process with the highest sense of accountability, ethics and integrity.

According to him, it is expected that at the end of the training, all factors militating against effective performance of procurement related activities and budget implementation would have been addressed.