e-GP tenders cross 5 lakh

The number of tenders invited through the e-GP portal crossed 5 lakh yesterday having a total value of about Tk 5,10,499 crore. 

This is a landmark achievement of the electronic government procurement (e-GP) system introduced by Central Procurement Technical Unit (CPTU) of the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division under the Ministry of Planning, says a CPTU press release.

The e-GP system has zero downtime, remaining active and functional throughout the Covid pandemic period with a helpdesk open 24/7. The number was at 4 lakh involving over Tk 4,10,000 crore in the same time last year.

There are 1,365 procurement agencies in the country of which a total of 1,362 agencies got registered with the e-GP system until August 1, 2021. The number of bidders registered with e-GP stood at 88,294 on the day.

The release said both the procuring agencies and the tenderers embraced the ICT-based digital procurement system as it has reduced physical hassles.

It also saves time and costs. About 85 per cent of the annual development programme (ADP) and 45 per cent of the national budget are spent on public procurement.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina formally launched the e-GP Portal on June 2, 2011 as a part of digitalising public services.

In 2011, the online tendering was piloted in four large procuring agencies such as Local Government Engineering Department, Roads and Highways Department, Bangladesh Water Development Board and Rural Electrification Board.

Building on the success of piloting, the CPTU started implementing e-GP across the government procuring agencies from 2012. The World Bank has been providing support to the government in digitalising public procurement.