CIPSMN advocates involvement of professionals in economic development

THE Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply Management (CIPSMN) has stated that for Nigeria to address ‎the challenges hindering its growth and development potential, it must as a matter of urgency, employ the services of professionals to run key sectors of the economy.

The president of the institute, Diekola Oyewo explained that the institute had long advised the federal government to give professionals the opportunity to run vital and crucial sectors of the economy, stressing that this is the only way the nation can achieve a virile economy.

Oyewo during a press briefing explained that the institute would take it as a priority to continually remind the government about the effective use of professionals to run key sectors of the nation’s economy.

“This has been our advise to government, let professionals be put where they should be. We will still continue to remind the government until they get it right. What is missing in this country is the lack of professionalism in key sectors of the economy. Professionals should be allowed to do their jobs,” he said.

He emphasized that, if Nigeria is to grow to greater heights in the comity of nations not only in her standard of living but also in her quality of life, it is the procurement and supply chain management executives and business professionals who must take the lead.

“Based on the World Bank advice, we need to professionalize the procurement system, if we really want it to work because we cannot be saddled with the responsibility of an area to someone that does not have the knowledge of the area, it will be counterproductive”, Oyewo said.

“If we are to attain the desired goals on a national basis, we must continually monitor the performance and the problems of the Nigerian Public Procurement (NPP) System. It is only on hard facts, and information based on such monitoring that adequate procurement planning and policies for the sector can be based since it appears that we have not been doing well as regards the law establishing the BPP”

Oyewo stated further that, “As a result of the defect in Nigeria procurement system and madness of riches, practitioners, medical centres, educational administrators and others are flocking  to grab the procurement job without due regards to the consideration for professional knowledge, which unfortunately has been one of the pitfalls of the country”.

Besides, he opined that one of the failures in implementations of polices in the country is the lack of political will by the government to actualize planned objective, to inadequate infrastructural and institutional frame work.