The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) has inaugurated the Forum of State Directors-General of Public Procurement, with a charge on procurement authorities across the country to strengthen transparency, accountability and efficiency in public spending.

The forum, comprising Directors-General of procurement agencies or their equivalents from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), was inaugurated on Tuesday at the NGF Secretariat in Abuja.

The initiative is expected to provide a platform for collaboration, knowledge-sharing and the harmonisation of procurement practices at the sub-national level.

Speaking at the ceremony, the Director-General of the NGF, Abdulallateef Shittu, said the inauguration came at a critical time when Nigeria was seeking to recalibrate its economic architecture.

He said state procurement authorities had an enormous responsibility, given the central role public procurement plays in budget implementation and the delivery of government projects.

Shittu urged members of the forum to uphold professionalism, transparency and efficiency in the discharge of their responsibilities.

The Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Adebowale Adedokun, said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was aware of the inauguration of the Committee of Practice of Public Procurement and had given his support to the initiative.

He said the initiative was consistent with the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda and its commitment to improving living standards and reducing poverty.

Adedokun described the inauguration as a significant development in Nigeria’s procurement history, arguing that an effective and transparent procurement system could attract foreign direct investment, boost economic growth and stimulate the development of domestic industries.

He urged members of the forum to adhere strictly to due process, fairness and transparency in the implementation of public projects.

Also speaking, Dr Osahanze Idahosa, who represented the President/CEO of the Africa Development Studies Centre (ADSC) and Douglas Development Institute (DDI), commended Adedokun for creating an enabling environment for collaboration and capacity development in the procurement sector.

Idahosa said Adedokun’s openness to partnerships had enabled ADSC and DDI to contribute to efforts aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s procurement systems at the federal level.

He described the inauguration as significant to the broader public procurement reform agenda, particularly at the sub-national level.

“Subnational procurement systems are where policy meets people, where transparency and value for money either take root or falter,” he said.

Idahosa urged the new leadership of the forum to deepen accountability, efficiency, professionalism and transparency in public procurement across the states.

He said ADSC and DDI had supported procurement transformation through capacity-building programmes, study exchanges and institutional development initiatives aimed at modernising public spending.

He recalled a study exchange to South Africa involving one of the forum’s members, saying the experience underscored the need to extend procurement reforms achieved at the federal level to the states.

According to him, public procurement accounts for an estimated 15 to 30 per cent of GDP and is linked to between 50 and 60 per cent of leakages in public financial management.

He stressed that procurement was too important to governance to be left to isolated efforts, calling for collective commitment from federal and sub-national institutions.

In his acceptance speech, the newly elected Chairman of the forum, Ehimoni Ibiyomi, described his election as the beginning of a new institutional chapter in procurement administration and professional practice at the sub-national level.

Ibiyomi expressed appreciation to members for their confidence, saying his new responsibility was not about an individual but about collective leadership, institutional cooperation and a shared commitment to improving public procurement across the states.

He pledged to work with members to strengthen the quality and effectiveness of procurement administration at the sub-national level.