Branding the White Horse Negatively: The Public Procurement Act of Ghana Stands Accused

Keeping with government’s commitment to financial discipline, accountability, transparency and ethical conduct, effective management of public procurement to obtain value for state spending is paramount. This forms part of the reasons for the introduction of the Public Procurement Act 663 in Ghana to regulate public spending. However, this measure has been plagued with some difficulties in corruption, bureaucracy and general delays in the procurement processes. The study basically aimed at assessing the implementation challenges of the Act 663 in Bosomtwe District Assembly. In all, thirty (30) samples were chosen and studied using convenience sampling. The study relied on both primary and secondary data, and the primary data was collected using self-administered questionnaire. The study adopted descriptive approach and the data collected was analyzed using SPSS version 16. The study revealed that, the implementation of the Act 663 causes delay in the procurement activities of the Assembly. Also there were inadequate qualified procurement officials to handle procurement activities in the Assembly. The study further revealed that, the level of transparency in the procurement process has been enhanced. In spite of the achievement of presumed efficiencies in Bosomtwe District Assembly, it was concluded that, there were some challenges associated with the implementation of the Act in the Assembly. It is therefore recommended that, the prevailing thresholds set for public entities are reviewed to higher levels to avoid delays in the procurement processes; also the Assembly should recruit proficient procurement officials, and regularly train them to become well vested in procurement practices.