A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) at NAB Headquarters, Islamabad today. The MoU signing ceremony was attended by NAB Chairman, Lieutenant General (Retd.) Nazir Ahmad, Deputy Chairman NAB Sohail Nasir, Prosecutor General Accountability Syed Ihtasham Qadir Shah, Managing Director PPRA, Hasanat Ahmad Qureshi, and officials from both organizations. The MoU was signed by Director General, NAB (A&P), Izhar Ahmad Awan, and Project Director of E-PADS, Sheikh Afzaal Raza. The agreement has been signed to establish a system that will promote mutual cooperation between the two organizations regarding the exchange of information on e-Procurements (E-PADS) ensuring fair and transparency in the public procurement process. The goal is to increase transparency and accountability through joint efforts, thereby creating a system that would act as a deterrent for corrupt and fraudulent elements. The MoU also aims to raise awareness among all relevant public procurement institutions regarding procurement laws, regulations, and ethical standards. Under the MoU, both institutions have agreed to enhance the capacity of both their own organizations and other related public procurement institutions, assist in developing guidelines to prevent corruption and fraud, and provide support in improving policies and procurement procedures, based on successful experiences with past cases. Regarding complaints related to procurement, PPRA will forward such complaints to NAB, along with details of the relevant tenders and bidders, for necessary action. According to the MoU, NAB officers will receive free training sessions on public procurement from PPRA. Similarly, NAB will also provide free training to PPRA officers on preventing corruption in public procurements. Both institutions will jointly develop guidelines to strengthen legal regulations for bidders and public procurement institutions to prevent corruption. Reforms will also be promoted to further strengthen accountability in the procurement process. Additionally, both institutions have agreed to cooperate in the establishment of a National Electronic Procurement Database. For this purpose, PPRA will develop a centralized database that will include data on procurement, tenders, and related bid information. Earlier, PPRA team gave a detailed briefing on PPRA system and EPADS. Chairman NAB appreciated the initiative of greater migration towards automated system. He further stressed that the collaboration between NAB and PPRA will inject greater transparency and accountability in the public procurement system.
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