The Bureau of Public Procurement has successfully trained over 800 procurement officers through its 2025/2026 Mandatory Continuous Public Procurement Capacity Development Training Programme.

The training, conducted at the PTDF Centre for Skills Development and Training in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, spanned two batches and was personally overseen by BPP’s Director-General, Dr. Adebowale Adedokun.

At the closing ceremony for Batch B, Dr. Adedokun highlighted that the programme is in line with the Public Procurement Act, 2007, aiming to enhance transparency, efficiency, and value for money in government procurement of goods, works, and services.

He explained that the training was designed to refresh officers’ knowledge, strengthen compliance with procurement procedures, and keep them aligned with evolving industry standards.

“Over the last couple of years, officers have not been up to date with their knowledge and could easily have been making errors, which may not necessarily be their fault,” he said.

Adedokun emphasized that the Tinubu administration prioritizes capacity building to ensure procurement activities are carried out at the right time, in the right place, and in the right amounts.

He stressed that the training aims to stop corruption before it occurs, rather than only addressing it afterward.

“We are not fighting corruption in procurement; we are preventing corruption. When you prevent it, it won’t even happen. Procurement is the engine room for prevention of corruption,” he said.

He noted that procurement accounts for roughly 90 per cent of government activities, making it vital for officers to uphold top professional standards to avoid project duplication, inflated costs, and poor service delivery.

Adedokun further disclosed that, of the over 1,600 applicants for Batches A and B, only 800 met the eligibility requirements and were selected. Participants are expected to submit improvement reports to both their organisations and BPP before the final results are issued.