Why contract performance is poor in Nigeria, by experts

Poor monitoring, corruption, inconsistent government policies and political interference among others have been identified as some of the reasons why contract objectives are sometimes not achieved in Nigeria.

Experts in the supply chain management sector said that some top contracts failed because agencies change requirements or scope after the contracts are awarded, adding that poor communication exists between the agency and the contractor.

They noted how effective Post Contract Evaluation (PCE) can help improve contract performance in Nigeria if the evaluation is done in a manner that guarantees fairness while the method and modality for collecting and reporting information should be agreed at the time of signing the contract.

The General Manager, Supply Chain Management, Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc , Olubusola Ogunbanwo said when all terms of contract are strictly adhered to, it will improve cost effectiveness, encourage benchmarking and ensure delivery of quality among others

He added that it will create maximum impact on the PCE to the economy.

Ogunbanwo said this recently when he spoke on the topic, ‘Impact of Post-Contract Evaluation and Appraisal on the Nigerian Economy’, at the yearly conference of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply Chain (UK) Nigerian branch.

He advised government on the need to save funds and assign people to work on them to get abandoned projects completed.

“The starting point is someone going round the country and taking inventory of all the abandoned projects, which you can begin to evaluate on the basis of relevance to the social needs of the people and begin to rank them. What you need to finish them up might not be up to the amount that has been spent on it, and if they are not completed they will never be useful to anybody.”

The Managing Partner of Pamaryllis consulting, Paschal Egwim called for a centralized process in driving procurement. He said that there are processes from the procurement law, procedures and regulations but there is no computerized system driving those technologies.

Similarly, the Managing Director of the Bank of Industry, Olukayode Pitan, who was represented by Head, strategy and corporate transformation, Yinka Adegboye, noted that across the supply chain, there is the need to optimise a firm’s working capital, both internally and externally. He stressed that if it is achieved, it can be beneficial to all actors along the supply chain.

According to him, “Innovative products and processes are needed to support the needs of different players within the supply chain. Effective management and financing of supply chain is increasingly important to the economic growth of the country.”