On 19 February 2020, the Minister of Finance published the Draft Public Procurement Bill (the draft Bill) for public comment (to be submitted by 31 May 2020).
The draft Bill, which if enacted, will amend and replace the current laws regulating public procurement and intends to simplify the confusing and fragmented rules that currently regulate public tender processes into a unified process that is easy for bidders and supply chain officials to understand and apply. The most innovative and potentially most controversial feature of the draft Bill is that it will potentially allow for widespread changes to the criteria that determine the award of government tenders. This feature of the draft Bill may raise constitutional concerns.
A copy of the draft Bill can be accessed here. A copy of an insight piece by Megan Adderley on the constitutional concerns the draft Bill may raise is available here.
