Sierra Leone

Issue:

The legal framework is broadly aligned with international standards but contains significant gaps that affect transparency, value for money, and predictability. These include outdated procurement thresholds, limited provisions for framework agreements and emergency procurement, reliance on the lowest‑evaluated‑bid standard, lack of an explicit mandate for a government‑wide e‑GP system, weak provisions on public access to procurement records, underdeveloped PPP rules (especially for unsolicited proposals), and the absence of a comprehensive sustainable public procurement framework.

Recommendations:

• Update procurement thresholds and elaborate provisions for framework agreements, low‑value procurement, and emergency procurement.
• Replace the “lowest‑evaluated‑bid” approach with a most advantageous bid standard and strengthen disclosure of evaluation information.
• Mandate establishment and use of a central, government‑wide e‑GP system.
• Empower public access to procurement records in line with Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) principles.
• Strengthen the legal framework for PPP procurement, particularly unsolicited proposals.
• Introduce a clear mandate and policy framework for sustainable public procurement, including guidance on margins of preference.

Issue:

Institutional arrangements are weakened by poor procurement planning, weak integration with budget execution, unreliable commitment controls, chronic payment delays, resource constraints within the NPPA, overlap among monitoring institutions, limited use of data systems, and the absence of a comprehensive professionalization and capacity‑building strategy for procurement staff.

Recommendations:

• Strengthen procurement planning and align it more closely with budgeting, multi‑year planning, and public investment management.
• Improve the reliability of budget availability certifications and eliminate practices such as partial funding and procurement outside IFMIS.
• Restore the NPPA to a purely regulatory and oversight role by removing operational prior‑review functions.
• Ensure adequate resources, autonomy, and protection for NPPA leadership and staff.
• Establish centralized procurement data systems and improve publication of procurement information using OCDS.
• Develop and implement a professionalization strategy, including a competency framework, certification, and continuous professional development.

Issue:

Procurement operations suffer from weak planning, poor needs analysis, inadequate specifications, excessive use of non‑competitive methods, price‑dominated bid evaluation, weak contract management, chronic payment delays, limited transparency of contract amendments, poor record‑keeping, and low stakeholder engagement. Market participation is constrained, particularly for SMEs, due to complex procedures, high costs, limited access to information, and delayed payments.

Recommendations:

• Mandate systematic needs analysis and market research and improve alignment of procurement plans with the budget cycle.
• Strengthen capacity in drafting output‑based specifications and applying appropriate procurement methods, including prequalification and multi‑stage procedures.
• Institutionalize use of most advantageous tender and life‑cycle costing where appropriate.
• Improve contract management, monitoring, and enforcement, including timely payments and transparent handling of amendments.
• Operationalize e‑GP to enable real‑time data capture, performance monitoring, and public access.
• Reduce barriers for SMEs through simplified procedures, better access to information, and improved payment practices.

Issue:

Despite a strong stated commitment to integrity, the system lacks effective citizen and civil society engagement, has weak and uneven audit follow‑up, limited capacity for procurement audits, an under‑resourced and centralized complaints mechanism, inconsistent enforcement of ethics and anti‑corruption measures, weak debarment practices, limited transparency of outcomes, and insufficient whistleblower protection.

Recommendations:

• Mandate structured public consultation and civil society participation across key stages of the procurement cycle.
• Strengthen internal and external audit systems, including procurement‑specific audit guidance, coordination, and follow‑up mechanisms.
• Improve accessibility, transparency, and enforcement of the procurement complaints and appeals system, including publication of IPRP decisions.
• Enhance anti‑corruption and integrity measures, including conflict‑of‑interest management, debarment enforcement, risk‑based monitoring, and improved transparency of outcomes.
• Develop stronger whistleblower protections and expand ethics and integrity training nationwide.