Newly appointed members of the Contracts Committee at Mountains of the Moon University (MMU) have been called upon to strictly adhere to the core principles of public procurement as they take up their new oversight role, during an induction workshop held in the Main Hall at Block C.
The training, financed by the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Authority (PPDA) Mbarara Regional Office, brought together university management, legal and procurement officials, and a facilitator from PPDA to orient the committee on its legal mandate before it begins handling procurement and disposal decisions for the institution.
In her opening remarks, the Ag. University Secretary, Leofrida Oyella, urged the new members to embrace transparency, accountability, and fairness in the discharge of their duties, stressing that the credibility of the university’s procurement processes depends heavily on the committee’s diligence and integrity.
Presenting a session on the roles and responsibilities of the Contracts Committee, MMU’s Senior Legal Officer, Kasigazi Francis, explained that the committee is a statutory body established under Section 28(1) of the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets (PPDA) Act to oversee procurement and disposal activities within the university, with a mandate to promote transparency, ensure accountability, achieve value for money, and guarantee compliance with procurement laws.
Kasigazi told participants that the committee’s core functions include approving procurement awards, endorsing evaluation and negotiation teams, sanctioning bidding and contract documents, and ensuring that best practices are followed by both the procuring entity and its disposal arm. He added that under Section 31(1)(a) of the Act, the committee also holds general powers to authorise the choice of procurement and disposal procedure, approve solicitation documents before issue, sanction evaluation reports, and approve any amendments to awarded contracts.
He further reminded the new members that their work must be anchored on the basic principles of public procurement set out under Section 46 of the Act: non-discrimination, transparency, accountability and fairness, maximisation of competition, confidentiality, economy and efficiency, and the promotion of ethics concluding that an effective Contracts Committee is central to good governance and the efficient use of public resources at the university.
A separate session, facilitated by Agatha Kirabo of the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Authority (PPDA), gave participants a broader overview of the public procurement and disposal system in Uganda.
Kirabo walked the committee through the legal and institutional framework that governs procurement, ranging from the Constitution and the PPDA Act to the Public Finance Management Act, the Local Government Act, and PPDA’s own regulations and guidelines. She explained the distinction between procurement (the acquisition of works, services or supplies using public funds) and disposal, which involves the divestiture of public assets by sale, lease, auction or similar means.
The session also covered the different categories and methods of procurement, including open and restricted domestic or international bidding, quotation and direct procurement methods, along with the revised minimum bidding periods and financial thresholds that determine which method applies to a given procurement. Kirabo further took participants through the structure of Standard Bidding Documents and highlighted the key issues such as the bid data sheet, bidding forms, statement of requirements, and contract forms that a Contracts Committee must scrutinise before granting approval.
The day-long induction also featured sessions on university procurement policies and procedures, facilitated by the Senior Procurement Officer, Emily Kyomugaso; ethical standards and accountability in contract management, led by the Ag. Deputy Chief Internal Auditor, CPA Hillary Kisembo; and a practical case-studies session on best practices in procurement oversight, again facilitated by the PPDA team. Each session was followed by an interactive question and answer segment.
Meet the New Contracts Committee
The newly Contracts Committee comprises:
- Dr. Tonny Kiyimba — Chairperson
- Kwiriza Wilson — Secretary
- Connie Ainomugisha — Member
- Karwani Yusuf — Member
- Justus Kato — Representative, Office of the Solicitor General
Under the PPDA framework outlined during the training, the committee’s five members will now be responsible for approving evaluation and negotiation teams, endorsing bidding and contract documents, and safeguarding compliance with procurement law across all university acquisitions and disposals.