ICRC, BPP to partner on infrastructure development

The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) and the Bureau for Public Procurement (BPP) have expressed willingness to partner in infrastructure development using private sector funding.

This came to the fore when Mr. Michael Ohiani, Director-General of the ICRC led his management team on a courtesy visit to the BPP DG, Mr. Mamman Ahmadu, over the weekend, seeking partnership as the function of both organisations are interwoven hence the need to deepen collaboration.

Mr. Ohiani said that the BPP had been an immense contributor to the work of the ICRC over the years, adding that deeper collaboration would bring about more efficiency in delivering Public Private Partnership (PPP) Projects.

“In view of the strategic position your organisation takes in the Nigerian economy and taking into consideration that we are also a regulator of procurement, we decided to pay a courtesy visit and see how we can collaborate further.

“We want to use the opportunity to appreciate the work you have been doing with your team, how you have been able to help the country make savings by chopping off excesses in projects.

“We are also here because of the need for the two agencies to have synergy. Yes we already have existing collaboration but we want to deepen it and tap from our team of experts,” Mr. Ohiani said.

He used the opportunity to intimate the BPP boss who is a former lecturer on the existence of a training school established by ICRC, stressing that the school could take advantage of his vast experience.

On his part, the BPP’s DG said that there was a need for collaboration between ICRC and the bureau.

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“We are doing exactly the same thing except for the method and line of funding. If the funding is from public resources, it comes to BPP, if the funding is from the private sector it comes to ICRC.

“The methods of evaluation are different but they are basically the same. We are trying to deliver services through projects to the country,” Mr. Ahmadu said.

The BPP’s boss who is a Quantity Surveyor recalled that a few decades ago, he came across many laudable projects, some of them being executed by States, adding that Nigeria needed to begin delivering such projects again, projects like the Ajaokuta Steel Company and the Vehicle Assembly Plants.

He pointed out that Nigeria’s current problem could not be solved without making reference to history, stressing that history provides a platform to examine where you are coming from and plan for the future.

“So we are doing the same thing but there is a lot of space for us to share our experiences and guide ourselves to achieve our goals,” he added.