This article is a case study describing the E-procurement benefits realized by the State of Andhra Pradesh in India.
As part of statewide E-government applications, the state government of Andhra Pradesh implemented an E-procurement initiative with the following objectives:
- Reduce the time and cost of doing business for both vendors and government
- Realize better value for money spent through increased competition and the prevention of cartel formation
- Standardize the procurement processes across government departments/agencies
- Increase buying power through demand aggregation
- Provide a single-stop shop for all procurements
- Allow equal opportunity to all vendors
- Bring transparency and ultimately reduce corruption
As the case study points out, prior to the E-procurement initiative, the procurement function was operating in a manually intensive, inefficient environment:
“Prior to the introduction of an e-Procurement platform, procurement in Government departments was carried out through a manual tendering process. The complete process required a long chain of internal authorizations and scrutiny (at times involving several departments), several visits by suppliers to departments, and the generation of reams of paper-based statements and evaluations.”
The case study provides a discussion of the following issues as part of the broader context and the E-procurement implementation:
- Numerous deficiencies in the manual procurement practices prior to the E-procurement implementation
- Challenges that needed to be managed as part of the E-procurement implementation
- A description of the benefits realized and costs incurred as a result of the initiative
- Key lessons learned and success drivers of the E-procurement initiative
Full Report: E-Procurement in Government of Andhra Pradesh, India
Image Courtesy of Nicolas Raymond