This year’s 18th annual Smart Procurement World Indaba, which takes place in Gauteng from 9 to 12 September 2024, is one of the most important ever, according to the organisers. This is Part 1 of a two-part series.
Professor Geo Quinot, founding director of the African Procurement Law Unit and Professor of Law at Stellenbosch University. Stellenbosch University
It comes hot on the heels of the signing into law of the Public Procurement Bill by President Cyril Ramaphosa. Around 600 procurement professionals are expected to attend the event to learn, network and explore issues that include this long-awaited legislation.
Still to be gazetted and come into force, the Act is currently the subject of intense debate, with procurement professionals and legal experts questioning whether it represents a groundbreaking step forward for public procurement and an end to state capture or a looming catastrophe and more corruption. The constitutionality of the Public Procurement Act is currently the subject of a challenge by the City of Cape Town.
Professor Geo Quinot, founding director of the African Procurement Law Unit and Professor of Law at Stellenbosch University, contends that the promulgation of the Public Procurement Act is “a momentous occasion in South African procurement law, despite the fact that there are still a number of outstanding questions that must be resolved, and a lot of work still to be done before the act can be fully implemented, not the least of which is the creation of extensive regulations to give content to the system”.
“Our unit has facilitated extensive and intense debate on the draft Bill and then on the Bill and now the Act at a series of national workshops since February last year, so we’ve been very active in our critical engagement with the important law reform,” he says. Quinot is one of the esteemed speakers on the programme for this year’s Smart Procurement World Indaba and in his not to be missed session, he will share his insights and discuss the impact of the Public Procurement Act. Quinot will explore how procurement can adapt to changes in the supply chain management environment and the new legislation’s effects on public sector operations. He will also explain how public procurement institutions should prepare to implement this new legislative framework.
The Smart Procurement World Indaba is South Africa’s largest, longest-standing event for procurement and inbound supply chain professionals. Its theme this year is “The DNA of Procurement”. Smart Procurement chief operating officer Debbie Tagg elaborates: “Attendees can expect to uncover the intricacies that define procurement’s genetic makeup at the 2024 indaba. The event will explore the interconnected strands that shape every procurement decision, transaction and relationship. Just as the DNA carries the genetic information that shapes living organisms, the DNA of procurement intricately weaves through every aspect of the supply chain, determining its structure, resilience and ultimate success.”
