The Vice President of the United Republic of Tanzania, Dr. Philip Mpango, has directed the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) to ensure that all public procurement is conducted through the electronic system, NeST, to curb corruption and the misuse of public funds.

Dr. Mpango issued the directive on February 11, 2025, during a visit to the PPRA booth before opening the Fifth E-Government Authority (eGA) Conference at the Arusha International Conference Centre (AICC), which runs from February 11-13, 2025.

Speaking after receiving a briefing from PPRA Executive Director, Mr. Dennis Simba, on the effectiveness of the NeST system, which was implemented on July 1, 2023, the Vice President expressed his belief that robust electronic systems could be the solution to combat corruption carried out by certain individuals, whom he compared to "termites."

"My concern, after reviewing the [audit] reports from PPRA, is that I’m not very pleased. I believe that solid online systems will help us control the 'termites' that are damaging public procurement. You know that the majority of public funds, nearly 80%, are spent on procurement. Therefore, I expect PPRA to help us reduce or completely eliminate these problems," said the Vice President.

"I think you IT experts at PPRA should take, for example, last year's audit report, and show me what major issues were identified. How is the system helping us address them?" Dr. Mpango added.

In response, Mr. Simba informed the Vice President that the Authority has already started implementing measures to address these concerns by introducing ICT-based safeguards within the NeST system to combat fraud and corruption identified in audit reports. This is aimed at protecting public funds and reducing audit queries.

"We have already started, Mr. Vice President, and we are seeing results. With the NeST system, we have set up checkpoints that prevent fraudsters from bypassing controls [and if they do, they can be identified]. For example, the issue of contracts being issued without being signed by the Tender Board—this has been blocked in NeST, as contracts must be signed by the Tender Board, and the Evaluation Committee report must be signed by the relevant members," said Mr. Simba.

He also highlighted a current challenge in raising public awareness and providing education to stakeholders, noting that the Authority continues its efforts to disseminate information, including using online platforms to reach more people.

After receiving the briefing on the NeST system, the Vice President commended PPRA for the progress made.

Since its introduction, contracts worth approximately 14 trillion Tanzanian shillings have been processed through the NeST system.

PPRA, one of the main sponsors of the Fifth e-Government Authority Conference, was presented with an award of recognition handed by the senior government official.