Factors affecting effective implementation of Procurement Practices in tertiary public training institutions in Kenya

Abstract

In Kenya, the inefficiency and ineptness of overall implementation of procurement practices in many tertiary public training institutions contributes to loss of over Ksh. 50 million annually. In addition, in over 50% of tertiary public training institutions, the quality and quantity of procured goods and services do not meet the raised specifications during tendering and the actual procurement expenditure is normally higher than the budgeted procurement funds. Procurement expenditure could be minimized through effective implementation of procurement practices. However, none of tertiary public training institution has successfully managed to effectively implement procurement practices and this has led to increased procurement expenditure and high institutions operational costs. The general objective of the study was to determine factors affecting effective implementation of procurement practices in tertiary public training institutions in Kenya. A descriptive correlational research design was adopted and the target population comprised 40 tertiary public training institutions in Kenya. Stratified random sampling technique was applied to select a sample size of 35tertiary public training institutions. Questionnaires were used as the main data collection instruments and were pretested using a pilot study for validity and reliability. Descriptive and inferential statistics data analysis results revealed that the employed procurement policies, supplier management strategies, inventory management methods, professional training and use of ICT based systems hampered effective implementation of procurement practices in over 80% of tertiary public training institutions in Kenya. It was concluded that supplier management followed by training and then procurement policies are the major factors that mostly affect effective implementation of procurement practices tertiary public training institutions in Kenya. The study recommendations included; improvement on the level of compliance with procurement regulations, adoption of effective supplier management techniques, application of inventory management techniques based on economic order quantity, implementation of better supplier selection strategies and finally training of procurement staff and integration of procurement functions with ICT based systems.