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A report recently provided to the Marshall Islands parliament shows that procurement laws in the country have been repeatedly violated by nearly every ministry and agency.
The Public Accounts Committee report presented to the parliament states that most ministries and agencies have failed to comply the country’s procurement code.
Rongelap Senator Kenneth Kedi told Radio New Zealand that agencies such as the Health Care Revenue Fund violated the code by choosing vendor and good prior to procurement process.
He also revealed that the Ministry of Health purchased 12 smart phones in violation of the procurement law.
Other agencies such as the College of Marshall Islands have also been violating the code by awarding sole-source contracts, while the Marshall Islands Development Bank, who were under the impression that the code did not apply to them failed to comply with the code.
Kedi says the code was put in place in 1988 to provide for openness, fairness and transparency in procuring of goods and services.