PROCUREMENT POLICY

PREAMBLE

1.1 Bridging Gap Solutions Limited believes in meeting the needs of our
society with cutting edge solutions in all our spheres of influence.

1.2 In pursuit of this mission, Bridging Gap Solutions Limited requires goods
and services from external sources for the implementation of our
objectives.

1.3 Bridging Gap Solutions Limited is mindful of the fact that it has been
entrusted with stakeholder funding to carry out its mandate. Expenditure
involving procurement processes is a significant proportion of the annual
budget.

1.4 The Procurement Policy sets out the principles that shall govern the
procurement of goods and services of Bridging Gap Solutions Limited.

2. PURPOSE

2.1 This policy aims to ensure that Bridging Gap Solutions Limited obtains the
best value for money in the procurement of goods and services.

2.2 This policy provides guidelines to promote consistent application of

procurement best practice and international standards and to ensure
transparency and accountability. The selection, contracting, management and
monitoring of suppliers or service providers shall be in line with the principles
of efficiency and economy, equal opportunity, transparency, sustainability and
best value for money.

3. SCOPE OF APPLICATION

3.1 This policy covers the procurement of goods and services required by the
Bridging Gap Solutions Limited Group of companies and is supported by
procedures that give effect to the policy requirements.
3.2 This policy shall cover the standard procurement cycle from project
initiation to final delivery or performance and contract completion when applied
to project procurement.

3.3 Where relevant, in the procurement of services from individual

consultants, agreements under such arrangements will apply as long as
they do not infringe on BGS procurement policies.

4. INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK

4.1 There are several regulations, policies and procedures that influence and
enable management processes and as such should be read
in conjunction with this policy including the:

a) Statutes of Bridging Gap Solutions Limited;

b) Bridging Gap Solutions Limited’s vision, mission, and strategy;

c) Financial Regulations;

d) Accounting and Financial Procedures Manual;

e) Individual Consultant Policy;

f) Procurement Procedures;

5. CORE POLICY PRINCIPLES

5.1 The procurement of goods and services shall be conducted in a manner

that is based on the principles set out below.

a) Best interest of Bridging Gap Solutions Limited: to carry out procurement

activities in a manner that best enables the organization to reach its
general and specific objectives in line with applicable procurement policies
and procedures.

b) Value for Money: the selection of the service provider will be made by
balancing combination of whole-life cost, quality and sustainability to meet
Bridging Gap Solutions Limited requirements.
c) Competition: Procurement will be carried out on a competitive basis and
respect the prescribed competitive thresholds. Requests for Direct Awards
Contracts where a competitive process is not to be undertaken should
normally be limited to exceptional cases.

d) Equitable and Unbiased Selection: No supplier shall be unjustifiably

discriminated against and no supplier shall receive an unfair competitive
advantage. Contracts should however not be awarded to entities
determined to be ineligible in terms of this policy.

e) Transparency: Information on BGS’s procurement process must be

available to everyone unless there is a valid reason to keep it confidential.
Procurement and selection will be carried out in a transparent manner. Selection
criteria in the case of open competition will be clearly stated and publicized.

f) Efficiency and Effectiveness: Procurement should be carried out in a

manner that makes efficient use of Bridging Gap Solutions Limited’s
resources. The work involved and associated costs of a procurement process
should be commensurate with the character, volume and type of procurement.
It should also be effective in that it meets the needs of the end-user and
achieves the objectives of Bridging Gap Solutions Limited. The orders will be
awarded to the Highest Rated Quote/Proposal that has f ully complied with
the terms of the procurement process.

g) Adequate planning- Sufficient time should be allowed for a procurement

process to ensure timely and successful implementation of activities and to
ensure compliance with the principles of the procurement policy. This
includes adequate time for the required level of quality assurance, review
and approval. Failure to do so risks that the procurement will be carried out in
a manner that is in contravention of good procurement practice, the policy
or that delivery of the requisite goods and services will be delayed which will
impact on project delivery. Retroactive financing is not permitted. The
commitment must be approved, and the relevant diligence checks must be
concluded before goods are procured.

h) Procurement Ethics - Trust in the integrity of the procurement function is

essential to the Company. All parties involved must observe the highest
ethical standards during all stages of the procurement process. Orders
must not be awarded to organizations/individuals who have been involved
in exclusionary behavior. Staff Members are prohibited from accepting any
gift, payment, consideration or benefit of any kind that could be considered an
inducement for the award of an order.

i) Avoidance of Conflict of Interest A conflict of interest can be broadly

defined as a situation in which the impartiality of a person could be
questioned due to an actual or potential clash between their personal and
professional interests. Conflicts of interest must be declared and managed
where they exist.

j) Sustainability: Procurement of goods and services should where possible

be implemented in such a way that BGS will build sustainable
relationships with suppliers which would result in BGS getting better
deals and discounts in the long run.

6. PROCUREMENT AUTHORITY

6.1 Bridging Gap Solutions Limited has a functioning Procurement department

which MUST be involved in all procurements of goods and services. The
procurement Department MUST approve all suppliers of goods and services
upon the asking department producing 3 (Three) competing quotes for goods
and services.

6.2 The procuring team shall carry out the procurement process with
efficiency, impartiality, and integrity and to ensure that:

a) All procurement activities are properly documented and submitted to the

relevant approver; and

b) The intended procurement process is in the best interest of Bridging Gap

Solutions Limited.

6.3 Authorized Staff Members having a delegated procurement authority must

ensure that actions undertaken under their supervision are in compliance
with the Procurement Policy and all other relevant policies and procedures.
7. PROCUREMENT PROCEDURE

7.1 NEEDS ASSESMENT: Procurement of goods and services will be initiated

after a comprehensive needs assessment by the asking department which
should be communicated to the purchasing department in good time so that
the process may go through its proper processes.

7.2 VENDOR SELECTION: Suppliers will be properly vetted by the purchasing

department. Asking department should not impose vendors on the
purchasing department. The purchasing department should always do a proper
due diligence to make sure that BGS is always getting value for money.

7.3 SUPPLIER EVALUATION: Suppliers will periodically be evaluated by BGS

Procurement Department to make sure that we have a database of
suppliers based on price, quality, delivery time discounts etc. and BGS
purchasing department will then use that database to select suppliers and
speed up the purchasing process.

7.4 PROCUREMENT REQUISITION: Each specific procurement procedure

process shall be initiated by procurement requisitions to the procurement
officer from the requesting department and should show detailed specifications
and requirements for item(s) being requested. They should also indicate that
the item is budgeted for. The PRs allows the departments flexibility within the
overall annual plans regarding specifications, exact quantities, delivery
dates, etc. They are also used to cater for unplanned or emergency
procurement.

The PR form will show the following:

I. Items required
II. Quantities
III. Accounting Information
IV. Whether procurement is within APP/budget or emergency or unplanned
V. Signature of the preparing person
VI. The departmental head
All requisitions must be signed by the departmental heads or designate, who
should ensure that the item(s) are in the Annual Procurement Plan or should
seek authority to procure as per policy. Any persons designated to authorize
requisitions in acting capacity must have the authority given in writing clearly
stating the period authorized.

7.5 CONTROLS ON PROCUREMENT

Good and Services will only be procured within approved budgets except in case
of emergencies, which has to be approved by Chief Executive Officer. Thus, in
addition to being responsible for preparing the APP/Budget, the departmental
heads should ensure that actual procurement throughout the year remains
within the budget.

The Head of Finance shall assist the Procurement Manager in periodic checks on
the procurement activities to ensure that they conform to APPs and policies and
procedures.

It is the responsibility of the person who signs the requisitoin order to verify that
the following have been done whether or not he/she actually collects the goods
concerned.

I. That the correct quantity has been received and signed

II. That the quality and price of goods is as agreed
III. That all goods delivered have been securely and inventory records
appropriately updated
IV. That the delivery note is checked, signed and forwarded to the financial
department to await the invoice.
Purchases under petty cash must not exceed the maximum amount established
and documented by the Financial Head.

8. PROCUREMENT CYCLE

8.1 BGS will implement 3 procurement cycles as follows:

a) Annual procurement planning;

b) Transactional specific procurement planning

c) Service oriented procurement planning;

8.2 Annual Procurement Planning. The process of assessing the
procurement needs of Bridging Gap Solutions Limited in order to determine
its procurement strategy will be effected between December and early January
annually. This will be considered an important tool for managing procurement
needs in an effective, efficient, and timely manner, as the key to meeting
the procurement principles lies in procurement planning. To facilitate efficient
planning of resources, effective procurement and delivery and
implementation of the projects, all BGS departments and Teams shall prepare
and maintain annual procurement plans for their needs of the year and
communicate them to the purchasing department.

8.3 Transaction specific procurement planning is for needs that pop up once in
a while which were not covered in the annual plans. When planning specific
procurements, the following should be considered:

a) Budget - Preparation of cost estimates and confirmation of budgeted

funds. Teams should plan to purchase goods or services as far in advance as
practical and include them in their budget. A project must accomplish
objectives according to the established budget. The estimated cost of the
requirement can be derived from the previous records of purchase, or if no
previous purchase for this type of requirement exists, the Team can review the
current market price by market research or request potential supplier’s/service
providers for an indicative quote.

b) Requirement Definition –Defining the procurement requirements and

setting clear specifications is the key to securing compliant offers or
proposals. The Team should identify the precise needs of the project. In cases
where the specifications are not fully known, market research should be
conducted to check the availability in the market. For IT goods this must
be coordinated with the Head ICT to ensure that the specifications are correct.

c) Timely Procurement Cycle – Needs and quotes must be communicated

to the purchasing department in time to ensure that the process goes
through its normal cycle.

8.4 Continuous Service Procurement.

 For procurement of continuous and reoccurring services such as servicing
of motor vehicles etc., Service providers may be pre-qualified by the
Procurement Department. When jobs fall due, the asking departments
may engage Procurement department who may in turn ask the
providers to provide the service at the pre-agreed conditions. HOWEVER,
QUOTES FOR PARTS AND SPARES WILL ONLY BE APPROVED BY THE
Procurement Department.

9. THE PROCUREMENT COMMITTEE

The procurement committee shall be composed of [include CEO, Directors,

finance and Procurement Personnel].

The Committee shall meet when there is need to deliberate on issues pertaining
to procurement.

The composition of BGS Procurement Committee shall be as follows:

I. The Chief Executive Officer – Chairman (ex-officio)

II. Director Logistics, Purchasing and Security – Secretary (ex-officio)
III. Directors and Finance
Where a member of the Procurement Committee is for any reasonable cause
unable to attend any meeting, that member shall nominate another competent
officer from the Department as a proxy who shall be deemed as a member for
the purposes of that meeting. The Procurement Committee may invite any
person who is not a member to attend a Procurement Committee meeting and
make a submission relating to any matter under consideration in the meeting.

The Manager and the Procurement officer shall be in attendance in all meetings
to assist with secretarial duties.

Quorum for meetings

The quorum for the Procurement Committee meetings shall be five members.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS AND DEFINITIONS

Bid - a quotation or tender submitted by a supplier.

Contract - An agreement between two or more parties with specific terms and
conditions including a Contract for Provision of Services. At BGS these may
include orders of purchase or purchase orders.

Deliverables - the tangible outputs of a contract. What BGS expects from the
suppliers is what is on the quote and the purchase order.

Deviation - a decision made not to follow the procurement policy or procedures

due to exceptional circumstances in the best interests of Bridging Gap Solutions
Limited. This can only be under authority for Purchasing Department.

Expression of Interest (EOI) - inviting suppliers to indicate their interest in taking

on a specific assignment or to join a roster of qualified suppliers who may then
be requested to compete for a specific assignment or be considered for future
assignments.

Highest Rated Proposal- the bid determined to be the best bid after the
evaluation and ranked highest among the proposals.

Single Sourcing - the process of selecting a supplier without considering

alternative suppliers. This can only be done with authority from purchasing
department.

Tender - a procurement method in which any qualified supplier in the open

market can be invited to submit a quote to provide a goods or services required
by the Bridging Gap Solutions Limited Group. It is also known as a public tender.

Procurement - the formal process of acquisition of goods and services.

Request for Direct Award (RDA) – the specific identification of a given service
provider in selected circumstances done by Purchasing Department from its
database of prequalified suppliers.

Request for Proposal (RFP) - one of the soliciting documents used in an open
competition to source a supplier to carry out a service. It informs a potential
supplier of the requirements (e.g. qualifications, experience) necessary to carry
out the assignment and the procedures to follow in submitting a proposal.

Requirements - a general term to describe the needs of a service or assignment.

Restricted Competition - the process of selecting a supplier based on comparing

several proposals or quotes from a range of identified Suppliers.

Services - the outputs to be provided by a service provider.

Specifications - a detailed description of the attributes of an item, typically used

when purchasing goods and supplies.

Service Provider - any contractor, service provider, consultant or vendor who is

contracted to provide goods or services to Bridging Gap Solutions Limited.

Terms of Reference - a detailed description of what is required from an

assignment, outlining such matters as the context, scope of work, deliverables
and deadlines; used in conjunction with the procurement of services.

Thresholds - the monetary values prescribed by the Bridging Gap Solutions

Limited to establish which Procurement Method must be used in relation to the
different procurement categories.

………………………………………….
DIRECTOR – LOGISTICS

Signature: ..................................................

Dated:.........................................................
Employee

I have read and understood the contents of this policy.

Name……………………………………………………….

Sign:………………………………………………………..

Dated:…………………………………………….............