56. (1) A procuring and disposing entity shall-

(a) maintain detailed records of all its proceedings; and

(b) preserve, maintain and safeguard all relevant documents it issues and receives.

(2) A procuring and disposing entity shall use the standard forms issued by the Authority to record all details of the procurement or disposal process, except where it obtains the consent of the Authority to use forms other than those provided by the Authority.

(3) Where a document or form does not exist for a given circumstance, a procuring and disposing entity may apply to the Authority for permission to use an altemative document or form until the time the Authority issues the standard document or form.

(4) The application mentioned in sub-section (3), shall state the circumstances giving rise to the need for the Authority to produce a particular standard form or document.

57. (1) All communication between a procuring and disposing entity, bidder, or provider, shall be in writing and communication in any other form shall be referred to and confirmed in writing.
(2) English shall be the language of communication unless otherwise specified by the Authority.

(3) Forms of communication shall be specified in the solicitation documents.

58. A procuring and disposing entity shall plan its procurement and disposal in a rational manner and in particular shall-

(a) avoid emergency procurement and disposal wherever possible;

(b) aggregate its requirements wherever possible, both within the procuring and disposing entity and between procuring and disposing entities, to obtain value for money and reduce procurement costs;

(c) make use of framework contracts wherever appropriate to provide an efficient, cost effective and flexible means to procure works, services or supplies that are required continuously or repeatedly over a set period of time;

(d) avoid splitting of procurements or disposals to defeat the use of appropriate procurement or disposal methods;

(e) integrate its procurement budget with its expenditure programme; and

(f) integrate the disposal of assets both listed and unlisted in its Asset Register as well as in its income and expenditure budget.

59. (1) All procurement or disposal requirements shall be documented prior to the commencement of any procurement or disposal proceedings.

(2) Procurement or disposal shall only be initiated or continued on the confirmation that funding, in the full amount over the required period, is available or will be made available at the time the contract commitment is made.

(3) All procurement or disposal requirements shall be approved by the Accounting Officer prior to the commencement of any procurement or disposal process.

60. All statements of requirements-

(a) specifications;

(b) terms of reference;

(c) scope of works;

(d) drawings;

(e) bills of quantities; or

(f) their equivalent as may be appropriate;

giving a correct and complete description of the object of the procurement or disposal activity for the purpose of creating fair and open competition.

61. Procuring and disposing entities shall at all times use industry standards defined and codified by internationally recognised trade associations and professional bodies in the appropriate fields.

62. (1) A procuring and disposing entity shall use the standard documents provided by the Authority as models for drafting all solicitation documents for each individual procurement or disposal requirement.

(2) All solicitation documents shall-

(a) detail the terms and conditions, which shall apply to any resulting contract; and
(b) contain the General Conditions of Contract, or a statement of the General Conditions of Contract which shall apply.

(3) The General Conditions of Contract shall not be modified except through Special Conditions inserted into the solicitation documents or contract.

(4) A procuring and disposing entity shall obtain the prior consent of the Authority to place a contract against the General Conditions of Contract other than those contained in the standard solicitation documents provided by the Authority.

63. All methods for the selection of bidders to be invited to bid shall allow for fair and equitable selection and ensure maximum competition.

64. The bidding period shall be sufficient to allow bidders to prepare and submit their bids and shall not be reduced with the aim of limiting competition.

65. (1) At any time prior to the deadline for bid submission, a procuring and disposing entity may, on its own initiative, or in response to a request for clarification by a bidder, modify the solicitation documents by issuing an addendum.

(2) Where a procuring and disposing entity considers it necessary, it may extend the closing date to enable bidders to take the addendum fully into account while preparing their bids.

66. A procuring and disposing entity shall require bidders to submit sealed written bids unless otherwise provided for in this Act or regulations made under this Act.

67. The method for bid submission shall be prescribed by regulations made under this Act and shall be determined in the regulations by the type, complexity and evaluation method of the procurement or disposal being handled by the procuring and disposing entity.
68. A bidder may withdraw his or her bid at any time before the deadline for bid submission unless otherwise prescribed by the Minister by regulations made under this Act.

69. All bidding processes shall include a formal bid receipt and a bid opening.

70. A procuring and disposing entity shall require all bidders participating in public procurement or disposal to meet the qualification criteria set out in the bidding documents which in all cases shall include the following basic qualifications-

(a) that the bidder has the legal capacity to enter into the contract;

(b) that the bidder is not-

(i) insolvent; or

(ii) in receivership; or

(ii) bankrupt; or

(iv) being wound up;

(c) that the bidder's business activities have not been suspended;

(d) that the bidder is not the subject of legal proceedings for any of the circumstances mentioned in paragraph (b); and

(e) that the bidder has fulfilled his or her obligations to pay taxes and social security contributions.

71. (1) The choice of an evaluation methodology shall be determined by the type, value and complexity of the procurement or disposal.

(2) All solicitation documents shall fully and comprehensively detail the evaluation methodology and criteria which shall apply.
(3) No evaluation criteria other than that stated in the bidding documents shall be taken into account.

72. There shall not be any alterations or any changes in the substance of bids, including changes in price, after the date and time of bid closing, except as may be otherwise prescribed by regulations made under this Act.

73. A procuring and disposing entity may ask bidders for clarification of their bids in order to assist in an evaluation and to clarify details that were not apparent or could not be finalised at the time of bidding, in accordance with procedures prescribed by regulations made under this Act.

74. Negotiations shall not be permitted except as prescribed by the regulations.

75. A procuring and disposing entity may reject any or all the bids at any time prior to the award of a contract.

76. (1) For the purposes of this Act, an award decision is not a contract.

(2) An award shall not be confirmed by a procuring and disposing entity until-

(a) the period specified by regulations made under this Act has lapsed; and

(b) funding has been committed in the full amount over the required period.

(3) An award shall be confirmed by a written contract signed by both the provider and the procuring and disposing entity only after the conditions set out in subsection (2) have been fully satisfied.
(4) The award decision shall be posted in a manner prescribed by regulations during the period specified in paragraph (a) of sub-section (2).

77. Any change in the circumstances of a bidder during the procurement or disposal process that could materially affect the bidder's capacity to execute the contract shall be immediately drawn to the attention of the Contracts Committee by the bidder.

78. Public Officers shall not participate in the disposal process as bidders except where specific items are offered to the Public Officials of a procuring and disposing entity subject to-

(a) internal advertisement and competition;

(b) the sale price being no less than the authorized valuation of the items to be offered;

(c) the concurrence of the Head of the Procurement Unit, the Contracts Committees and the Accounting Officer; and

(d) the complete record of each offer being kept by the procuring and disposing entity for inspection and record, a copy of which documentation shall be forwarded by the Accounting Officer to the Authority within seven working days.