Manufacturers’ association for information technology has conducted a sensitization workshop on ‘Good Procurement Practices for Information Technology’ in association with the Centre for E-governance, Government of Karnataka. The workshop laid emphasis on the need for adoption of best practices for IT procurement by government and semi-government organizations. The workshop held in the city drew huge participation from over 160 officials of different government departments.
While delivering the keynote address, Mr Krishna Bajpai, IAS, Government of Karnataka discussed the importance of good procedures in procurement of IT goods and services and the need to adopt industry best practices to ensure success of e-governance projects. “Karnataka has been a leader in the adoption of e-procurement and is the best state for e-governance. Procurement should be done in such a way that it should serve in the best way possible for the people of the state, both in urban and rural areas.” he said.
Apart from Mr Krishna Bajpai, the other prominent speakers included Mr Anwar Shirpurwala, Executive director MAIT, Mr Ankur Malhotra, VP – GR and PP, Accenture and Ms Yolynd Lobo, Director, BSA. The event was organized by MAIT & BSA with Accenture as knowledge partners. The speakers discussed some of the existing challenges in executing e-governance projects and stressed on the significance of standardization of procedures in procurement of IT goods and services for government and semi-government organizations.
Anwar Shirpurwala, Executive Director, MAIT said “These workshops are aimed at sharing best practices in IT procurement procedures. It is quite heartening to see government officials come in such large numbers and participate actively in the discussions. Karnataka has always been at the forefront when it comes to IT procurement in e-governance.”
“As an industry body we want to bring forth some of the key concerns and challenges faced by IT companies. We also want to encourage better collaboration between the industry and government as it is important for the success of e-governance projects.” he added further.
The workshop was aimed at creating a free, secure and transparent environment for procurement of IT goods and services. The delegates emphasized the need for reviewing existing IT procurement procedures, identifying vulnerabilities and streamlining processes to make them more efficient. They also advocated the need for greater IT orientation and creation of a comprehensive IT procurement system for government and semi-government organizations
