John Mbadi, the Cabinet Secretary for National Treasury and Economic Planning.
The Treasury has vowed to push the implementation of Electronic Government Procurement System (eGP) despite Parliament and courts ruling against it.
National Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi on Thursday told the National Assembly’s Committee on Implementation of House resolutions that the government has directed all procuring entities to strictly implement the e-tendering system.
This is despite a court ruling requiring the State to comply with Section 77 of the Public Procurement Act, which allows for both manual and electronic methods of procurement.
The National Assembly in August scrapped a circular requiring mandatory use of the eGP system by all public procuring entities on grounds that it contravenes the Constitution.
However, Mr Mbadi said Article 227 of the Constitution requires the Cabinet Secretary to design and prescribe an efficient procurement management system for the national and county governments to ensure transparent procurement and asset disposal.
The Committee on Implementation of House Resolutions had invited Mr Mbadi to shed light on the implementation status of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority Circular No 04/2025 on the mandatory use of eGP by all procuring entities in contravention of Section 77 of the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, Cap 412C.
Council of Governors Chairman and Wajir Governor Ahmed Abdullahi (centre) with fellow governors during a press briefing in Nairobi on September 1, 2025.
The Treasury on July 23, 2025, issued a circular stating that only (existing) contracts duly reported to the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) will be approved for payment.
The High Court on Monday suspended the mandatory use of electronic procurement by all public entities and county governments as ordered by Mr Mbadi.
Justice Bahati Mwamuye suspended the mandatory use of the eGP pending the determination of a petition by the Council of Governors and four others.
“Even if you annulled the PPRA circular No 04/2025, we have a circular that I issued in March and the circular by the Head of Public Service issued in June this year on eGP,” Mr Mbadi said.
“We have the Public Finance Management Act, Regulations 2020, and Article 227 of the Constitution that gives me the power to provide a system for public procurement. We are telling our officers to go e-procurement. There are those resisting and waiting for miracles to happen, but that will not happen. We are not going back to manual procurement.”
Mr Mbadi said President William Ruto in his State of the Nation Address on November 21, 2024, directed the National Treasury to roll out the eGP system by the first quarter of 2025.
He said during the budget statement of 2025/25, he indicated that as from July 1, 2025, the Treasury will roll out the eGP where entities will migrate to the online procurement system.
Mr Mbadi said the Cabinet, in its fourth meeting of June 2025, directed that the eGP shall be the primary means of procurement in all government transactions.
“The implementation and use of the eGP system will result in reduced cost of goods, works and services, increased transparency in procurement processes and practices, improved efficiency in procurement by minimising the procurement cycle time, maximisation of value for money, accountability, improved confidentiality, and authentication of transactions between procuring entities and suppliers, streamlined procurement procedures across through the standardisation of processes and practices, and enhanced procurement information management that will facilitate procurement planning, monitoring, evaluation and reporting,” Mr Mbadi said.
“As part of the rollout, the National Treasury carried out a massive registration exercise of all procuring entities and suppliers, training of users of eGP system from all procuring entities, training of suppliers and issued more circulars for ease of implementation of the eGP system by procuring entities.”
Mr Mbadi told the committee chaired by Budalangi MP Raphael Wanjala that 1,379 procuring entities have been registered, alongside 10,000 suppliers, and 14,000 persons from various procuring entities trained.
The CS said 64 State departments, 94 county government entities, 635 State corporations, and 37 county governments have already onboarded to the eGP system.
He said as directed by the government policy on digitisation, the Treasury will continue to implement the eGP system as a key reform agenda.
“We are not ignoring any court order. We are not ignoring resolutions of the National Assembly. We are implementing an electronic procurement system. The manual system can wait,” Mr Mbadi said.
“I have exempted some institutions like KenGen and Kenya Pipeline Company who have their own electronic procurement systems,” he said.
Mr Mbadi said the manual procurement system is prone to manipulation and leads to loss of taxpayer’s money.
“I am asking this committee and the House to support the Cabinet Secretary to seal revenue leakages and loss of taxpayers' money through the manual procurement system,” he said.
“This country is losing a lot of money through procurement flaws. You gave me a job, please allow me to do the job of cleaning up procurement flaws.”
Mr Wanjala, MPs Mark Mwenje (Embakasi West), Kakai Bisau (Kiminini), Hillary Kosgei (Kipkelion) and Lilian Siyoi (Trans Nzoia Women Representative) accused the Cabinet Secretary and the Treasury of rushing to implement a system that could affect most suppliers.
“This system was rushed and there is no procurement going on in the first quarter of this financial year. Why not use both manual and electronic procurement methods as allowed in law?” Mr Wanjala asked.
