Sri Lanka soft-launches e-procurement monitoring system with UNDP

The National Procurement Commission (NPC) of Sri Lanka, in partnership with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), has kicked off a soft launch of its e-Procurement Monitoring System (ePMS) to digitize public sector procurement processes.

Speaking at the Disrupt Asia Start-Up conference, Dr Hans Wijayasuriya, Information and Communication Technology Agency Chairman and Presidential Adviser on Digital Economy, told Biometric Update that the Ministry of Digital Economy is in discussion with the NPC with respect to developing a guideline specific to digital solutions contracting and procurement.

“With specific reference to the Start-Up ecosystem, one of the objectives of such an exercise carried out under the aegis and guidance of the NPC, would be to enable Digital Start-Ups and smaller firms to compete for Government Projects – thereby democratizing access to the value pool accruing from the digitalization of the economy. Another objective would be to enable shorter cycle procurements as typically required in Digital Ecosystems on the backdrop of a rapidly evolving technology landscape”

The UNDP with the NPC, and funding from the Japanese government through the Japanese Supplementary Budget, unveiled the pilot phase of this procurement monitoring system last Thursday. The government will primarily pilot the system across ministries and special spending units, in a bid to revamp traditional paper-based procurement. Along with the monitoring process is ushering in a new era of efficiency, transparency, accountability and sustainable development.

Wijayasuriya also emphasized the importance of moving towards outcome-based contracting and agile approaches to procurement which will be of benefit to buyers and vendors in the eco-system. He also pointed out that the ultimate success of such an approach would also rely on the procurement system infrastructure which will provide transparency and efficiency, and securing of talent and expertise in technology procurement, topics which are under discussion with the NPC.

He added that this initiative will become a means of improving efficiency, transparency, and accountability. While the immediate results do not specify guidelines for digital solutions, the NPC is responsible for developing comprehensive guidelines and instructions for procurement, including information systems. The NPC released its 2024 Procurement Guidelines and Manual for Goods, Works, and Non-Consulting Services in late 2024, which will serve as a framework to support this digital transition.

The UNDP ran a workshop on digital ID system procurement at ID4Africa’s 2025 AGM this past May in Addis Ababa, urging government to consider how they will contract technologies from the initial design stages. And Sri Lanka is also in the midst of procuring a master systems integrator for its SL-UDI national digital ID.

Article Topics

digital government  |  government purchasing  |  procurement  |  SL-UDI  |  Sri Lanka  |  UNDP