FACTORS INFLUENCING ADHERENCE TO PUBLIC PROCUREMENT PRACTICES AMONG CITY COUNCILS IN MALAWI

The government of Malawi adopted public procurement practices to promote fiscal discipline and prudence when using public funds. The present study set out to determine if there is observance of public procurement practices and to examine factors that influence adherence to the public procurement practices at city councils in Malawi. Specifically, the study sought to: examine the effects of procurement policies on effective implementation of public procurement practices in city councils in Malawi; determine how management of inventory at city councils impacts on effective public procurement practice implementation in Malawi; investigate the levels of training acquired by the stakeholders within the local councils and their impact on implementation of public procurement practices in Malawi; and, assess the level of system automation infrastructure at the city councils and its impact on enhancing public procurement practice in Malawi. The study adopted a mixed method approach. Quantitative data was analysed using descriptive and regression analyses while qualitative data was analysed using thematic and content analysis. The population size for the study was 49 respondents and data were collected using structured questionnaires and face to face interviews. The study revealed that it was only procurement policies that the city councils made some commendable efforts to adhere to. It was established that there was very poor on adoption of inventory management practices in procurement, staff development through formal training and in-service training and adoption of procurement technologies in their procurement system. To this effect, therefore, the study recommends that city council management should consider making deliberate efforts to influence mind set change among procurement officers through in-service training sessions. Secondly, the study recommends that management at the city councils should invest in upgrading procurement systems that will enhance the performance of the procurement sector.