The Joint Session of the Public Accounts and Public Enterprises Select Committees of the National Assembly Tuesday unanimously commended the Gambia Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) for being 91% compliant to the Gambia Public Procurement Authority (GPPA) Act.  

The Committees also commended the Authority for an excellent report of its annual activity and financial statement for the year ended 31st December 2010. Presenting his report before the members, Fansu Bojang, director general of GCAA, told the deputies that the Authority is now poised to shift to the next gear and embark on major investments both functionally and aesthetics to their facilities with the ultimate aim of enhancing the experience of their esteemed customers.

He said: “Our desire to do this is even more compelling in the light of the fact that our competition is international in nature and our customers originate from diverse places.  Bojang explained that this is critical because for Banjul International Airport to compete genuinely in the market place and realise its vision of a hub operation, there is an imperative need for a home-based airline that would link the country to other satellite destinations within the regions.

He added that the projected implementation time of this phase, after the recruitment of the consulting engineer, is 27 months, at the end of which the airfield would have an expanded aircraft parking apron, ultra-modern rescue and firefighting station, a runway fitted with a dual instrument landing system, and a fully refurbished terminal and control tower.

Compliance with GPPA Act
The Authority has been commended for  its compliance with  the rules and regulations of the GPPA . Lalo Danso, manager of Career Development and Training at the GPPA  told the committee that to realise the value for money in public procurements, all procuring organisations must be complaint with the public procurement Act and its attendant regulations and instructions.

He then revealed the 12 variables that would make any institution to be compliant with the GPPA Act. They are: Establishment of a contract committee -Section 48 (1) of GPPA Act; establishment of a specialized procurement unit (section 51); procurement plan (Section 30 of the Act and Section 25 of the regulation); completion and submission of monthly reports (Section 48 (10) and regulation 119 (3) and 116; filling of requisite GPPA forms Regulation 28; observation of the GPPA thresholds Regulations 12; use of proper procurement method (part VII of the Act);

solicitation documentation; awarding contracts to deserving registered suppliers (Section 25 and Section 23 (2); minutes of procurement procedures (Section 48 (5) and Section 36 (1);  establishment of a procurement filling system (Section 36 and Regulation 160) and codification of procurement transactions (Regulation 36 (1), 156 (2) and 121 (1). He said all these make the Gambia Civil Aviation Authority to be 91% compliant to the GPPA Act.

The National Assembly members and the subject matter specialists said that GCAA report is one of the best seen so far in the PAC/PEC select committees meeting with the fiscal and sustentative outlook of their report, before adopting and considering the annual activity report and financial statement of GCAA.