Procurement audits

A procurement audit is a structured review of the procurement process, from Plan Procurement Management through Control Procurements. Its objective is to identify successes and failures that warrant transfer to other procurement contracts on the project or to other projects within the organisation. It is a tool of Close Procurements (and also Control Procurements).

Purposes

• Check that procurement followed laws, policies and procedures (e.g. Public Procurement Act and Rules for public bodies).
• Verify fairness, transparency and competition in sourcing.
• Assess value for money and cost control.
• Confirm that contract terms were met and that payments were correct.
• Identify weaknesses and risk of fraud, errors or favouritism.
• Capture lessons learned for future procurements.

What is examined

Steps

Plan audit -> Collect records -> Review and test
   -> Report findings -> Corrective action -> Follow-up

1. Define the scope, criteria and team (internal or external auditors).
2. Collect procurement files, contracts and correspondence.
3. Compare actual practice with policies and law.
4. Interview staff and sellers where needed.
5. Report findings with recommendations.
6. Track corrective actions; update OPA.

Benefits

• Prevents irregularities and improves accountability.
• Improves procurement processes and templates.
• Strengthens trust of funders and stakeholders.
• Useful for donor-funded and government projects.

Example: Audit of a district network procurement finds that two bids were accepted after the deadline and that scoring sheets were missing; the audit recommends strict bid-opening records.