PROCUREMENT MANAGEMENT AND SERVICE DELIVERY IN LOCAL GOVERNMENTS OF UGANDA: A CASE STUDY OF
MBARARA DISTRICT

BY
RODGERS TUMWINE
REG. NUMBER: 09 / MMS / PSCM / 20 / 041

A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT SCIENCE IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF MASTERS DEGREE IN MANAGEMENT STUDIES (PROCUREMENT AND SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT)
OF UGANDA MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE

FEBRUARY 2014

DECLARATION
I, Rodgers Tumwine , declare that this research report is my original work and has to the best of my knowledge, never been submitted for the award of a degree or any other award in a University or other institutions of higher learning.
Signature …………………………………..
Date ……………………………………….

 

APPROVAL
This report has been submitted to Uganda Management Institute for examination with our approval as the candidate’s supervisors.

Signature	…………………………………………..
Prof. Benon Basheka 
Supervisor
Date ………………………………………………….

Signature	…………………………………………..
Mr. Alfred Kenneth Kiiza
Supervisor
Date ………………………………………………….

DEDICATION
This work is dedicated to my parents (Mr & Mrs E Mwesigye), my wife Patience Tumwine & our daughter Esther Keine  for their generous contribution towards the whole course.

 

ACKNOWLEDGMENT
I must say that producing this work inevitably drew on the experiences of others. Indeed it has been a collective contribution of many people with whom I have interacted.

I particularly acknowledge the various contribution and advice of my supervisors, Prof. Benon Basheka and Mr. Alfred Kenneth Kiiza for their efforts they put in to ensure that this work is completed. They read and reviewed my work and ably directed me with love and encouragement. I am indeed grateful to them.

I am also indebted to all my lecturers at Uganda Management Institute. They adequately guided and equipped me with both theoretical and practical skills. Thank you so much for your dedicated and inspiring work.

I would also like to acknowledge the contribution of my friends and mentors Mrs. Tumwesigye Annie Makaaru , Mr. Byamukama P Katembeka, my wife Patience Tumwine , Mr Enock Mwesigwa & Mr Kajungu Peter for their encouragement and all round support. 

Special thanks go to all respondents that I came into contact during this study. Your generosity in accepting to participate in the study is acknowledged and highly appreciated, not withstanding the Grace of God .

Thank you all.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
DECLARATION
APPROVAL
DEDICATION
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF TABLES
LIST OF FIGURES
ABSTRACT
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1	Introduction
1.2	Background to the study
1.2.1	Historical background
1.2.2	Theoretical background
1.2.3	Conceptual background
1.2.4	Contextual background
1.3	Statement of the Problem
1.4	Purpose of the Study
1.5	Objectives of the Study
1.6	Research Questions
1.7	Hypotheses of the Study
1.8	The Conceptual Framework
1.9	Significance of the Study
1.10	Justification of the Study
1.11	Scope of the Study
1.11.1	Content scope
1.11.2	Geographical scope
1.11.3	Time scope
1.12	Operational Definitions
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1	Introduction
2.2	Theoretical Review
2.3	Procurement Planning and Service Delivery in Local Governments
2.3.1	Budgeting
2.3.2	Implementation and accountability
2.4	Procurement Organization and Service Delivery in Local Governments
2.5	Contract Management and Service Delivery in Local Governments
2.5.1	Tendering process
2.5.2	Contract monitoring
2.5.3	Quality assurance and service delivery
2.6	Procurement Legal Framework Moderator Effect on Procurement  Management and Service Delivery in Local Governments
2.7	Summary of the Literature Review
CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
3.0	Introduction
3.1	Research Design
3.2	Study Population
3.3	 Sample Size and Selection
3.4	Sampling Techniques and Procedure
3.5	Data Collection Methods
3.6	Data Collection Instruments
3.6.1	Questionnaires
3.6.2	Interview guides
3.7	Validity and Reliability
3.7.1	Validity
3.7.2	Reliability
3.8	Procedure for Data Collection
3.8	Data Analysis
3.8.1	Quantitative data analysis
3.8.2	Qualitative data analysis
3.9	Measurement of Variables
CHAPTER FOUR: PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION    OF RESULTS
4.0	Introduction
4.1	Response Rate
4.2	Respondents Background Information
4.2.1	Respondents’ gender
4.2.2	Respondent’s age
4.2.3	Respondents’ education
4.2.4	Category of respondents
4.2.5	Years of service with the organization
4.3	Procurement Planning and Service Delivery in Mbarara District
4.3.1	Descriptive results about procurement planning in Mbarara District
4.3.2	Descriptive results about service delivery in Mbarara District
4.3.3	Testing first hypothesis
4.4	Procurement Organization and Service Delivery in Mbarara District
4.4.1	Descriptive results about procurement organization
4.4.2	Testing second hypothesis
4.5	Contract Management and Service Delivery in Mbarara District
4.5.1	Descriptive results about contract management
4.5.2	Testing third hypothesis
4.6	Procurement Legal Framework and the Relationship between Procurement   and Service Delivery in Mbarara District
4.6.1	Descriptive results about procurement legal framework
4.6.2	Testing fourth hypothesis
CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, DISCUSSION, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.0	Introduction
5.1	Summary
5.1.1	Procurement planning and service delivery in Mbarara District
5.1.2	Procurement organization and service delivery in Mbarara District
5.1.3	Contracts Management and service delivery in Mbarara District
5.1.4	Procurement legal framework and the relationship between procurement   and services delivery in Mbarara District
5.2	Discussion
5.2.1	Procurement planning and service delivery in Mbarara District
5.2.2	Procurement organization and service delivery in Mbarara District
5.2.3	Contracts Management and service delivery in Mbarara District
5.2.4	Procurement legal framework and the relationship between procurement  and services delivery in Mbarara District
5.3	Conclusions
5.3.1	Procurement planning and service delivery in Mbarara District
5.3.2	Procurement organization and service delivery in Mbarara District
5.3.3	Contracts Management and service delivery in Mbarara District
5.3.4	Procurement legal framework and the relationship between procurement  and services delivery in Mbarara District
5.4	Recommendations
5.4.1	Procurement planning and service delivery in Mbarara District
5.4.2	Procurement organization and service delivery in Mbarara District
5.4.3	Contracts Management and service delivery in Mbarara District
5.4.4	Procurement legal framework and the relationship between procurement  and services delivery in Mbarara District
5.5	Area for Further Research
REFERENCES
APPENDICES
Appendix 1: Questionnaires
Appendix 2: Interview Schedule
Appendix 3: Findings about procurement planning
Appendix 4: Findings about procurement organization
Appendix 5: Findings about contract management
Appendix 6: Findings about procurement legal framework
Appendix 7: Findings about service delivery

LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Sample size and selection
Table 2: Rating of items for validity computation
Table 3: Reliability of the questionnaire
Table 4: Findings about respondents’ gender
Table 5: Findings about respondents’ age
Table 6: Findings about respondents’ education
Table 7: Findings about category of respondents
Table 8: Findings about respondents’ education
Table 9: Findings about procurement planning
Table 10: Findings about service delivery
Table 11: Correlation between procurement planning and service delivery
Table 12: Findings about procurement organization
Table 13: Correlation between procurement organization and service delivery
Table 14: Findings about contract management
Table 15: Correlation between contract management and service delivery
Table 16: Findings about procurement legal framework
Table 17: Moderator effect of procurement legal framework on the relationship between procurement management practice and service delivery

LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Source: Ntayi et al (2009), Modified by the Researcher.

ABSTRACT
The purpose of the study was to examine the effect of procurement management practices on service delivery in Mbarara District Local Government. The following objectives guided the study: assessing how procurement planning affects service delivery in Mbarara district local government, finding out how procurement organization contributes to service delivery in Mbarara district local government, establishing the relationship between contract management and effective service delivery in Mbarara district local government and finding out the moderator effect of the procurement legal framework on the relationship between procurement management and service delivery in Mbarara district local government. The study was carried out using a case study design adopting both quantitative and qualitative approaches. The target sample was 223 but the response was 154, a response rate of 69%. The subjects were selected by simple random sampling and purposive sampling. Both univariate statistical analysis consisting of frequencies and percentages and bivariate statistical analyses consisting of Pearson correlation, coefficient of determination and partial correlation were conducted to analyze quantitative data. Content analysis was used to analyze qualitative data. The study established a weak positive effect of procurement planning on service delivery. There was a moderate positive effect of procurement organization on service delivery. Furthermore, there was a weak positive effect of contract management on service delivery.  Lastly, the procurement legal framework had a significant moderating effect on the relationship between procurement management and service delivery. It was concluded that procurement planning, procurement organization and contract management positively affected service delivery in Mbarara District. The study recommended that further improvement in procurement planning, procurement organization and contract management should be undertaken to ensure better service delivery in local governments in Uganda.

CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1	Introduction
The study was an investigation into the relationship between Procurement Management and service delivery in Mbarara district. Procurement management was conceived as the independent variable while service delivery was the Dependent Variable. This chapter presented the background to the study, statement of the problem, purpose of the study, objectives of the study, the research questions, the hypotheses, conceptual framework, significance of the study, justification, the scope of the study and operational definitions of terms and concepts.

1.2	Background to the study
1.2.1	Historical background
Procurement in the public sector  as cited in Thai (2004) has along history written on a red clay tablet found in Syria, the earliest procurement order dates from between 2400 and 2800 B.C. The order was for “50 jars of fragrant smooth oil for 600 small weights in grain”. Other evidence of historical procurement includes the development of the silk trade between China and a Greek colony in 800B.C. In the past, many industrial organizations had considered it necessary to give an independent status to stores and purchasing to carryout routine task of purchasing, storing and issuing out goods as directed by other departments.

In the early 1980’s, purchasing and supply was concerned with buying supplies at the lowest price. The activity was essentially clerical, there was little involvement with suppliers, and it was reactive. Today purchasing and supply has become strategically involved as purchasing is seen as giving the organization a strategic advantage, closely involved with suppliers and other activities concerned more with true ownership cost than price. In the United States of America, it was not until the late 1980’s that state legislatures began to create boards or bureaus responsible for purchasing, but central purchasing was hardly a practice at that time in 1810. Oklahoma was the first state government to create a board that was charged to centrally procure for all state departments and agencies. Thai (2004) contends that the sheer magnitude of the public procurement dollar expenditure out lay has a dramatic impact on the economy and thus, needs to be well managed. Purchasing and supply chain management is now recognized in major organizations as an area for reducing costs and adding value through strategic out sourcing, e-commerce and reducing acquisition costs. Therefore purchasing has developed over years.

Agaba and Shipman (2006) have observed that the Ugandan Public Procurement system prior to the inception of the reform programme in the late 1990’s was typical for many developing African countries. It was characterized by high level of centralization, uncompetitiveness, and little emphasis on value for money procurements and disparate tender boards for the police and military and Central Tender Board in the Ministry of Finance for other public enterprises using regulations that had been approved in 1997. Prior to the Public Procurement reforms, Procurement in Uganda was lumbered with a number of problems most of which were related to accountability and transparency forcing internal and foreign aid organizations which account for nearly all development expenditure in Uganda, to consider Public Procurement to be a key obstacle to service delivery and development (Basheka, 2009: Agaba and Shipman, 2006).
The efficacy of the regulatory system (PPDA) in Uganda has been attested to by the World Bank, under the programme Document for the Fifth Poverty Reduction Support Credit notes. This document affirms that Uganda became one of the most advanced countries in the region in terms of implementing Procurement reforms thereby making the Procurement system more efficient, transparent and accountable. The Authority has designed its website www.ppda.go.ug with information on Procurement requirements and activities including the findings of Procurement audits, greatly improving transparency. 

In an effort to implement key procurement reforms therefore, the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets (PPDA) Act was enacted in 2003 in Uganda. This is currently the principle law governing procurement and Disposal in both local and central governments. It provides regulations and guidelines relating to procurement at all levels of the public sector in Uganda, The PPDA Act lays down the basic procurement and Disposal principles; non discrimination and fairness, transparency, accountability, competition, confidentiality, ethical behaviors etc. to guide the proper procurement activity. For example all procurement shall be conducted to deliver best value for money irrespective of the method of procurement used, the procuring and dispersing entity or the nature of the works, services to be procured. The local governments (Public procurement and Disposal of public Assets) regulation 2006 was later drafted. Basic public procurement and disposal principles are well laid down for example; a tenderer shall not be excluded from participating in public procurement and disposal on the basis of nationality, race, religion, gender or any other criterion not related to qualification, except under guidelines made under these regulations or by other competent authority. 

The PPDA Act has created a new procurement framework intended to achieve a number of objectives. Firstly, is to promote economy and efficiency in procurement and disposal activities. Second is to ensure public procurement and disposal is conducted in a fair, transparent and non-discriminatory manner and thirdly, to contribute towards the creation of a sound business climate in Uganda, by monitoring compliance and building procurement capacity (Basheka, 2008, PPDA Revised plan 2006). The PPDA Act provides for independence of roles and separation of powers between the various parties in the procurement process, which make service delivery more effective.

Additionally, the effective provision of public services often requires the coordinated delivery of materials and the like, which the state purchasing apparatus must accomplish (Odhiambo & Kamau, 2003). It is difficult to imagine how a state can deliver substantial improvements in the well being for citizens without a public expenditure system that includes effective public procurement policies. This recognition accounts in part for the growing interest in public procurement laws and practices and the likely consequences of their reform.

1.2.2	Theoretical background
This study was guided by the best value theory advanced by Ellis and Gary (1990). The theory postulates accounting for and pursuing the aspirations of local stakeholders by attempting to gain the highest quality and efficiency that are possible “at a price that people are willing to pay”. The theory requires officials to obtain economic, efficient and effective services in order to properly respond to local stakeholders. It was adopted because of its provision of elements that lead to a comprehensive review of performance and implementation of government and other stakeholders over a specified period of time. The theory helped to put the variables of primary interest in this study in greater perspective given that Procurement management and service delivery are both aspects of organizational structure and human behavior.

According to Lloyd (1996), the scope of Public Procurement is enormous and that this all goes to the heart of a nation’s form of government and economy. He further asserted that in a capitalistic economy of representative democracy, states must engage in contracts with private firms if they are to meet their requirements for supplies and services. These cover a wide range of products from office pins to huge public infrastructural works such as road construction and dam projects. It is impossible for any government to effectively function without engaging in public procurement. The theory helps to explain the relationship between the procuring entity and the provider. While the procuring entity expects the service provider to deliver goods or services of right quality and quantity, the service provider expects prompt payment. The theory is further elaborated in chapter two under literature review. The process for awarding Public Procurement contracts guarantee and safe guard the rights and interests of the state on one hand and those of the contractor. This is one way of achieving efficient use of resources and ensuring effective service delivery. As Bovis (1994) stated, in a market economy, free trade and international market competition are considered to be the most efficient instruments for promoting optimal resource allocation and economic growth. 

1.2.3	Conceptual background
In conceptual terms, procurement management and service delivery constituted the broad concepts of the study. Public procurement management comprises of the broad management functions of planning, organizing, staffing, directing and controlling procurement processes and activities in an organization (Jain & Saakshi, 2008, p.10). Procurement management is one of the activities of the supply chain and it ensures that the right goods/ services are delivered to the right place, in the right quality, with the right quantity, at the right cost and at the right time. All this is done in a fair and open manner considering the principles of competition, economy and efficiency (The World Bank, 2007).

According to Kroukamp (2006), Procurement management integrates key business processes of demand, acquisition, logistics and disposal for the provision of goods or services in an effective, efficient and economic manner. Considering the principles of competitive economy and efficiency, Procurement should be carried out by competition unless there are convincing reasons to the contrary. Bidders compete with one another under the same terms and conditions so as to maximize value for money (VFM). Public procurement and disposal opportunities are accessible to all interested providers, they use standard bidding documents (SBD), clear and non restrictive specification, sufficient time for bidding and all bidders are evaluated under the same criteria and clarifications if any are given to all bidders. Effective local government service delivery is seen through reduced number of complaints, timely delivery of goods and services, usability and accessibility to those services provided. (PPDA, 2007). Evennet (2004) defines Public Procurement as a process of the acquisition, usually by means of a contractual arrangement after public competition of goods, services, works and other supplies by the public service. Telgen (2007) observes that Procurement management aims at facilitating realization of policy objectives (social, economic and political objectives) as well as accountability to relevant stake holders that funds were properly utilized to realize the procurement goals.

Procurement goals relate to effective procurement practices and these are defined as those systems offering a high level of transparency, accountability and value for money (Ministry of Defence Procurement Handout, 2004). Service delivery according to Webster New International Dictionary (1993) is the action or use that furthers some end or purpose; it is a conduct or performance that assists or benefits some one or something.
Service delivery here implies the delivery of local government programmes and meeting service needs of the locals. In a local government setting, service delivery is addressed through accountability, purchasing of quality services/works and transparency among others. It is however abused sometimes through corruption, political patronage and malpractice. The principle aim of Procurement should be to obtain goods and services of the right quality in the right quantity from the right source, delivered to the right place at the least cost and price ( Telgen 2007). This study will therefore assess how procurement management influences service delivery in Ugandan Local Government systems. This will be assessed basing on the extent to which service delivery is reflected in timely delivery of goods and services, road works, value for money spent, quality of services, conformance to agreed standards and specifications, among others. Measures of service delivery that will help the researcher in conducting the study include availability of road services that conform to standards(end user), consistency of officials and contractors in delivering the services, economy in the use of funds, procurement effectiveness(measured basing on cost dimensions), reduced number of complaints among others.

1.2.4	Contextual background
Public Procurement in Mbarara district has been conducted in accordance with the Public Procurement and Disposal of Assets act, 2003. The PPDA is the sole national regulatory and monitoring body for Procurement in all Procurement and Disposal Entities (PDE) including district local governments (Government of Uganda, 2003). Article 24 of the PPDA act 2003, provides that each PDE shall be comprised of an accounting officer (AO), a Contracts Committee (CC), Procurement and Disposal Unit (PDU), a User Department and an Evaluation Committee (EC). Also in place is the Local Governments (Amendment) Act, 2006, which provides for establishment of a Contracts Committee and Procurement and Disposal Unit in every district of Uganda (Government of Uganda, 2006). It should however be noted that despite all the procurement and local government legal frame work provisions in place, service delivery still remains an issue of public concern that requires attention.

Many problems exist in most local governments that keep local and international suppliers from taking advantage of the government market place. In Mbarara district the Procurement & Disposal unit (PDU) has for instance suffered immense challenges including Political Patronage especially in contracting private companies and individuals to manage markets in the district. There is also evidence of inadequate accountability for government decisions leading to competition, lack of transparency in the procurement process as well as bureaucratic influences which sometimes cause contracts to be awarded on subjective criteria to an apparently favored contractor. It is evident that some local firms lack the relevant capacity to perform effectively yet foreign firms are not attracted by the low value district contracts. Tenders especially road works are therefore given to contractors without capacity. This hampers service delivery especially when some contractors connive with the district engineer to pay them all the money with commission. 

 The state of service delivery in Mbarara district has also been hampered by understaffing of procurement entities. The few who were in place were overloaded with work, could not meet deadlines and eventually submission of procurement returns per quota to PPDA was delayed. This resulted into late commencement of works, late procurement of supplies and services and by the end of the financial year, there was a lot of un spent money. Therefore the un spent money was returned to the treasury and this implied that the Procurement and Disposal Unit did not have the capacity to utilize the available funds, yet work on several projects was stalled. This raised concerns on issues related to procurement management and service delivery in local governments of Uganda.

A report compiled by the Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE) (Daily Monitor, September 15, 2010) indicated that several districts were failing on service delivery. The report showed that there was a general absence of clear power relations and accountability among leaders at district level. In Mbarara district, there was evidence of conflict of interest where some incapable and non compliant contractors are awarded contracts, for instance under National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS), where there was supply of poor quality chicks and piglets that often times die before reaching even maturity age, hence hindering service delivery.

1.3	Statement of the Problem
In Uganda, since 1997, public procurement reforms have been enacted to address public outcry about lack of transparency, accountability, competition, non-discrimination and fairness in the procurement process. In 2003, the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets (PPDA) regulations were enacted. Reforms related to professionalism, legal framework and institutional framework all were designed to improve service delivery.

Despite the good motive of the mentioned reforms and concerns, Mbarara district local government has continued to experience under utilization of financial resources as a result of delayed award of contracts, shoddy work being done like collapsing universal primary education (UPE) pit latrines and school blocks, uncompleted road works and market stalls. There are some aspects of corruption and influence peddling in the procurement process. This culminated into an investigation report by the PPDA on the tender for enforcement of property rates payment in Mbarara Municipality. Particularly noted was the evaluation team’s qualification of a company for property rates payment management when their primary objective is construction (PPDA, 2008). A judiciary commission of inquiry into misuse of funds and corruption in Mbarara district appointed by the president in March 2009 also discovered that individuals are using the district road equipment illegally. Such persistent acts by the district leadership weaken their authority and this in turn affects the overall performance of the district local government resulting into poor service delivery. It was against this background that the researcher wanted to investigate why despite the procurement management systems in place, service delivery in Mbarara district local government is still with a number of gaps.

1.4	Purpose of the Study
The purpose of the study was to examine the effect of procurement management on local government service delivery in Mbarara district local government.

1.5	Objectives of the Study
The study was guided by the following objectives:-
1.	To assess how procurement planning affects service delivery in Mbarara district local government
2.	To find out how procurement organization contributes to service delivery in Mbarara district local government.
3.	To establish the relationship between contract management and effective service delivery in Mbarara district local government.
4.	To find out the moderator effect of the procurement legal framework on the relationship between procurement management and service delivery in Mbarara district local government.

1.6	Research Questions
1.	How does procurement planning affect service delivery in Mbarara district local government?
2.	How does procurement organization contribute to service delivery in Mbarara district local government?
3.	What was the relationship between contract management and service delivery in Mbarara district local government?
4.	What was the moderator effect of procurement legal framework on the relationship between procurement management and service delivery in Mbarara district local government?

1.7	Hypotheses of the Study
1.	Procurement planning significantly affects service delivery in local governments in Uganda.
2.	Procurement organization contributes significantly to service delivery in local governments in Uganda.
3.	There is a relationship between contract management and effective service delivery in local governments in Uganda.
4.	The procurement legal framework has significant moderator effect on the relationship between procurement management and service delivery in local governments in Uganda.

1.8	The Conceptual Framework
 Independent Variable					Dependent Variable

Procurement Management

Procurement Planning
•	Budgeting
•	Defining Specifications
•	Implementation & Accountability

 

Effective Local Government Service Delivery
•	Timely delivery of goods & services
•	Reduced number of complaints
•	Quality of services
•	Conformance to agreed standards & specifications
•	End user satisfaction

Procurement Organization
•	Centralization
•	Decentralization

Contract Management
•	Tendering Process
•	Contract Monitoring and evaluation

 

                                       MV-Procurement legal frame work

•	Local Government Act 1997 and Amendments
•	PPDA Act, 2003 & Regulations 2003
•	Local Government Procurement Guidelines, 2008

Figure 1: Source: Ntayi et al (2009), Modified by the Researcher.

The conceptual framework showing how procurement management affects service delivery in local governments. The independent variable was procurement management and it had three dimensions, procurement planning, procurement organization and contract management. The dependent variable was service delivery and it had five indicators; Timely delivery, reduced complaints, quality conformance to specifications and end user satisfaction. On the other hand, the intervening variable was assumed to be political interference by opinion leaders and local government councils. The moderating variable was legal framework and its indicators were local government Act 1997 and procurement legal framework (PPDA Act, 2003)

1.9	Significance of the Study
This study was important because its findings showed and suggested ways of how public procurement management, procurement planning, procurement organization and contract management can be handled so that service delivery in Mbarara district local government is improved. It would help policy makers in the procurement and user departments to design better policies and implementation strategies while delivering services to the community. The study results would also be useful to other researchers. The study was therefore be a basis for further research as it generated further understanding of procurement management and service delivery particularly in local government systems of Uganda.

1.10	Justification of the Study
Surveys conducted by the PPDA and Parliamentary Accounts Committee (PAC) indicated that funds have been misallocated and misused in Mbarara district for example the would be completed Kyamugorani - Bunenero road in Rubaya sub-county was abandoned after its rehabilitation had commenced. This indicated several gaps to be filled. The researcher thought that the poor service delivery in local governments in Uganda is associated with procurement management and therefore felt the need to do a comprehensive study to bring to surface the degree to which procurement management affects service delivery in local governments in Uganda. The study was a step towards obtaining better value for money in public procurement of the local government level by highlighting the relationship between procurement management and service delivery in the local government systems of Uganda as a point of entry to address the problem.

1.11	Scope of the Study
1.11.1	Content scope
This study was limited to procurement management with emphasis on procurement planning, procurement organization and contract management which made up the independent variable. Service delivery was the dependent variable and was based on the indicators of time, quality, conformance to specifications and end user satisfaction while the moderating variable was legal framework.

1.11.2	Geographical scope
The study was limited to Mbarara district local government, which is located in South Western Uganda. Mbarara district covers an area of 1846.4 sq km. It comprised of three constituencies; Rwampara, Kashari and Mbarara municipality. For this research, my area of concentration was Mbarara municipality. Mbarara municipality is made up of three divisions, Kamukuzi, Nyamitanga and Kakoba. It is made up of 6 municipal wards, 83 parishes and 742 villages. The total population according to National census of 2002 is 361,447 people, Mbarara town has a population of 69,208(Uganda Bureau of Statistics, 2004). The district’s mission statement is “To serve the community through delivery of services with focus on National and local priorities in order to promote sustainable social and economic development to the district (Mabara District profile 2007)

1.11.3	Time scope
The study covered the period from 1999 up to 2010. This was carried out in Uganda, Mbarara district local government.

1.12	Operational Definitions
For purposes of this study, the following terms were defined as follows;
Local government: In this study local government meant the local district administration. It included leaders and officers who emerged after decentralization of the district administration from the central government. 

Procurement: This meant the procurement function, procurement process or personnel in the procurement unit. Procurement also meant acquisition by purchase, rental, lease, hire purchase, license tenancy, franchise or any other contractual means of any type of works, services or supplies or any combination.

Service Delivery: This meant attitudes exhibited by service providers aimed at developing good supplier relationships and ensuring customers are handled well while being serviced.

Procurement management: This is the process companies use to purchase economic resources and business input from suppliers or vendors. This process helps companies negotiate prices and get the best quality resources for production processes. Smaller businesses do not usually have a department dedicated to procurement since they have much smaller business operations

CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1	Introduction
The main objective of this chapter is to review the literature related to procurement management and local government service delivery. Sources of the literature that will be used in this study include journals, research papers, government publications and documents, previous research proposals and dissertations, text books. This chapter is arranged under the subsections of theoretical review, and actual review of literature arranged under the themes derived from each objectives highlighted in chapter one.

2.2	Theoretical Review
This study was guided by the competitive procurement theory, also known as full and open competition (FOC) theory advanced by Dobbi (1991). The theory depicts that business be conducted with integrity, fairness and openness which require open communication with in and among both buying and supplying organizations, ensuring competitive procurement and hence give any organization a chance to compete for contracts and win. The theory seeks to establish full and open competition as the standard, in order to eradicate partiality, favoritism, political lobbying and bribery.

Public procurement therefore seeks to obtain goods and services of the right quality, in the right quantity, from the right source, delivered to the right place at the least cost and price in supporting (Telgen 2007). In general, the theory seeks to establish full and open competition as the standard in order to ensure effective service delivery to the community.

2.3	Procurement Planning and Service Delivery in Local Governments
Basheka (2008) states that procurement planning is the primary function that sets the stage for subsequent procurement activities. It fuels and then ignites the engine of procurement process. A mistake in procurement planning therefore has wide implications for both local and central governance, measured from the two indicators of accountability and participation. Procurement planning is a legal requirement in Uganda. According to section 34(2) of the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act (2003) and Local Government Regulations 62 of 2006, require the user department to prepare a work plan for procurement based on approved budget. This is then submitted to Procurement and Disposal Unit (PDU) for orderly execution and section 31(f) require a procurement unit to plan the procurement activities of the entity. A procurement plan is a comprehensive statement of requirements procured over the life of the plan - usually a year. Procurement planning is thus a systematic process of setting achievable procurement objectivities. It entails setting the strategies and defining the period within which the objectives have to be achieved. It is consultative in such away that users are supposed to develop their individual procurement plans, which are eventually integrated into master procurement plans for the entire organization (http://www.ppda.go.ug).

2.3.1	Budgeting
Thai (2008) contends that, government agencies cannot spend until the legislature appropriated the budget and the central budget office apportioned it. But as procurement is a long and time - consuming process, contract planning should “begin as soon as the agency need is identified, preferably well in advance of the fiscal year in which contract award is necessary”. Katono (2007) raised the concern that effective planning and budgeting in local governments requires a highly participatory and bottom-up approach. This necessitates development and linkage of programmes and priorities starting from lower local governments to municipalities and districts in line with national policies and objectives not withstanding conditionalities of international donor agencies. Although largely ignored in the procurement literature by assuming that the procurement process starts after the procurement budget has been approved, in practice, procurement planning and appropriations are integral parts of a public procurement system and determine procurement success (Ntayi et al, 2009). For example, the government and Parliament based on abroad range of considerations, sound procurement policies largely decide the budgetary appropriations to public entities and organs like the PPDA have streamlined public procurement for effective service delivery. 

2.3.2	Implementation and accountability
In 2000, the implementation of Public Procurement reforms commenced with the cabinet endorsing the procurement reforms. This is against the background of a task force that had been commissioned to undertake a study and make recommendations to the government on how to implement these reforms. The process followed promulgation of public (procurement) finance regulations under a statutory instrument in March 2000 and this came into effect in May 2001. This led to the use of contract committees in government ministries and departments. Ultimately the Central Tender Board (CTB) was replaced with the creation of Procurement Reform Implementation Unit (PRIU) and appointment of senior management personnel to the unit to prepare the transition from a CTB structure to an autonomous one, leading to the enactment of law to replace the statutory instrument of 2002 (Thai, 2008). The government of Uganda passed the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act and regulations of 2003, with regulatory, political, capacity building and information functions. In 2006, there were local government amendments where the central procurement regulations were harmonized with the local government procurement. In all cases, there was a new institutional arrangement with each factor having roles and responsibilities (Thai, 2008).

Basheka (2008) observed that expectations from the development partners and masses for accountability of public resources have generated interest in the field of procurement among various stakeholders. Therefore, it has been observed that proper procurement accountability will contribute to effective service delivery in local government systems of Uganda. 

2.4	Procurement Organization and Service Delivery in Local Governments
According to Saleemi and Bogonko (1997), organizing is defined as a management function of creating a structure of duties and responsibilities to achieve specific objectives. One of the biggest challenges in organizational structural design is the decision on the extent of centralization or decentralization. A number of research efforts have investigated organizational issues in public sector organizations and found high levels of centralization within public sector supply organizations. Although centralized purchasing structures have been common in state and local governments, there has been a recent trend toward decentralization because of efforts to improve responsiveness, eliminate bureaucratic obstacles, improve interdepartmental coordination, and empower service delivery managers (Thai, 2001).

In the local government systems of Uganda, the decentralization policy has been aimed at enhancing democratization, accountability, responsibility, efficiency and effectiveness in delivery of services (Nsibambi, 1998). Nsamba (2007) however quotes that most local governments have been found to be characterized by lack of transparency, bribery, corruption and poor service delivery. He further contends that many unqualified firms are awarded contracts even with their inability to comply with contract requirements. This has resulted into producing sub-standard work since they are more profit motivated than being service oriented. Decentralized local Governments in Uganda are faced with a number of challenges in procurement organization and service delivery such as; inadequate supervision of lower local governments by districts, lack of financial resources to attract competent staff, lack of statistical data bases for planning, monitoring and evaluation at the local levels and uncoordinated donor budget support, especially when channeled directly to lower local governments (Okidi & Guloba, 2006).

The procurement of works, goods and services in local governments of Uganda is regulated under the local Governments Act 1997; the local Governments Regulations and the Local Government Financial and Accounting Regulations 1998. All public procuring entities including local governments have to follow the relevant provisions of these Acts. Local Government Act 1997 requires among others that districts set up contract committees, which are supposed to manage all procurement needs for districts and lower entities. District contracts committees are mandated by the law to operate transparently and with a high degree of integrity. This requirement is steadily being implemented in Uganda and Mbarara District is serving as an example to this effort.

2.5	Contract Management and Service Delivery in Local Governments
Lysons and Farrington (2006) state that contract management focus on the achievement of three goals of quality products or services, delivery on time, and with in budget. This idea is supported by Xiao (2002) who asserts that contractor performance has long been defined in terms of cost, time and quality and is critical to the success of effective service delivery. Mbarara District Procurement department is influenced by among others tendering process, contract monitoring, quality assurance and contract evaluation.

2.5.1	Tendering process
According to Smith (1997) and Lemke (2003), competition is popular in the public sector because it is the basis for cost effective purchasing, quality and timeliness of procured services, and improves flexibility of service delivery. It keeps providers on their toes. It is an incentive for innovation, improvement in quality, and reduction in costs. Transparency international and World Bank studies indicate that non-competitive procedures may increase procurement costs by 30% and thus leading to poor service delivery. Whether open or domestic, competitive bidding should be the main driving force of any procurement policy. Its correct use is essential as it is not only helpful in gaining value for money services, but it also provides the fairest means of access to the majority of local government purchasing and service provision activity that is funded by the tax payer (Kigwana, 2003). Depending on the value of the purchase, competitive bidding can involve written quotations or formal written tenders. To note however is that guidance should be sought from the procurement regulatory authority to ensure compliance. Mbarara District contracts committee holds all the tender documents and each tender is unique and different from others with its own features, specifications and other requirements that are often times deemed necessary. The tendering process of Mbarara district local government has however, been affected by inefficiency, corruption and bribery, sub-standard goods and services among others. A study is thus proposed to examine the effect of organizational tendering on service delivery in Mbarara District Local Government.

2.5.2	Contract monitoring 
Monitoring and auditing improve the results of any strategy for managing suppliers of professional services (Baker & Faulker, 1991). In order to obtain good results from contracts, it is essential that periodic appraisals be made of what is being accomplished in the contracts as one way of managing and ensuring service delivery. While monitoring contracts, public procurement functions should be handled by a professional work force equipped with needed skills and knowledge through training (Thai, 2001). Guarding against an open-ended commitment and adherence to stated completion dates for interim reports are both essential (Mitchell, 1993). Contract monitoring and control of all aspects is thus a requirement for maintaining the relationship between the service provider/contractor and the customer. This ensures the delivery of a cost effective and reliable service at an agreed price and standard, which must be consistent with legal requirements and financial propriety.

Successful buyer - supplier relationships should be characterized by high levels of mutual trust and interaction. Collaboration between the supplier and the customer is one way to ensure delivery of quality service (Jackson, Neidell & Lunsford, 1995). Ensuring good communication with the contractor and the end users is considered to be of crucial importance to deal with variations and unforeseen events in the service delivery (Bryntse, 1996). During contract monitoring, it is important to build in control stations for all major services, carrying out systematic and frequent monitoring and written reports.

2.5.3	Quality assurance and service delivery
Xiao et al (2002) contends that clients’ long-term interests lie in the high quality of the project. The work performed must conform to the specifications established for the project/contract. Poor quality performance results in increased rework, which has a significant cost and schedule implications. Quality of work done on any contract is crucial to contractor’s competitiveness in the market. The sue of transparent procurement procedures can contribute to a more efficient allocation of resources through increased competition, higher quality procurement and budgetary savings for governments and better contract management in general. New approaches must also be used to speed up the process for managing contracts in order to improve the timeliness efficiency and quality of procurements and service deliveries. It should be noted that through the implementation of a Quality Management System (QMS), errors in contract management can be minimized or prevented. According to Xiao et al (2002), factors influencing contractor performance are defined to embrace construction cost, construction time, construction quality and sustainable development, the logic being that the achievement of one aspect of performance should not be at the expense of another.

2.6	Procurement Legal Framework Moderator Effect on Procurement Management and Service Delivery in Local Governments
In general, Public Procurement operates as a system. As a result, it is best examined as such (Thai, 2005). Each country has its own procurement laws and regulations; a strong and well functioning procurement system is that which is governed by a clear legal framework, established rules for transparency, efficiency and mechanisms for enforcement coupled with an institutional arrangement that ensures consistency in overall policy formulation and implementation (Hunja, 2003).

The institutional set up for procurement in Uganda is described by the PPDA Act, 2003. The Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets authority (PPDA) is the sole national regulatory and monitoring body for procurements in central and local governments. The local Governments (Public Procurement and disposal of assets) 2006 was enacted and provides guidelines that regulate local government councils, administrative units and other entities using public funds. Articles 91 and 93 of the local Government (Amendment) Act, 2006 provide for establishment of a contracts committee and a procurement and Disposal unit (PDU) in every district of Uganda. Under local government Act, Cap 243 and the PPDA (2003) Act, where there is a conflict between these regulations and any earlier regulations, guidelines or circulars relating to procurement and disposal for local governments, these regulations shall prevail.

A tenderer shall not be excluded from participation in public procurement and disposal based on nationality, race, religion, gender or any other criterion not related to qualification, except under guidelines made under these regulations or by any other competent authority. A procurement plan must be integrated into annual sector expenditure programmed to enhance financial predictability - Reg. 62(2). A procurement unit shall use the combined work plan, forecast and schedule a Procurement and Disposal Entity’s procurement activities for the financial year Reg. 62(3) (Basheka, 2008, PPDA Revised plan 2006). The PPDA Act 2003 and the Local Government Act (2006) emphasize best practices including procurement and disposal principles, rules, administrative review system, codes of conduct as well as suspension of providers of offences and disciplinary measures. The PPDA Act (2003) and the Local Government Act (2006) embrace laws which are intended to achieve a number of objectives. Firstly, is to promote economy and efficiency in procurement and disposal activities. Second is to ensure public procurement and disposal is conducted in a fair, transparent and non-discriminatory manner and thirdly, to contribute towards the creation of a sound business climate in Uganda, by monitoring compliance and building procurement capacity (Basheka, 2008; PPDA Revised Plan, 2006). The PPDA provides for independence of roles and separation of powers between the various parties in the procurement process, which make service delivery more effective.

2.7	Summary of the Literature Review 
The literature review highlighted the role of procurement management through procurement planning, procurement organization and contract management in ensuring better service delivery in local governments. As cited in chapter two, public procurement in local governments has still proved difficult, despite the number of procurement reforms, rules and regulations put in place. Lack of political will in both central and local governments, the declining ethical conduct of public Sector personnel, in adequate procurement capacity, poor monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, corruption, bribery and all sorts of conflict of interest has negatively impacted service delivery in local government systems. Although procurement management ought to have a linkage with service delivery, the literature did not exactly portray procurement management as a core function in the delivery of services in local government systems.

CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
3.0	Introduction
This chapter presents the methodology that was used in the study. It presents the research design, study population, sample size and selection, sampling techniques and procedure for data collection, data collection methods, data analysis and measurement of variables.

3.1	Research Design
The study was carried out using a cross-sectional survey design. This method was appropriate because it involved collecting data from a relatively large number of respondents in its natural setting, cheaply and in a short time (Creswell, 2003, p.153). This survey design was chosen because of its flexibility in data collection as it allows collection of both qualitative and quantitative data at the same time (Ahunji, 2005, p.138). The qualitative data is narrative and descriptive information that explains and gives deeper understanding and insight into a problem (Amin, 2005). The quantitative method was used because of its flexibility form of multiple scale and indices focused on the same construct allowing different responses from the many respondents (Ahunji, 2005). The qualitative technique was particularly used to supplement quantitative techniques because the nature of service delivery by local governments is difficult to qualify or measure. Both approaches were therefore used in this study.

3.2	Study Population
Population is the complete collection of all the elements that are of interest in particular investigations. The population to which the researcher ultimately generalizes results is called the target population. The target population is not always available and so the researcher curves out the accessible population from which a sample is drawn (Amin, 2005). Due to the large area of Mbarara district and its population and bearing in mind the limited time frame for the study, the target population was obtained through purposive stratification where by the population was deliberately divided into mutually exclusive groups that are relevant, appropriate and meaningful in the context of the study (Sekaran, 2003, Sarantakos, 2005). Three groups were selected based on their role or involvement in the procurement process and on the use of services delivered by different sectors of Mbarara district local government. They included those working with Mbarara district local government, the suppliers and the local residents living within the municipality, opinion leaders and health workers. They comprised of various policy makers and resource allocators at the district level. These included the district councilors and the technical staff who occupy strategic positions that have a direct influence or bearing on the quality of service delivery within the local government functions. (See table 1: showing accessible population and sample size).

3.3	 Sample Size and Selection
A sample is a collection of some elements of a population. And its that sample in most statistical investigations that is used to generalize the results of the data from the sample to the entire population from which the sample was drawn (Amin 2005). The sample size for this study was determined in two ways, namely; purposive sampling from each stratum and using a table to determine sample size from a given population (Krejcie & Morgan, 1970) as adopted by Sarantakos, 2005, p. 173. The sample size for this study was estimated at 223 (table 1 below, column d).

Table 1: Sample size and selection
NO	SUB GROUP	ACCESSIBLE POPULATION	SAMPLE SIZE	SAMPLING TECHNIQUE	
A	B	C	D	E	
1	Mbarara district officials (Councilors & Technical officers including members of procurement and disposal unit, accounting officers, finance officers among others	66	56	Simple random sampling	
2	Health centre administrators	16	14	Simple random sampling 	
3	Political Leaders	5	5	Purposive sampling	
4	Local residents	41	36	Purposive sampling	
5	Community Leaders	24	23	Simple random sampling 	
6	Agriculture extension field workers	14	13	Simple random sampling 	
7	Pre-qualified service providers	94	76	Simple random sampling 	
		260	223		

The table used for determining sample size from a given population was adopted from (Sarantakos, 2005, p.173). From the above table, the executive and council body of Mbarara district local government including members of the district procurement and disposal unit is 66 of which 56 participated in the study. The population statistics of 2010 show there were on average 94 suppliers inclusive of contractors of different civil works of which 76 were interviewed. From the general public, the population was grouped into opinion leaders who included the LC executives from the 3 divisions with in Mbarara district local government administrative area, health centre administrators.

3.4	Sampling Techniques and Procedure
The sampling frame included all the district officials, suppliers, heads of public institutions, local residents, political and community leaders which was a total population of 260 from which a sample was selected consisting of 223 members and this was representative of the total population. The researcher used simple random sampling to select respondents from the sampling frame comprising lists of members of each group. Simple random sampling is a probability sampling method in which every unit in the target population has an equal calculable and non-zero probability of being included in the sample (Sarantakos, 2005). Two methods are commonly used to pick random samples namely the lottery method and the random number method (Amin, 2005). In this study, random number method was used using the tables of random numbers. Purposive sampling was used for the groups with a limited number of most possible respondents since all in these groups were seen to have the required information (Mugenda & Mugenda, 1999). These were from the study sample for the interview guide in appendix II that was intended to capture respondent opinion on procurement management than may not be expressed through the responses to the questionnaire administered. 

3.5	Data Collection Methods
Data was collected using the survey method. This was appropriate because it involved collecting data from a relatively large number of respondents in its natural setting, cheaply and in a short time. Questionnaire and interview methods were adopted in collection of data. The questionnaire method involved use of a set of questions printed in logical order (Kothari, 1984; Mugenda & Mugenda 1999): This method was used because it enabled the respondents to freely express their opinion about the variables under study. This is because the variables recorded what the respondents feel, think and believe is true or false. The questions were close ended to facilitate administration and analysis (Mugenda & Mugenda, 1999). The questionnaire was delivered to the officers, office assistants, local residents, field workers, suppliers and contractors by the researcher.

The interview method comprised of personal (face to face) interviews with individuals who were believed to have the necessary information relevant to objectives of the study. Structured interviews where a set of pre determined questions and standardized recording were used. This method had the advantage of providing in depth data which cannot be got using the questionnaire (Mugenda & Mugenda, 1999)

3.6	Data Collection Instruments
3.6.1	Questionnaires
Questionnaires are self-administered questions that come in form of structured or closed ended questions and unstructured or open ended questions. A standard questionnaire contains a list of possible alternatives from which respondents select the answer that best suits the situation (Mugenda & Mugenda, 1999). An unstructured questionnaire provides space for the respondents to freely express themselves. The questionnaire was used to collect numerical data on procurement management to generalize the findings of the sample to the population. The researcher used closed - ended questionnaire which enabled him to code data for further analysis. To encourage honest answers, the questionnaires provided for anonymity of respondents and confidentiality of the responses.

3.6.2	Interview guides
An interview guide is a set of questions that the researcher asks during the interview. An interview guide can have structured, semi-structured or un structured questions (Mugenda & Mugenda, 1999; Kothari, 2004). Structured interviews require specific responses to a set of predetermined answers. Unstructured interviews are more flexible in that the interview asks or guides the interviewee in such a way that leads the respondents towards giving data that is relevant to the objectives of the study. Semi-structured interview guides contain both closed-ended and open-ended questions (Kothari, 2004). The researcher used un structured interview guide to clearly understand the relationship between Procurement Management and Service delivery in Mbarara district local government.

3.7	Validity and Reliability
3.7.1	Validity
The concept of Validity ensures that the instruments used yield relevant and correct data. To ensure construct validity, this study used multiple sources of data (triangulation) to establish a chain of evidence. Multiple sources of data ensured that there was agreement on various parameters measured. The instruments used were expert judgment and pre-testing using part of the study sample respondents to ensure content and face validity and calculated as coefficient of Validity Ratio given by;
CVR= No. of items rated relevant
Total no. of items rated
The ratings used in the formula are presented in the following table.
Table 2: Rating of items for validity computation
	Items rated relevant	Items rated not relevant	Total	
Rater 1	62	23	85	
Rater 2	69	16	85	
Total	131	39	170	

It shown that each rater rated 85. the total sum of item rated relevant, which was 62 was divided by the sum of totals, which was 170. thus, the CVR was approximately 0.77, which was greater than the recommended at 0.7 (Amin, 2005) to ensure validity of the questions. Therefore, the questionnaire was considered suitable for collecting data.

3.7.2	Reliability
Reliability is used to measure the degree to which the instrument is the same if put under the same conditions. An instrument is reliable if it produces the same results whenever it is repeatedly used to measure concepts from the same respondents even by other researchers. Internal consistency is a commonly used form of reliability that deals with one test at a time. The degree of reliability was established using Cronbach’s Coefficient Alpha (SPSS) and findings are presented in the following table.

Table 3: Reliability of the questionnaire
Variables	No. of items	Alpha	
Procurement planning	25	.825	
Procurement organization	10	.785	
Contracts management	20	.737	

Procurement legal framework	10	.776	
Service delivery	20	.770	

The alpha coefficient values for all variables were above the recommended alpha value of 0.7 (Amin, 2005) indicating high reliability hence acceptable for social research.

3.8	Procedure for Data Collection
A letter of authorization/ introduction from the department of higher degrees of Uganda Management Institute was provided as a request for permission to conduct the study. A covering letter accompanied the questionnaires explaining the purpose of the study and the questionnaires were distributed directly to the respondents in their respective areas for filling and were collected 3 weeks following its dispatch and filling. The cover letter was also used to provide access to the interview process which was done on appointment.

3.8	Data Analysis
3.8.1	Quantitative data analysis 
In quantitative analysis, processing involved editing, coding, classification and presentation in form of frequency tables and graphs so that the data is liable to analysis. Data analysis entailed computation of certain measures, through which relationships supporting or conflicting with the hypotheses are subjected to statistical tests to determine the extent to which data can be said to indicate any conclusions (Kothari, 2004). Quantitative data was analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS). This is believed to be more widely available than other soft ware. The statistics focused on two aspects; first the measures of descriptive statistics (frequencies and percentages). Another technique used was inferential statistics (correlation and coefficient of determination analysis) which considers presence or absence of correlation (positive or negative) and strength of correlation. Significance testing was also used. This gives an indication of the extent to which the findings reflect the criteria of the population and whether the study allows generalization of the findings (Sarantakos, 2005)

3.8.2	Qualitative data analysis
Qualitative analysis involves categorizing data and then attaching it to the appropriate category or categories. The process takes the form of bringing order, structure and meaning to the mass of narrative and descriptive information collected. Concurrent analysis of data as it is being collected is the most common practice in qualitative research (Mugenda and Mugenda (1999). Data was coded, conceptualized, interrelated, analyzed, evaluated and then be used as a basis for further sampling, data collection processing and analysis much as analysis may at times be done after data collection. The researcher analyzed the data both during and after collection which led to conclusions.

3.9	Measurement of Variables
Variables are the elements that the researcher measures, controls and manipulates. They can be dependent or independent variables and this is what the variables in this research take on. The coding system was used where by numbers were assigned to characteristics or events in order to operationally define the variables. The nominal and ordinal types of measurements will be used. In the nominal measurement, numbers are assigned only for purposes of identification but do not allow for comparison of the variables being measured while the ordinal scale not only categorizes the elements being measured but also ranks them into some order. Therefore the numbers in ordinal scale represent relative position or order among the variables (Mugenda and Mugenda 1999, Amin 2005). In this research, the likert scale was used for the ordinal scale. The likert scale comprised 1-5 response categories, the numbers were ordered such that they indicated the presence or absence of the characteristic being measured. The 1-5 category response continuum of the likert scale was as follows; 1 = strongly agree, 2 = agree, 3 = undecided, 4 = disagree, 5 = strongly disagree.

CHAPTER FOUR
PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF RESULTS
4.0	Introduction
This chapter presents, analyzes and interprets the results. It is divided into six major sections. The first section presents results about the response rate. The second section presents results about the respondents background information. The third section presents results on procurement planning and service delivery in Mbarara District. The fourth section presents results on procurement organization and service delivery in Mbarara District. The fifth section presents results on contract management and service delivery in Mbarara District. The six section presents results on the moderator effect of procurement legal framework on the relationship between procurement and services delivery in Mbarara District.

4.1	Response Rate
In this study, the sample was 223 respondents but the study managed to get 154 respondents. Thus, the response rate was approximately 69%, which was above the recommended two-thirds (67%) response rate (Amin, 2005; Mugenda & Mugenda, 1999).

4.2	Respondents Background Information
This focused on respondents’ gender, age, and education. Findings are presented in the following sub sections.

4.2.1	Respondents’ gender
Respondents were asked about their gender. This was because gender of the respondents was important in determining whether the sample that participated in the study was representative of how employees were composed by gender in Mbarara District. Findings are presented in Table 4.

Table 4: Findings about respondents’ gender
Gender	Frequency	Percent	
Male	77	53.1	
Female	68	49.9	
Total	145	100.0	
Source: Data from field
Findings show that more males respondents (53.1%) participated in the study compared to 49.9% of female respondents. This is attributed to the fact that male are dominant in Mbarara District and as a result it is expected that when a study is conducted out in Mbarara District, one is likely to have more male participants compared to female participants. Thus, the implication of these findings is that information about the procurement planning, procurement organization, contracts management, procurement legal framework and service delivery in Mbarara district obtained from the sample that participated in this study was not gender biased. Thus, gender bias did not distort the findings of the study.

4.2.2	Respondent’s age
Respondents were asked about their age. Age of the respondents was important in that it helped determine whether the sample that participated in this study represented the age distribution of Mbarara District employees. Findings are presented in Table 5.

Table 5: Findings about respondents’ age
Age	Frequency	Percent	
Below 20 years	6	4.1	
20-30 years old	69	47.6	
31-40 years old	40	27.6	
41-50 years old	22	15.2	
50-60 years old	6	4.1	
Over 60 years old	2	1.4	
Total	145	100.0	
Source: Data from field
Findings show that most respondents (47.6%) who participated in the study were aged 20-30 years followed by those aged 30-40 years. This is attributed to the fact that usually most Ugandan local governments are composed of employees aged 20 to 40 years and in more or less similar composition as shown in the table. Thus, the implication of these findings is that information about the procurement planning, procurement organization, contracts management, procurement legal framework and service delivery in Mbarara district obtained from the sample that participated in this study was not biased by age of the respondents. In other words, views obtained from the sample were representative of those employees of the various age categories.

4.2.3	Respondents’ education
Respondents were asked about their education. Education of the respondents was important in that it helped determine whether the sample that participated in this study represented the education distribution of Mbarara District employees. Findings are presented in Table 6.

Table 6: Findings about respondents’ education
Education	Frequency	Percent	
Diploma and below	29	20.0	
Bachelor degree	98	67.6	
Master or more	18	12.4	
Total	145	100.0	
Source: Data from field
Findings show that most respondents (67.6%) who participated in the study had a bachelor level of education. This is attributed to the fact that in Uganda local governments, most employees have a bachelor’s degree. Thus, the implication of these findings is that the education background of the respondents did not bias the information about the procurement planning, procurement organization, contracts management, procurement legal framework and service delivery in Mbarara district obtained from the sample that participated in this study. It is argued in this study that the people who participated in the study were educated and understood what they were asked about and the views presented were representative of employees of various education levels.

4.2.4	Category of respondents
Respondents were asked about what category they belong to. Findings are presented in Table 7.

Table 7: Findings about category of respondents
Years of service	Frequency	Percent	
LC V	1	1.4	
Pubic servant	22	15.2	
Contractor	3	2.1	
Residents	26	17.9	
Service provider	86	59.3	
LC III	5	3.4	
Association	1	0.7	
Total	145	100.0	
Source: Data from field
Findings show that most respondents (59.3%) who participated in the study were service providers. This is attributed to the fact that this study targeted more service providers than any other category. Thus, the implication of these findings is that the category the respondents were drawn from did not bias the information about the procurement planning, procurement organization, contracts management, procurement legal framework and service delivery in Mbarara district obtained from the sample that participated in this study. This was because the people who participated in the study were proportion to the targeted population.

4.2.5	Years of service with the organization
Respondents were asked about what category the years of service with the organization. Findings are presented in Table 8.

Table 8: Findings about respondents’ years of service
Category	Frequency	Percent	
Less than 5 years	50	34.5	
5-10 years	47	32.4	
11-15 years	24	16.6	
16-20 years	22	15.2	
Over 20 years	2	1.4	
Total	145	100.0	
Source: Data from field
Findings show that most respondents (over 60%) who participated in the study had served the organization for 5 years and above. This implies that they had been around for quite some time to be conversant with the issues the study sought to obtain information about. Therefore, the respondents who participated in this study provided dependable information about the procurement planning, procurement organization, contracts management, procurement legal framework and service delivery in Mbarara district.

4.3	Procurement Planning and Service Delivery in Mbarara District
It is recommended that when presenting the results of statistical tests, the researcher should give descriptive statistics before the corresponding inferential statistics (Plonsky, 2007). Thus, this approach was adopted in this study and the descriptive statistics that were used were frequencies and percentages. After presenting the descriptive statistics for each of the objectives, inferential statistics in the form of Spearman correlation, coefficient of determination and partial correlation were computed and interpreted.

4.3.1	Descriptive results about procurement planning in Mbarara District
Respondents were requested to respond using a five-point Likert scale: “Strongly disagree”, “Disagree”, “Undecided”, “Agree”, and “Strongly agree” to 25 items about procurement planning as shown in Table 9. The items are presented in the first column of Table 9 and the proportion of respondents to the responses on each of the items is presented in form of percentages in columns 2 to 6. The last column presents the total percentage of respondents on each of the items. The analysis and interpretation of the findings about procurement planning follows the presentation of findings in Table 9 as extracted from detailed in Appendix 3.

Table 9: Findings about procurement planning
Items about procurement planning	SD	D	U	A	SA	Total	
1.	The district has procurement budgets	1%	2%	2%	49%	46%	100%	
2.	Procurement planning facilitates budgetary  decisions	46%	45%	6%	1%	2%	100%	
3.	The district periodically draws procurement budgets	2%	7%	9%	54%	28%	100%	
4.	Procurement planning helps identify major investment expenditure	45%	40%	8%	5%	2%	100%	
5.	The district satisfactorily plans for periodic procurement budgets-annual, short and long term	26%	51%	15%	6%	2%	100%	
6.	All respective procurement personnel have had training in procurement budgeting	21%	42%	14%	20%	3%	100%	
7.	All approved budgets are integrated to procurement plans by the contracts committee	24%	45%	14%	14%	3%	100%	
8.	Procurement plans spell out well the methods of procurement	29%	37%	12%	17%	5%	100%	
9.	District procurement officers and the district contracts committee are accountable for public procurements	1%	15%	17%	37%	30%	100%	
10.	Budget monitoring process exist between the procurement plan and actual procurement	1%	14%	10%	52%	22%	100%	
11.	Specifications describe minimum requirements	1%	14%	10%	49%	26%	100%	
12.	Specifications are according to the nature of requirements	5%	21%	9%	32%	33%	100%	
13.	Contractors, service providers adhere to all specifications	26%	42%	11%	14%	7%	100%	
14.	Specifications identify  quality and operational characteristics	0%	17%	17%	39%	28%	100%	
15.	Specifications require the ability of the end user to accurately and concisely describe the product or service required	26%	37%	10%	24%	2%	100%	
16.	Contract implementation plan is clearly shown	59%	28%	8%	5%	1%	100%	
17.	All procurement takes place according to the set guidelines	37%	57%	6%	0%	1%	100%	
18.	End users supervise implementation of the services	41%	38%	12%	6%	3%	100%	
19.	The Accounting Officer supervises the implementation of the services	28%	54%	8%	9%	1%	100%	
20.	Every transaction pertaining to public procurement is done in an open manner	26%	35%	16%	17%	6%	100%	
21.	Where the PPDA guidelines were adhered to they improved accountability	3%	12%	11%	19%	54%	100%	
22.	Where measures were instituted to improve financial management system they enhance accountability	1%	14%	11%	42%	32%	100%	
23.	Whistleblower protection enhances accountability by encouraging reporting of corrupt officials.	1%	14%	8%	45%	32%	100%	
24.	Interdictions against improper conduct enhance accountability	3%	24%	7%	48%	17%	100%	
25.	The technical evaluation committee adheres to evaluation criteria as set	26%	45%	10%	12%	8%	100%	
Source: Data from field
Key: SD = Strongly disagree, D = Disagree, U = Undecided, A = Agree, SA = Strongly agree

To analyze the findings, respondents who strongly disagreed and those who disagreed were combined into one category of respondents who “opposed” the items. In addition, respondents who strongly agreed and those who agreed were combined into another category of respondents who “concurred” with the items. Thus, three categories of respondents were compared, that is “respondents who opposed the items”, “respondents who were undecided about the items” and “respondents who concurred with the items”. Interpretation was then drawn from the comparisons of the three categories as shown in the following paragraph.

Findings show that most respondents were opposed to 14 items (2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 and 25) out of 25 items about procurement planning compared to respondents who were undecided with or concurred to these items. The least percentage of respondents that opposed these items was 61% on item 20 while the highest percentage of respondents that opposed these items was 94% on item 17. Among these items, the percentage of respondents who were undecided was 6% to 16% while those who concurred was 1% to 26%. The following paragraph provides the implications of these findings.

From the above analysis it can be interpreted that in most cases in Mbarara District, procurement planning did not facilitate budgetary decisions and help identify major investment expenditure, the district did not satisfactorily plan for periodic procurement budgets and not all respective procurement personnel had had training in procurement budgeting, Furthermore in most cases, not all approved budgets were integrated to procurement plans by the contracts committee, procurement plans did not spell out well the methods of procurement and contractors including service providers did not adhere to all specifications. In addition in most cases, specifications did not require the ability of the end user to accurately and concisely describe the product or service required, contract implementation plan was not clearly shown, not all procurement took place according to the set guidelines and end users did not supervise implementation of the services. Lastly in most cases, the Accounting Officer did supervise the implementation of the services, not every transaction pertaining to public procurement was done in an open manner and the technical evaluation committee did not adhere to evaluation criteria as set.

However, findings also show that most respondents concurred to 11 items (1, 3, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 21, 11, 23 and 24) out of 25 items about procurement planning compared to respondents who were undecided with or opposed to these items. The least percentage of respondents that concurred to these items was 65% on item 12 while the highest percentage of respondents that concurred to these items was 95% on item 1. Among these items, the percentage of respondents who were undecided was 2% to 17% while those who were opposed was 3% to 27%. The following paragraph provides the implications of these findings.

From the above analysis it can be interpreted that in most cases in Mbarara District, the district had procurement budgets, it periodically drew procurement budgets, district procurement officers and the district contracts committee were accountable for public procurements, budget monitoring process existed between the procurement plan and actual procurement, and specifications described minimum requirements and were according to the nature of requirements. In addition in most cases, specifications identified  quality and operational characteristics, where the PPDA guidelines were adhered to they improved accountability and where measures were instituted to improve financial management system they enhance accountability. Lastly, whistleblower protection enhanced accountability by encouraging reporting of corrupt officials and interdictions against improper conduct enhanced accountability.

From the interpretation of the findings, it can be observed that respondents were negative to 14 out of 25 items about procurement planning in Mbarara District and they were positive to 11 out of 25 items about procurement planning in Mbarara District. This shows that procurement planning in Mbarara District was compromised.

Interview findings shade some light about procurement planning in Mbarara District. For example, when asked whether small and big potential service providers were equally treated, some key informants responded positively while others responded negatively as shown in the following responses of two key informant 
Small service providers have been marginalized in most of the procurement sector activities of the district. While there are many reasons for lack of participation, the main is lack of a coherent, transparent, accountable and participatory procurement policy. There is also no specific affirmative programme in favor of small service providers (Interview conducted in Mbarara District, 13 October, 2011).
The second key informant had this to say about the treatment of small and big potential service providers in the procurement activities in Mbarara District:
The procurement process has in one way or another tried to address the problem of participation by small service providers by providing support and information for the domestic supplier base (Interview conducted in Mbarara District, 14 October, 2011).
According to the interview findings, support for the small service providers has mainly taken the form of providing information on procurement activities. Although it was not possible to obtain information on the actual participation of small service providers in the district procurement, indications are that their participation has been limited. Mbarara district procurement is indeed undertaken mostly by larger service providers.

When key informant were asked whether the PPDA local government guidelines were followed during service provider solicitation, all responded that sometimes the guidelines were followed while other times they were not followed. Corruption was central to the key informants’ latter response as one key informant asserted thus; 
The general perception is that it is true corruption is influencing the district’s procurement and people have that mentality because they think there is a lot of forgery and the outcomes of procurement do not last for so long as most of them are always fake and of poor quality. The procurement officers do not put in practice what the guidelines say (Interview conducted in Mbarara District, 11 October, 2011).
Similarly, another key informant responded as follows:
There is high level of corruption in the district’s procurement. Procurement officers normally award contracts to people well known to them and at the end of the day there is poor work done. For example, the quality of the finishing of the work is very poor. The question then is are suppliers of these facilities genuinely selected? (Interview conducted in Mbarara District, 10 October, 2011).
There was a general agreement among the key informants during the interviews that in Mbarara district, the procurement guidelines are not always adhered to. Specific challenges in addressing corruption in the procurement were revealed during the interviews to include: lack of transparency and interferences in the procurement process by district officers.

Interviewees were also asked whether procurement work plans submitted to PDUs were based on identified user needs. One of the interviews revealed the following:
There are at times when there is no evidence of prior needs assessment by the beneficiaries. This happens due lack of capacity at the user department level to carry out needs assessment, when projects are imposed on the people and because of deliberate exclusion of the users in the project identification (Interview conducted in Mbarara District, 15 October, 2011).
These findings show that sometimes goods, works and services procured do not serve the intended purpose of the end users.

4.3.2	Descriptive results about service delivery in Mbarara District
Respondents responded to 20 items about service delivery by indicating their agreement using a five-point Likert scale. The items are presented in the first column of Table 10 and the proportion of respondents to the responses on each of the items is presented in form of percentages in columns 2 to 6. The last column presents the total percentage of respondents on each of the items. The analysis and interpretation of the findings follows the presentation of findings in Table 10 as extracted from Appendix 7.

Table 10: Findings about service delivery
Items about service delivery	SD	D	U	A	SA	Total	
1.	Services are delivered to the right places	11%	45%	15%	21%	8%	100%	
2.	Services are usually delivered on time	14%	43%	19%	21%	3%	100%	
3.	Service providers are competent on their job	14%	36%	23%	22%	5%	100%	
4.	Service providers are committed to their job	23%	45%	12%	16%	5%	100%	
5.	All divisions and district technical personnel are involved in the monitoring and supervision of procured goods, services and works	11%	28%	11%	40%	10%	100%	
6.	The public is also involved in assessing the quality of public projects	27%	44%	12%	12%	5%	100%	
7.	Service providers are paid on time	16%	46%	9%	23%	7%	100%	
8.	Every service provider gets paid in the office of the CAO	23%	17%	11%	34%	16%	100%	
9.	Service providers are given ample time to deliver their job	14%	59%	9%	12%	7%	100%	
10.	Service providers are always complaining	11%	15%	19%	19%	37%	100%	
11.	All listed contractors have a proven record of reliability and dependability	12%	45%	9%	28%	6%	100%	
12.	Contractors produce quality work with minimal supervision	16%	48%	9%	21%	6%	100%	
13.	Contractors are awarded with consideration for cost effectiveness	14%	46%	10%	26%	4%	100%	
14.	Political patronage compromised the quality of goods and services procured at the local government level	9%	31%	10%	41%	9%	100%	
15.	Most procured goods and services are of poor quality	6%	20%	13%	41%	21%	100%	
16.	The public is satisfied with service delivery	23%	44%	13%	15%	5%	100%	
17.	Knowledge of the basic procurement principles , practices, and procedures is still lacking among some contractors	3%	10%	14%	57%	17%	100%	
18.	Service providers are efficient in service delivery	19%	46%	19%	13%	3%	100%	
19.	Public officials usually endorse projects which are likely to attract bribes	3%	14%	8%	48%	27%	100%	
20.	Quality procurement management is very instrumental in the realization of government programmes	26%	57%	7%	9%	2%	100%	
 Source: Data from field
Key: SD = Strongly disagree, D = Disagree, U = Undecided, A = Agree, SA = Strongly agree

Findings show that most respondents were opposed to 13 items (1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 11, 12, 13, 16, 18 and 20) out of 20 items about service delivery compared to respondents who were undecided with or concurred to these items. The least percentage of respondents that opposed these items was 50% on item 3 while the highest percentage of respondents that opposed these items was 83% on item 20. Among these items, the percentage of respondents who were undecided was 7% to 23% while those who concurred was 11% to 34%. The following paragraph provides the implications of these findings.

From the above analysis it can be interpreted that in most cases in Mbarara District, services were not delivered to the right places and were not usually delivered on time, service providers were not competent on and committed to their job, and the public was not involved in assessing the quality of public projects. Furthermore, findings show that in most cases, service providers were not paid on time and were not given ample time to deliver their job and not all listed contractors had a proven record of reliability and dependability. Lastly, it is shown that in most cases, contractors did not produce quality work with minimal supervision and were not awarded with consideration for cost effectiveness, the public was not satisfied with service delivery, service providers were not efficient in service delivery and quality procurement management was not very instrumental in the realization of government programmes.

However, findings also show that most respondents concurred to 7 items (5, 8, 10, 14, 15, 17 and 19) out of 20 items about service delivery compared to respondents who were undecided with or opposed to these items. The least percentage of respondents that concurred to these items was 50% on items 6, 8 and 14 while the highest percentage of respondents that concurred to these items was 74% on item 17. Among these items, the percentage of respondents who were undecided was 8% to 19% while those who were opposed was 13% to 40%. The following paragraph provides the implications of these findings.

From the above analysis it can be interpreted that in most cases in Mbarara District, all divisions and district technical personnel were involved in the monitoring and supervision of procured goods, services and works and every service provider got paid in the office of the CAO. However, in most cases, service providers were always complaining, political patronage compromised the quality of goods and services procured at the local government level, most procured goods and services were of poor quality, knowledge of the basic procurement principles , practices, and procedures was still lacking among some contractors and public officials usually endorsed projects which were likely to attract bribes.

From the interpretation of the findings, it can be observed that respondents were negative to 18 out of 20 items about service delivery in Mbarara District and they were positive to only 2 out of 20 items about service delivery in Mbarara District. This shows that service delivery in Mbarara District was poor.

Interview findings about service delivery in Mbarara District also showed that all the interviewees were dissatisfied with it. Findings revealed that there still remained significant challenges in matching district’s services with local community needs. It was established that most of the services that district provided were insufficient and of poor quality. Inefficiencies in garbage collection, poor road maintenance and poor street light were the most cited during interviews.

After establishing respondents’ views on each of the variables under the first objective, the next step was to test the first hypothesis using inferential statistics. Findings are presented in section 4.2.3.

4.3.3	Testing first hypothesis
The first null hypothesis stated, “Procurement planning significantly affects service delivery in Mbarara district local government”. Spearman rank order correlation coefficient () was used to determine the strength of the relationship between procurement planning and the service delivery. The Spearman rank order correlation was used because the scale (that is strongly disagree, disagree, undecided, agree and strongly agree) that accompanied the questionnaire was ordinal. The responses were merely arranged in order whereby one could not exactly determine how much one disagreed or agreed and as such adding or subtracting the responses such as strongly disagree from disagree does not make sense. It is recommended that with an ordinal scale,  Spearman rank order correlation is suitable for determining relationships because it does not involve means and standard deviations, which are meaningless with ordinal data. The sign of the coefficient (positive or negative sign) was used to determine the change in direction in the relationship between procurement planning and the service delivery. The coefficient of determination was used to determine the influence of procurement planning on the service delivery. The significance of the coefficient (p) was used to test the findings by comparing p to the critical significance level at (0.05). This procedure was applied in testing the second, third and fourth hypotheses and thus, a length introduction is not repeated in subsequent sections of hypothesis testing. Table 11 presents the test results for the first hypothesis.

Table 11: Correlation between procurement planning and service delivery
	Procurement planning	
Service delivery	= .311
2 = .097
p = .000
n = 145	
 Source: Data from field
Findings show that there was a weak positive correlation ( = .311) between procurement planning and service delivery. Since the correlation does imply causal-effect as stated in the first objective, the coefficient of determination, which is a square of the correlation coefficient (2 = .097), was computed and expressed as a percentage to determine the variance in service delivery due to procurement planning. Thus, findings show that procurement planning accounted for 9.7% variance in service delivery. These findings were subjected to a test of significance (p) and it is shown that the significance of the correlation (p = .000) is less than the recommended critical significance at 0.05. Thus, the relationship was significant. Because of this, the hypothesis “Procurement planning significantly affects service delivery in Mbarara district local government” was accepted. What follows is the interpretation of the findings.

The weak correlation implied that a change in procurement planning was related to a small change in service delivery. The positive nature of the correlation implied that the change in procurement planning and service delivery was in the same direction whereby better procurement planning was related to better service delivery and vice versa.

4.4	Procurement Organization and Service Delivery in Mbarara District
Before testing the second hypothesis, descriptive results (percentages) relating to procurement organization were presented, analyzed and interpreted. Findings are presented in the following subsection.

4.4.1	Descriptive results about procurement organization
Respondents were requested to respond using a five-point Likert scale: “Strongly disagree”, “Disagree”, “Undecided”, “Agree”, and “Strongly agree” to 10 items about procurement organization as shown in Table 12. The items are presented in the first column of Table 10 and the proportion of respondents to the responses on each of the items is presented in form of percentages in columns 2 to 6. The last column presents the total percentage of respondents on each of the items. The analysis and interpretation of the findings about procurement organization follows the presentation of findings in Table 12 as extracted from Appendix 4.

Table 12: Findings about procurement organization
Items about procurement organization	SD	D	U	A	SA	Total	
1.	My Local government has a procurement and disposal unit (PDU) in place	7%	20%	5%	30%	38%	100%	
2.	My Local government has a district contracts committee in place	6%	25%	13%	36%	21%	100%	
3.	Procurement organization has improved service delivery in my local government	34%	39%	6%	18%	4%	100%	
4.	Poor procurement organization has led to conflicts in local governments	5%	34%	6%	36%	19%	100%	
5.	Procurement organization has promoted accountability	21%	48%	12%	16%	3%	100%	
6.	Procurement organization reduced bureaucracy	18%	26%	13%	36%	7%	100%	
7.	Procurement organization led to greater efficiency of civil servants	23%	45%	12%	18%	3%	100%	
8.	Procurement organization helped to bring services nearer to people	21%	47%	11%	18%	3%	100%	
9.	My district could perform better with good procurement organization	8%	32%	14%	32%	13%	100%	
10.	My Municipality/ division has its own contracts committee	1%	9%	14%	51%	26%	100%	
Source: Data from field
Key: SD = Strongly disagree, D = Disagree, NS = Undecided, A = Agree, SA = Strongly agree

Findings show that most respondents were opposed to 5 items (3, 5, 6, 7 and 8) out of 10 items about procurement organization compared to respondents who were undecided with or concurred to these items. The least percentage of respondents that opposed these items was 44% on item 6 while the highest percentage of respondents that opposed these items was 73% on item 3. Among these items, the percentage of respondents who were undecided was 6% to 13% while those who concurred was 19% to 43%. The following paragraph provides the implications of these findings.

From the above analysis the following was the interpretation of the results. In most cases in Mbarara District, procurement organization had not improved service delivery in my local government, had not promoted accountability, had not reduced bureaucracy, had not led to greater efficiency of civil servants and had not helped to bring services nearer to people.

However, findings also show that most respondents concurred to 5 items (1, 2, 4, 9 and 10) out of 10 items about procurement organization compared to respondents who were undecided with or opposed to these items. The least percentage of respondents that concurred to these items was 45% on item 9 while the highest percentage of respondents that concurred to these items was 77% on item 10. Among these items, the percentage of respondents who were undecided was 5% to 14% while those who were opposed was 10% to 40%. The following paragraph provides the implications of these findings.

From the above analysis it can be interpreted that in most cases in Mbarara District, the local government had a Procurement and Disposal Unit (PDU) in place and a district contracts committee was in place, the municipality/division had its own contracts committee and the district could perform better with good procurement organization. However, findings show that in most cases poor procurement organization had led to conflicts in local governments.

From the interpretation of the findings, it can be observed that respondents were negative to 7 out of 10 items about procurement organization in Mbarara District and they were positive to 3 out of 10 items about procurement organization in Mbarara District. This shows that procurement organization in Mbarara District was compromised.

Interviews were supportive of the findings from the questionnaire. For example, when asked to comment on the procurement organization by the district, one interview revealed the following:
Not all the procurements are entered into before the confirmation of availability of funds by the Accounting Officer. Sometimes contracts are entered into without confirmation of availability of funds by the accounting officers. Procurements entered into before confirmation of release of funds are due to the lengthy and bureaucratic nature of the procurement law that slows down the procurement process (Interview conducted in Mbarara District, 16 October, 2011).
These findings show that in Mbarara District, sometimes the Accounting Officer does not confirm in writing the availability of funds before signing any contract yet this is a requirement under Regulation 65(1c) of the Local Government Public Procurement and Disposal Regulation. Another interviewee had this to say:
There always lack of compliance in the procurement process. This is due to failure by procurement disposal entities to appreciate the procurement regulations and lack of synchronization between the PPDA requirements and the release of funds by Ministry of Finance (Interview conducted in Mbarara District, 18 October, 2011).

This shows ineffectiveness of the procurement organization by Mbarara District. Interviewees were also asked whether the public is free to participate in the bidding process
There is low bidder participation. This is due to manipulation of the bid processes, high cost of business, lack of capacity by the local contractors, connivance among contractors to avoid competition and the remoteness of some districts. There are a number of procurements where there is no evidence of competition by bidders. (Interview conducted in Mbarara District, 19 October, 2011).
These interview findings show a violation of the Regulation 43 (3 and 4) of the Local Government Public Procurement and Disposal Regulations (2006), which requires that all procurements and disposal should be conducted in a manner that maximizes competition and achieves value for money irrespective of the method of procurement used or the nature of works, services or supplies to be procured. In responding to the question whether there was ethical procurement behavior practiced in this district, an interviewee responded thus:
There are instances where advertisements under Open Domestic Bidding are placed in the newspaper, but the district does not wait for the advertisement to run for the full period. Instead, the district places similar notices to bidders through selective bidding by a letter, the same day the newspaper advert ran. The two methods used concurrently is tantamount to unethical behavior because they effectively undermined the objective of participation (Interview conducted in Mbarara District, 20 October, 2011).

The implication of these findings is that limited number of bidders participating in the procurement process, the district was denied the opportunity of selecting from a wide range of bidders thus limiting competition. This could have resulted into selection of contractors who lacked capacity to complete the district works. Having presented and interpreted the descriptive findings about procurement organization, the second hypothesis was tested. Findings are presented in the following sub section.

4.4.2	Testing second hypothesis
The second null hypothesis stated, “Procurement organization contributes significantly to service delivery in Mbarara district local government”. Spearman rank order correlation coefficient () was used to test the hypothesis. Table 13 presents the test results.

Table 13: Correlation between procurement organization and service delivery
	Procurement organization	
Service delivery	= .431
2 = .186
p = .000
n = 145	
Source: Data from field
Findings show that there was a moderate positive correlation (r = .431) between procurement organization and service delivery. The coefficient of determination (2 = .186) shows that procurement organization accounted for 18.6% variance in service delivery. These findings were subjected to a test of significance (p) and it is shown that the significance of the correlation (p = .000) is less than the recommended critical significance at 0.05. Thus, the relationship was significant. Because of this, the hypothesis “Procurement organization contributes significantly to service delivery in Mbarara district local government” was accepted. The following is the interpretation of the findings.

The moderate positive correlation implied that a change in procurement organization was related to a moderate change in service delivery. The positive nature of the correlation implied that the change in procurement organization and service delivery was in the same direction whereby better procurement organization were related to better service delivery and vice versa.

4.5	Contract Management and Service Delivery in Mbarara District
Before testing the third hypothesis, descriptive results (percentages) relating to contract management were presented, analyzed and interpreted. Findings are presented in the following subsection.

4.5.1	Descriptive results about contract management
Respondents were requested to respond using a five-point Likert scale: “Strongly disagree”, “Disagree”, “Undecided”, “Agree”, and “Strongly agree” to 27 items about contract management as shown in Table 14. The items are presented in the first column of Table 14 and the proportion of respondents to the responses on each of the items is presented in form of percentages in columns 2 to 6. The last column presents the total percentage of respondents on each of the items. The analysis and interpretation of the findings about contract management follows the presentation of findings in Table 14 as extracted from Appendix 5.

Table 14: Findings about contract management
Items about contracts management	SD	D	U	A	SA	Total	
1.	The award of tenders in Mbarara district is politically influenced	11%	29%	14%	32%	13%	100%	
2.	Tenders are used as a tool by politicians to economically empower the seemingly disadvantaged groups	20%	37%	7%	34%	2%	100%	
3.	Award of tenders is communicated openly to both successful and unsuccessful bidders	23%	44%	8%	21%	3%	100%	
4.	Contracts are awarded basing on the best bidders	14%	34%	17%	30%	4%	100%	
5.	Being politically well placed enhances chances of being awarded tenders	12%	26%	11%	33%	18%	100%	
6.	Local bidders are given preference in the open bidding method	33%	43%	3%	13%	8%	100%	
7.	Standard bidding documents are used in all procurements	23%	39%	17%	20%	1%	100%	
8.	All potential tenderers are aware of the evaluation criteria at the time of submitting their bids	23%	49%	15%	12%	1%	100%	
9.	Each department is an independent purchasing entity	12%	54%	15%	16%	2%	100%	
10.	All public purchases are subject to procurement plans as approved by the contracts committee.	20%	28%	19%	30%	3%	100%	
11.	All procurement activity are monitored 	13%	48%	15%	13%	10%	100%	
12.	The district has sufficient personnel to monitor implementation of contracts.	12%	21%	17%	46%	5%	100%	
13.	Suppliers supply as per the specifications	10%	43%	10%	26%	10%	100%	
14.	Disputes are handled tactfully, effectively and in a timely manner	12%	48%	9%	28%	2%	100%	
15.	Contractors, service providers adhere to all specifications	22%	50%	8%	14%	6%	100%	
16.	Bids are evaluated by an evaluation committee appointed for that purpose	1%	12%	6%	56%	24%	100%	
17.	The technical evaluation committee is appointed before bids are submitted	15%	19%	8%	34%	24%	100%	
18.	The technical evaluation committee adheres to evaluation criteria as set	19%	60%	7%	11%	3%	100%	
19.	The technical evaluation method is used in evaluation of every work	22%	48%	11%	18%	1%	100%	
20.	There is total assurance on confidentiality in the procurement process.	23%	41%	8%	23%	5%	100%	
21.	The public is involved in assessing the quality of public projects that are being implemented.	24%	57%	8%	8%	3%	100%	
22.	Contractors produce quality work with minimal supervision	17%	52%	13%	16%	2%	100%	
23.	Most procured goods and services are of poor quality	4%	12%	7%	46%	32%	100%	
24.	There is high level of quality of goods, services and works in Mbarara district local government	24%	53%	4%	18%	1%	100%	
25.	Political interference always compromised the quality of goods, services and works	2%	15%	15%	32%	35%	100%	
26.	District officials always inspected to verify that goods, equipment or services conform to specifications	19%	43%	12%	25%	1%	100%	
27.	Subcontracting leads to poor quality.	3%	15%	18%	34%	30%	100%	
Source: Data from field
Key: SD = Strongly disagree, D = Disagree, U = Undecided, A = Agree, SA = Strongly agree

Findings show that most respondents were opposed to 19 items (2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 24 and 26) out of 27 items about contracts management compared to respondents who were undecided with or concurred to these items. The least percentage of respondents that opposed these items was 48% on item 4 while the highest percentage of respondents that opposed these items was 81% on item 21. Among these items, the percentage of respondents who were undecided was 3% to 19% while those who concurred was 11% to 36%. The following paragraph provides the implications of these findings.

From the above analysis it can be interpreted that in most cases in Mbarara District, tenders were not used as a tool by politicians to economically empower the seemingly disadvantaged groups, award of tenders was not communicated openly to both successful and unsuccessful bidders, contracts were not awarded basing on the best bidders and local bidders were not given preference in the open bidding method.

Findings also show that in most cases, standard bidding documents were not used in all procurements, not all potential tenderers were aware of the evaluation criteria at the time of submitting their bids, each department was not an independent purchasing entity, and not all public purchases were subject to procurement plans as approved by the contracts committee.

Furthermore, it is shown that not all procurement activity were monitored, disputes were not handled tactfully, effectively and in a timely manner, contractors and service providers did not adhere to all specifications, the technical evaluation committee did not adhere to evaluation criteria as set and the technical evaluation method was not used in evaluation of every work. Lastly, it shown that in most cases, there was no total assurance on confidentiality in the procurement process, the public was not involved in assessing the quality of public projects that were being implemented, contractors did not produce quality work with minimal supervision, there was no high level of quality of goods, services and works in Mbarara district local government, district officials rarely inspected to verify that goods, equipment or services conform to specifications, suppliers did not supply as per the specifications and the district did not have sufficient personnel to monitor implementation of contracts.

However, findings also show that most respondents concurred to 8 items (1, 6, 12, 16, 18, 23, 25 and 27) out of 27 items about contracts management compared to respondents who were undecided with or opposed to these items. The least percentage of respondents that concurred to these items was 45% on item 1 while the highest percentage of respondents that concurred to these items was 80% on item 16. Among these items, the percentage of respondents who were undecided was 6% to 18% while those who were opposed was 13% to 40%. The following paragraph provides the implications of these findings.

From the above analysis it can be interpreted that in most cases in Mbarara District, the award of tenders in Mbarara district was politically influenced, being politically well placed enhanced chances of being awarded tenders, most procured goods and services were of poor quality, political interference always compromised the quality of goods, services and works and subcontracting led to poor quality. However, findings show that in most cases, bids were evaluated by an evaluation committee appointed for that purpose and the technical evaluation committee was appointed before bids were submitted.

From the interpretation of the findings, it can be observed that respondents were negative to 25 out of 27 items about contracts management in Mbarara District and they were positive to only 2 out of 27 items about contracts management in Mbarara District. This shows that contracts management in Mbarara District was compromised.

Interview findings shade more light about contracts management in Mbarara District and findings support those obtained using the questionnaire. For example, when interviewees were asked whether service providers delivered on time, the following was established:
Private sector firms are used to carry out most physical investments on behalf of the district local government, whether it be classroom construction or building of roads. The ability to achieve results through the private sector is directly related to the district’s ability and incentive to formulate, manage and supervise contracts with the private sector effectively. However, there is little incentive to manage contracts effectively, hence weak capacity to do so (Interview conducted in Mbarara District, 10 October, 2011).
Another interview finding related to the managed of contracts. Generally findings revealed that that private sector had been encouraged to actively participate in the provision of services but contract management was weak. For example, during the interview, when asked about their opinion on how contracts were managed, one of the interviewees observed thus:
There is weak contract management. This is due to the complex nature of the relationships between contractors, firms with the supervisory contracts and the district officials. Given the fact that the district officials are the least well remunerated of the three parties, the incentive for the district officials to prevent cost overruns is often not there, even if contracts are well formulated (Interview conducted in Mbarara District, 14 October, 2011). 
Another interviewee responded as follows:

An example reflecting poor contracts management is the quality of classrooms constructed under the SFG grant. This depends significantly on how closely the construction firm is supervised by local government staff to ensure that the specified contract is being followed. However, supervision is ineffective and thus, contractors cut corners and build inferior classrooms. In addition, there is often scope for collusion between contractors and staff and this creates further problems (Interview conducted in Mbarara District, 11 October, 2011).
Having presented and interpreted the descriptive findings about contract management, the third hypothesis was tested. Findings are presented in the following sub section.

4.5.2	Testing third hypothesis
The third null hypothesis stated, “There is a relationship between contract management and effective service delivery in Mbarara district local government”. Spearman rank order correlation coefficient () was used to test the third hypothesis. Table 15 presents the test results.

Table 15: Correlation between contract management and service delivery
	Procurement planning	
Service delivery	= .391
= .153
p = .000
n = 145	
 Source: Data from field
Findings show that there was a weak positive correlation (r = .391) between contract management and service delivery. The coefficient of determination (2 = .153) shows that contracts management accounted for 15.3% variance in service delivery. These findings were subjected to a test of significance (p) and it is shown that the significance of the correlation (p = .000) is less than the recommended critical significance at 0.05. Thus, the relationship was significant. Because of this, the hypothesis “There is a relationship between contract management and effective service delivery in Mbarara district local government” was accepted. The following is the interpretation of the findings.

The weak correlation implied that a change in contract management was related to a small change in service delivery. The positive nature of the correlation implied that the change in contract management and service delivery was in the same direction whereby better contract management were related to better service delivery and vice versa.

4.6	Procurement Legal Framework and the Relationship between Procurement and Service Delivery in Mbarara District
Before testing the fourth hypothesis, descriptive results (percentages) relating to procurement legal framework were presented, analyzed and interpreted. Findings are presented in the following subsection.

4.6.1	Descriptive results about procurement legal framework
Respondents were requested to respond using a five-point Likert scale: “Strongly disagree”, “Disagree”, “Undecided”, “Agree”, and “Strongly agree” to 10 items about procurement legal framework as shown in Table 16. The items are presented in the first column of Table 16 and the proportion of respondents to the responses on each of the items is presented in form of percentages in columns 2 to 6. The last column presents the total percentage of respondents on each of the items. The analysis and interpretation of the findings about procurement legal framework follows the presentation of findings in Table 16 as extracted from Appendix 6.

Table 16: Findings about procurement legal framework
Items about procurement legal framework	SD	D	U	A	SA	Total	
1.	The district procurement personnel adhere to the PPDA Act and Regulation.	28%	33%	7%	28%	4%	100%	
2.	The procurement legal framework contributes to a sound business climate	14%	38%	12%	31%	5%	100%	
3.	The procurement legal framework has successfully prevented any potential arbitrations	17%	50%	15%	14%	3%	100%	
4.	Guidance for by the PPDA ensures that transparency and competitive procurement is carried out	19%	32%	14%	29%	6%	100%	
5.	Tenders are awarded competitively in accordance with the procurement law	24%	39%	12%	21%	4%	100%	
6.	The contracts committee observes a minimum meeting quorum of 3 members	6%	18%	6%	59%	11%	100%	
7.	Requirements are always submitted to the Accounting Officer before the contracts committee	16%	32%	20%	18%	14%	100%	
8.	The Accounting Officer confirms availability of funds before commencement of procurement	3%	21%	7%	55%	14%	100%	
9.	The Accounting Officer communicates all contract awards to successful bidders	24%	47%	8%	18%	3%	100%	
10.	The Accounting Officer signs contracts/ Local Purchase Orders	18%	23%	5%	38%	16%	100%	
Source: Data from field
Key: SD = Strongly disagree, D = Disagree, U = Undecided, A = Agree, SA = Strongly agree

Findings show that most respondents were opposed to 7 items (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 and 9) out of 10 items about procurement legal framework compared to respondents who were undecided with or concurred to these items. The least percentage of respondents that opposed these items was 48% on item 8 while the highest percentage of respondents that opposed these items was 71% on item 9. Among these items, the percentage of respondents who were undecided was 7% to 20% while those who concurred was 17% to 36%. The following paragraph provides the implications of these findings.

From the above analysis it can be interpreted that in most cases in Mbarara District, the district procurement personnel did not adhere to the PPDA Act and Regulation, the procurement legal framework did not contribute to a sound business climate and it had not successfully prevented any potential arbitrations. Lastly, findings show that in most cases, guidance for by the PPDA did not ensure that transparency and competitive procurement was carried out, tenders were not awarded competitively in accordance with the procurement law, requirements were rarely submitted to the Accounting Officer before the contracts committee and the Accounting Officer did not communicate all contract awards to successful bidders.

However, findings also show that most respondents concurred to 3 items (6, 8 and 10) out of 10 items about procurement legal framework compared to respondents who were undecided with or opposed to these items. The least percentage of respondents that concurred to these items was 54% on item 10 while the highest percentage of respondents that concurred to these items was 70% on item 6. Among these items, the percentage of respondents who were undecided was 5% to 7% while those who were opposed was 18% to 23%. The following paragraph provides the implications of these findings.

From the above analysis, the following is the interpretation. In most cases in Mbarara District, the contracts committee observed a minimum meeting quorum of 3 members, the Accounting Officer confirmed availability of funds before commencement of procurement and signed contracts/Local Purchase Orders.

From the interpretation of the findings, it can be observed that respondents were negative to 7 out of 10 items about procurement legal framework in Mbarara District and they were positive to only 3 out of 10 items about procurement legal framework in Mbarara District. This shows that procurement legal framework in Mbarara District was ineffective.

Having presented and interpreted the descriptive findings about procurement legal framework, the fourth hypothesis was tested. Findings are presented in the following sub section.

4.6.2	Testing fourth hypothesis
The fourth null hypothesis stated, “The procurement legal framework has a significant moderator effect on the relationship between procurement and service delivery in Mbarara district local government”. A partial correlation coefficient (r) was used to test the fourth hypothesis. The df represents the degree of freedom used in computing the significance of the correlation. Table 17 presents the test results.

Table 17: Moderator effect of procurement legal framework on the relationship between procurement management practice and service delivery
	Procurement planning after controlling for procurement legal framework	Procurement organization after controlling for procurement legal framework	Contract management after controlling for procurement legal framework	
Service delivery	r = -. 023
p = .788
df = 142	r = . 021
p = .805
df = 145	r = . 071
p = .400
df = 145	
Source: Data from field
Findings show that controlling procurement legal framework, the correlation between procurement planning and service delivery reduced from .311 (see Table 9) to -.023, that between procurement organization and service delivery reduced from .431 (see Table 11) to .021, and that between service contract management and service delivery reduced from .391 (see Table 13) to .071. In fact, after controlling for procurement legal framework, the relationship between the three independent variables (procurement planning, procurement organization and contract management) and the dependent variable (service delivery) became insignificant because all ps were all greater than the recommended critical significance at 0.05. Thus, the fourth null hypothesis that “The procurement legal framework has a significant moderator effect on the relationship between procurement and service delivery in Mbarara district local government” was accepted. This implies that procurement legal framework had a moderator effect of reducing the strength of relationship between procurement management practices and service delivery in Mbarara District.

CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, DISCUSSION, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.0	Introduction
This chapter presents the summary, discussion, conclusions and recommendations. It is divided into four major sections. The first section presents the summary. The second section presents the discussion. The third section presents the conclusions. The fourth section presents the recommendations.

5.1	Summary
5.1.1	Procurement planning and service delivery in Mbarara District
Findings revealed a weak positive relationship between procurement planning and service delivery. This was because procurement planning accounted for 9.7% variance in service delivery. The positive nature of the correlation implied that the change in procurement planning and service delivery was in the same direction whereby better procurement planning was related to better service delivery and vice versa.

5.1.2	Procurement organization and service delivery in Mbarara District
There was a moderate positive relationship between procurement organization and service delivery. Procurement organization accounted for 18.6% variance in service delivery. The positive nature of the correlation implied that the change in procurement organization and service delivery was in the same direction whereby better procurement organization were related to better service delivery and vice versa.

5.1.3	Contracts Management and service delivery in Mbarara District
The study established a weak positive relationship between contract management and service delivery. Contracts management accounted for 15.3% variance in service delivery. The positive nature of the correlation implied that the change in contract management and service delivery was in the same direction whereby better contract management were related to better service delivery and vice versa.

5.1.4	Procurement legal framework and the relationship between procurement and services delivery in Mbarara District
Controlling procurement legal framework, the strength of the relationships between procurement planning and service delivery, procurement organization and service delivery, and contract management and service delivery reduced significantly. All the relationships after controlling for procurement legal framework became insignificant.

5.2	Discussion
5.2.1	Procurement planning and service delivery in Mbarara District
The positive nature of the relationship between procurement planning and service delivery that this study established concurs with Basheka (2008) who emphasized that poor procurement planning contributes to poor service delivery. In support of the findings, Basheka (2008) emphasized that procurement planning is one of the primary functions of procurement with a potential to contribute to the success of local government operations and improved service delivery. In this study, it was established procurement planning was compromised because some activities were not done. Thus, procurement planning in Mbarara District was not a systematic process of setting achievable procurement objectivities.

The positive nature of the relationship between procurement planning and service delivery established in this study support other researchers such as Smeltzer, et al. (2003), Dobler and Starling (2003), James (2004), and Chen, Paulraj and Lado (2004). They also established that improvement in procurement planning was associated with improvement in service delivery.

In this study it was established that not all approved budgets were integrated to procurement plans by the contracts committee and procurement plans did not spell out well the methods of procurement. This implies that resources were not well allocated according to the budgets and this compromised service delivery. This argument concur with Reinikka and Svensson (2003) who observed that in some organizations resources are not allocated according to underlying budget decision. Yet if this is the case, such organizations will not be able to deliver their services efficiently.

Given that procurement planning was compromised in Mbarara District due to several reasons established in the study, the followed is deduced basing on views of the Task Force Report (1999), James (2004), Stoner, Freeman and Gilbert (1995), Robbins (2001). The compromised procurement planning did not enable Mbarara District to acquire the right item at the right time and at the right price to support the district’s actions. Since procurement planning was not properly conceived and implemented in Mbarara District, it failed to serve as an important mechanism for extracting, distributing and allocating resources for effective and efficient service delivery. Properly conceived procurement planning generally enhances the gathering, evaluating and interpreting of essential data and information in order to produce knowledge relevant for better service delivery (Basheka, 2008). Basing on Freeman and Gilbert’s (1995) view, findings of this study show that poorly conceived procurement planning in Mbarara District implied that procurement officers did not think through their goals and actions in advance and that this contributed to poor service delivery.

It was revealed in this study that not all procurement took place according to the set guidelines and end users did not supervise implementation of the services. This finding confirms the World Bank Procurement audit (2001) in the African region, which identified that there was lack of compliance with the basic requirements and guidelines and one reason was lack of appropriate procurement planning. The findings of this study also support Gelderman (2006) who observed that compliance to specifications was a problem not only to the third world countries, but even countries in the European Union. Failure to follow the set guidelines contributed to poor service delivery in Mbarara District.

This study established that not every transaction pertaining to public procurement was done in an open manner. This is contrary Basheka (2008) who contended that the importance of procurement planning must be rigorously shared among the stakeholders.  Thus, it argued that this study that lack of transparency in procurement planning of Mbarara District contributed to poor service delivery. This is in line with Hunja (2003) who asserted that procurement system implemented with sound management practices in place ensures successful service delivery to stakeholders.

5.2.2	Procurement organization and service delivery in Mbarara District
The finding of this study about the positive relationship between procurement organization and service delivery is similar to findings of other researchers such as Cheng and Miller (2005), Malone and Crowston (1990), Crowston (1991) and Jennings (1994) that have been conducted in this respect elsewhere. This study’s findings also support some academicians’ views on the contribution of procurement organization on service delivery (such as Cordella & Kai, 2006). The findings also concur with Jennings (1994) who found that coordination had positive effects on program outcomes.

This study established that in Mbarara District, services were not delivered to the right places and were not usually delivered on time, service providers were not competent on and committed to their job, and the public was not involved in assessing the quality of public projects. This shows that objectives of decentralization policy, which aimed at enhancing democratization, accountability, responsibility, efficiency and effectiveness in procurement for better delivery of services (Nsibambi, 2000) have not been achieved.

This study also established that not all listed contractors had a proven record of reliability and dependability and that service providers were not competent on and committed to their job. These findings concur with Nsamba (2007) who contended that many unqualified firms are awarded contracts even with their inability to comply with contract requirements. Thus, it is argued in this study that using contractors with no proven record of reliability and dependability was associated with poor service delivery in Mbarara District. This agree with Nsamba (2007) who also argued that such a situation resulted into producing sub-standard work since the contractors used are more profit motivated than being service oriented.

However, on a positive note, it was established in this study that a district contracts committee was in place and that the municipality/division had its own contracts committee. In line with the Local Government Act 1997, which requires among others that districts set up contract committees, which are supposed to manage all procurement needs for districts and lower entities. 

5.2.3	Contracts Management and service delivery in Mbarara District
The finding of this study relating to a positive relationship between contract management and service delivery supports Thai (2004) who observed that a standard approach for contract management helps to reduce the time it takes to go through the contracting process, which impacts positively on service delivery. The finding of this study support Mitchell (1993) who asserted that one of the critical elements of service delivery is contract management. The findings of study support Xiao (2002) who asserts that contract management is critical to the success of effective service delivery.

This study found out that contract management was compromised in Mbarara District. This contrary to Kigwana (2003) who emphasized that the management of customer/supplier relationships must encompass all the activities associated with the flow of goods and services from suppliers to end users. Given that contracts management was compromised in Mbarara District, basing on Lysons and Farrington (2006) observation, it argued in this study that it failed to achieve the three goals of quality products/services, delivery on time, and with in budget. Thus, this explains why there was poor service delivery in Mbarara District.

It was established in this study that award of tenders was not communicated openly to both successful and unsuccessful bidders, contracts were not awarded basing on the best bidders and local bidders were not given preference in the open bidding method in Mbarara District. The implication of these findings is that there is lack of competitive bidding and transparency in the tendering process of Mbarara District. Yet according to Smith (1997) and Lemke (2003), competition in tendering is the basis for cost effective purchasing, quality and timeliness of procured services and improves flexibility of service delivery. Transparency international and World Bank studies also indicated that non-competitive procedures may increase procurement costs and thus leading to poor service delivery.

It was found out that in Mbarara District, standard bidding documents were not used in all procurements, not all potential tenderers were aware of the evaluation criteria at the time of submitting their bids, each department was not an independent purchasing entity, and not all public purchases were subject to procurement plans as approved by the contracts committee. This is contrary to the Uganda PPDA Act (2003) requirements for local government during the procurement processes.

This study established that that not all procurement activity were monitored in Mbarara District and this contributed to poor service delivery. Yet according to Baker and Faulker (1991), monitoring and auditing improve the results of any strategy for managing suppliers. Baker and Faulker (1991) were of the view that in order to obtain good results from contracts, it is essential that periodic appraisals be made of what is being accomplished in the contracts as one way of managing and ensuring service delivery.

It was found out that in Mbarara District, disputes were not handled tactfully, effectively and in a timely manner. Because of this service delivery was poor. These findings concur with Jackson, Neidell and Lunsford (1995) who observed that successful buyer - supplier relationships should be characterized by high levels of mutual trust and interaction. They argued that collaboration and good communication between the supplier and the customer ensure delivery of quality service.

This study established that in Mbarara District, the public was not involved in assessing the quality of public projects that were being implemented, contractors did not produce quality work with minimal supervision, there was no high level of quality of goods, services and works in Mbarara district local government, district officials rarely inspected to verify that goods, equipment or services conform to specifications, and suppliers did not supply as per the specifications. These findings support Xiao et al (2002) who contended that the work performed must conform to the specifications established for the project/contract because poor quality performance results in increased rework, which has a significant cost and schedule implications.

5.2.4	Procurement legal framework and the relationship between procurement and services delivery in Mbarara District
This study established that procurement legal framework had a significant moderating effect of the relationship between procurement and service delivery in Mbarara District. This was because with the procurement legal framework, the effect of procurement planning, procurement organization and contract management on service delivery was insignificant.

In this study it was established that the district procurement personnel did not adhere to the PPDA Act (2003) and Regulation. Yet it is requirement under the Uganda PPDA (2003) Act that all government institutions should adhere to the PPDA (2003) Act and Regulation. Thus, although the PPDA Act 2003 and the local Government Act (2006) emphasize best procurement practices including procurement and disposal principles, rules, administrative review system, codes of conduct as well as suspension of providers of offences and disciplinary measures, these are likely that they were not followed during the district’s procurement processes. Under such circumstances, it is likely that the procurement process in Mbarara District lacked economy and efficiency and it explains why the procurement legal framework did not contribute to a sound business climate and it had not successfully prevented any potential arbitrations as established in this study and thus contributing to poor service delivery in Mbarara District.

This study established that guidance for by the PPDA did not ensure that transparency and competitive procurement was carried out, tenders were not awarded competitively in accordance with the procurement law, requirements were rarely submitted to the Accounting Officer before the contracts committee and the Accounting Officer did not communicate all contract awards to successful bidders. Yet one of the objectives of the PPDA Act (2003) and the local Government Act (2006) is to ensure public procurement and disposal is conducted in a fair, transparent and non-discriminatory manner (Basheka, 2008; PPDA Revised Plan, 2006).

5.3	Conclusions
5.3.1	Procurement planning and service delivery in Mbarara District
This study’s findings emphasize the importance procurement planning in service delivery in Uganda local government. The positive relationship between procurement planning and service delivery highlights the importance of conducting a comprehensive procurement planning for local government to deliver effective and efficient services to the local community.

5.3.2	Procurement organization and service delivery in Mbarara District
The finding of this study demonstrated that procurement organization is critical in the service delivery of local governments. The findings showed that the procurement organization of Mbarara District did not involve all stakeholders in the procurement process and listed contractors had no proven record of reliability and dependability, service providers were not competent on and committed to their job

5.3.3	Contracts Management and service delivery in Mbarara District
The finding of this study showed that contract management plays an important role in service delivery of local government. It highlights the importance managing customer/supplier relationships, open communication in the procurement of local governments, adherence to standard bidding documents and monitoring of the procurement activities of the local governments.

5.3.4	Procurement legal framework and the relationship between procurement and services delivery in Mbarara District
This study established that procurement legal framework had a significant moderating effect of the relationship between procurement and service delivery in Mbarara District. This was because with the procurement legal framework, the effect of procurement planning, procurement organization and contract management on service delivery was insignificant.

5.4	Recommendations
5.4.1	Procurement planning and service delivery in Mbarara District
Mbarara Procure District Authority should improve the procurement planning to enhance service delivery. This can be achieved by facilitating procurement budgetary decisions, satisfactorily planning for periodic procurement budgets, training all respective procurement personnel, the contracts committee integrating all approved budgets into procurement plans and procurement plans spelling out well the methods of procurement. In addition, procurement planning can be improved through contractors and service providers adhering to all specifications, Accounting Officer supervising the implementation of the services and all transaction pertaining to public procurement to be done in an open manner.

5.4.2	Procurement organization and service delivery in Mbarara District
Mbarara Procure District Authority should also improve the procurement organization to enhance service delivery of local governments. Areas to address should include promoting accountability, reducing bureaucracy, and increasing efficiency of civil servants.

5.4.3	Contracts Management and service delivery in Mbarara District
In addition, Mbarara Procure District Authority should improve the contract management to enhance service delivery of local government. To achieve this, award of tenders should be communicated openly to both successful and unsuccessful bidders, contracts should be awarded basing on the best bidders, standard bidding documents should be used in all procurements, all potential tenderers should be aware of the evaluation criteria at the time of submitting their bids, all public purchases should be subject to procurement plans as approved by the contracts committee. Furthermore, all procurement activity should be monitored, disputes should be handled tactfully, effectively and in a timely manner, and contractors and service providers should adhere to all specifications.

5.4.4	Procurement legal framework and the relationship between procurement and services delivery in Mbarara District
The government of Uganda should improve the procurement legal framework in order for procurement planning, procurement organization and contract management to significant affect service delivery in Mbarara District. To achieve this, the district procurement personnel should adhere to the PPDA Act and Regulation, the procurement legal framework should successfully prevented any potential arbitrations and guidance for by the PPDA should ensure that transparency and competitive procurement are carried out.

5.5	Area for Further Research
This study focused on the effect of three dimensions of procurement (that is procurement planning, procurement organization and contracts management) on service delivery. However, procurement has more dimensions and these need to be investigated in relation to service delivery in local governments.

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Sarantakos, S. (2005). Social Research (3rd ed.) New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Sekaran, U (2003). Research methods for business: A skill building approaches, 4th ed. New York, John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
Smith, M. (1997). Competition cost effective purchasing, and service delivery. London: MacGraw Hill
Thai, K. V. (2001). Public procurement re-examined, Journal of Public Procurement, volume 1, issue 1, 9-50. 
Thai, K. V. (2004). Introduction to Public Procurement. 1st ed. Florida Atlantic University.
Thai, K. V. (2005). Challenges in Public Procurement. In Khi. V. T, Araujo, A, Carter, Y. R; Callender, G; Drabkin, D. ;Grimm, R,; Jensen, E.R.K.; Lyd, E. R.; McCue, P.C & Telgen, J.(Eds.). Challenges in public Procurement: An international Perspective. Procurement Academics Press: Florida, USA.
Thai, K. V. (2008). Measuring losses to public procurement corruption: The Uganda Case, 3rd International Public Procurement Conference Proceedings, (August 28-30)
Webster New International Dictionary (1993).
www.transparency.org.
Xiao, H. & Proverbs, D. (2002). The Performance of contractors in Japan, the UK and the USA. An evaluation of Construction Quality. International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management. Vol.19 No.6 pp 672-687. 

APPENDICES
Appendix 1: Questionnaires

Dear Respondent,

I am a student of Uganda Management Institute pursuing a Masters Degree in Management studies. My study topic is “Procurement Management and service delivery in local governments of Uganda” A case study of Mbarara District. This questionnaire is designed to collect information purely for academic purposes. Your unique position as a stake holder in Mbarara district places you in a class of people with valuable knowledge about procurement management and service delivery. It is for this reason that you are kindly requested to give your honest opinion of the questions or statements in this questionnaire.

All information will be treated with utmost confidentiality.

Thank you in advance for your time and effort.

Yours sincerely,

Rodgers Tumwine 
Research Student.

SECTION A: DEMOGRAPHICS
 
Please put a tick (√) inside the box that corresponds to your answer.
1. Gender 		Male 				Female

2. Age bracket 	Below 20 years 		21-30 years
			31-40years			41-50years
			51-60years			Over 61years

3. Highest level of education:
Diploma and below 		Bachelors degree 
Masters degree 		PhD and others

4. Category of respondent:
Public servant			Contractor 
LC III councilor 		LC V councilor
Service provider 		Resident 

5. Years of service in the organization:
Less than 2years 		2-5years
5-10years 			over 10years 

In the subsequent sections, use scales provided to tick or circle a number that describes your opinion on each statement.
Key: Strongly agree = 5, Agree = 4, Undecided = 3, Disagree = 2, Strongly disagree = 1

SECTION B : PLANNING
B1) BUDGETING
1	The district has procurement budgets	1	2	3	4	5	
2	Procurement planning facilitates budgetary decisions	1	2	3	4	5	
3	The district periodically draws procurement budgets	1	2	3	4	5	
4	Procurement planning helps identify major investment expenditure	1	2	3	4	5	
5	The district satisfactorily plans for periodic procurement budgets-annual, short and long term	1	2	3	4	5	
6	All respective procurement personnel have had training in procurement budgeting	1	2	3	4	5	
7	All approved budgets are integrated to procurement plans by the contracts committee	1	2	3	4	5	
8	Procurement plans spell out well the methods of procurement	1	2	3	4	5	
9	District procurement officers and the district contracts committee are accountable for public procurements	1	2	3	4	5	
10	Budget monitoring process exist between the procurement plan and actual procurement	1	2	3	4	5	

B2) DEFINING SPECIFICATIONS
1	Specifications describe minimum requirements	1	2	3	4	5	
2	Specifications are according to the nature of requirements	1	2	3	4	5	
3	Contractors, service providers adhere to all specifications	1	2	3	4	5	
4	Specifications identify quality and operational characteristics	1	2	3	4	5	
5	Specifications require the ability of the end user to accurately and concisely describe the product or service required	1	2	3	4	5	

B3) IMPLEMENTATION AND ACCOUNTABILITY
1	Contract implementation plan is clearly shown	1	2	3	4	5	
2	All procurement takes place according to the set guidelines	1	2	3	4	5	
3	End users supervise implementation of the services 	1	2	3	4	5	
4	The Accounting Officer supervises the implementation of the services	1	2	3	4	5	
5	Every transaction pertaining to public procurement is done in an open manner	1	2	3	4	5	
6	Where the PPDA guidelines were adhered to they improved accountability	1	2	3	4	5	
7	Where measures were instituted to improve financial management system they enhance accountability	1	2	3	4	5	
8	Whistleblower protection enhances accountability by encouraging reporting of corrupt officials.	1	2	3	4	5	
9	Interdictions against improper conduct enhance accountability 	1	2	3	4	5	
10	The technical evaluation committee adheres to evaluation criteria as set	1	2	3	4	5	

SECTION C: PROCUREMENT ORGANIZATION CENTRALIZATION AND DECENTRALIZATION OF PROCUREMENTS			
1	My Local government has a procurement and disposal unit (PDU) in place	1	2	3	4	5	
2	My Local government has a district contracts committee in place	1	2	3	4	5	
3	Procurement organization has improved service delivery in my local government	1	2	3	4	5	
4	Procurement organization has led to conflicts in local governments	1	2	3	4	5	
5	Procurement organization has promoted accountability	1	2	3	4	5	
6	Procurement organization reduced bureaucracy	1	2	3	4	5	
7	Procurement organization led to greater efficiency of civil servants	1	2	3	4	5	
8	Procurement organization helped to bring services nearer to people	1	2	3	4	5	
9	My district could perform better with good procurement organization	1	2	3	4	5	
10	My Municipality/ division has its own contracts committee	1	2	3	4	5	

SECTION D: CONTRACT MANAGEMENT
D1) TENDERING PROCESS 
1	The award of tenders in Mbarara district is politically influenced	1	2	3	4	5	
2	Tenders are used as a tool by politicians to economically empower the seemingly disadvantaged groups	1	2	3	4	5	
3	Award of tenders is communicated openly to both successful and unsuccessful bidders	1	2	3	4	5	
4	Contracts are awarded basing on the best bidders	1	2	3	4	5	
5	Being politically well placed enhances chances of being awarded tenders	1	2	3	4	5	
6	Local bidders are given preference in the open bidding method	1	2	3	4	5	
7	Standard bidding documents are used in all procurements	1	2	3	4	5	
8	All potential tenderers are aware of the evaluation criteria at the time of submitting their bids	1	2	3	4	5	
9	Each department is an independent purchasing entity	1	2	3	4	5	
10	All public purchases are subject to procurement plans as approved by the contracts committee.	1	2	3	4	5	

D2: CONTRACT MONITORING AND EVALUATION
1	All procurement activity are monitored 	1	2	3	4	5	
2	The district has sufficient personnel to monitor implementation of contracts.	1	2	3	4	5	
3	Suppliers supply as per the specifications	1	2	3	4	5	
4	Disputes are handled tactfully, effectively and in a timely manner	1	2	3	4	5	
5	Contractors, service providers adhere to all specifications	1	2	3	4	5	
6	Bids are evaluated by an evaluation committee appointed for that purpose	1	2	3	4	5	
7	The technical evaluation committee is appointed before bids are submitted	1	2	3	4	5	
8	The technical evaluation committee adheres to evaluation criteria as set	1	2	3	4	5	
9	The technical evaluation method is used in evaluation of every work	1	2	3	4	5	
10	There is total assurance on confidentiality in the procurement process.	1	2	3	4	5	

SECTION E: QUALITY ASSURANCE:
1	The public is involved in assessing the quality of public projects that are being implemented.	1	2	3	4	5	
2	Contractors produce quality work with minimal supervision	1	2	3	4	5	
3	Most procured goods and services are of poor quality	1	2	3	4	5	
4	There is high level of quality of goods, services and works in Mbarara district local government	1	2	3	4	5	
5	Political interference always compromised the quality of goods, services and works	1	2	3	4	5	
6	District officials always inspected to verify that goods, equipment or services conform to specifications	1	2	3	4	5	
7	Subcontracting leads to poor quality.	1	2	3	4	5	

SECTION F: THE LEGAL FRAMEWORK IN PROCUREMENT
1	The district procurement personnel adhere to the PPDA Act and Regulation.	1	2	3	4	5	
2	The procurement legal framework contributes to a sound business climate	1	2	3	4	5	
3	The procurement legal framework has successfully prevented any potential arbitrations	1	2	3	4	5	
4	Guidance for by the PPDA ensures that transparency and competitive procurement is carried out	1	2	3	4	5	
5	Tenders are awarded competitively in accordance with the procurement law	1	2	3	4	5	
6	The contracts committee observes a minimum meeting quorum of 3 members	1	2	3	4	5	
7	Requirements are always submitted to the Accounting Officer before the contracts committee	1	2	3	4	5	
8	The Accounting Officer confirms availability of funds before commencement of procurement	1	2	3	4	5	
9	The Accounting Officer communicates all contract awards to successful bidders	1	2	3	4	5	
10	The Accounting Officer signs contracts/ Local Purchase Orders	1	2	3	4	5	

SECTION G: SERVICE DELIVERY
1	Services are delivered to the right places	1	2	3	4	5	
2	Services are usually delivered on time	1	2	3	4	5	
3	Service providers are competent on their job	1	2	3	4	5	
4	Service providers are committed to their job 	1	2	3	4	5	
5	All divisions and district technical personnel are involved in the monitoring and supervision of procured goods, services and works	1	2	3	4	5	
6	The public is also involved in assessing the quality of public projects	1	2	3	4	5	
7	Service providers are paid on time	1	2	3	4	5	
8	Every service provider gets paid in the office of the CAO	1	2	3	4	5	
9	Service providers are given ample time to deliver their job	1	2	3	4	5	
10	Service providers are always complaining	1	2	3	4	5	
11	All listed contractors have a proven record of reliability and dependability	1	2	3	4	5	
12	Contractors produce quality work with minimal supervision	1	2	3	4	5	
13	Contractors are awarded with consideration for cost effectiveness	1	2	3	4	5	
14	Political patronage compromised the quality of goods and services procured at the local government level 	1	2	3	4	5	
15	Most procured goods and services are of poor quality	1	2	3	4	5	
16	The public is satisfied with service delivery	1	2	3	4	5	
17	Knowledge of the basic procurement principles , practices, and procedures is still lacking among some contractors	1	2	3	4	5	
18	Service providers are efficient in service delivery	1	2	3	4	5	
19	Public officials usually endorse projects which are likely to attract bribes	1	2	3	4	5	
20	Quality procurement management is very instrumental in the realization of government programmes	1	2	3	4	5	

Appendix 2: Interview Schedule 
Dear Respondent,

I am a student of Uganda Management Institute pursuing a Masters Degree in Management studies. My study topic is “Procurement Management and service delivery in local governments of Uganda” A case study of Mbarara District. This interview guide is designed to collect information purely for academic purposes. Your unique position as a stakeholder in Mbarara district places you in a class of people with valuable knowledge about procurement management and service delivery. It is for this reason that you are kindly requested to give your honest opinion of the questions or statements in this interview guide.

1.	Are PPDA local government guidelines followed during service provider solicitation?
2.	Are small and big potential service providers equally treated?
3.	Are procurement work plans submitted to PDUs based on identified user needs?
4.	Comment on the procurement organization by the district.
5.	Is the public free to participate in the bidding process?
6.	Is ethical procurement behavior practiced in this district?
7.	Do service providers deliver on time?
8.	What is your opinion on how contracts are managed in the district?
9.	Do you have political interferences in the council activity?
10.	Do you have complaints from service providers/ contractors of unfair contract award? 
11.	Are service providers paid promptly?
12.	What do have to say about service delivery by the district?

Thank you very much

Appendix 3: Findings about procurement planning 
	SD	D	U	SA	A	Total	
The district has procurement budgets	1	3	3	71	67	145	
	1%	2%	2%	49%	46%	100%	
Procurement planning facilitates budgetary  decisions	67	65	9	1	3	145	
	46%	45%	6%	1%	2%	100%	
The district periodically draws procurement budgets	3	10	13	78	41	145	
	2%	7%	9%	54%	28%	100%	
Procurement planning helps identify major investment expenditure	65	58	12	7	3	145	
	45%	40%	8%	5%	2%	100%	
The district plans for periodic procurement budgets-annual, short and long term	37	74	22	9	3	145	
	26%	51%	15%	6%	2%	100%	
All respective procurement personnel have had training in procurement budgeting	30	61	21	29	4	145	
	21%	42%	14%	20%	3%	100%	
All approved budgets are integrated to procurement plans by the contracts committee	35	65	20	21	4	145	
	24%	45%	14%	14%	3%	100%	
Procurement plans spell out well the methods of procurement	42	54	17	25	7	145	
	29%	37%	12%	17%	5%	100%	
District procurement officers and the district contracts committee are accountable for public procurements	1	22	25	54	43	145	
	1%	15%	17%	37%	30%	100%	
Budget monitoring process exist between the procurement plan and actual procurement	2	21	14	76	32	145	
	1%	14%	10%	52%	22%	100%	
Specifications describe minimum requirements	2	21	14	71	37	145	
	1%	14%	10%	49%	26%	100%	
Specifications are according to the nature of requirements	7	30	13	47	48	145	
	5%	21%	9%	32%	33%	100%	
Contractors, service providers adhere to all specifications	38	61	16	20	10	145	
	26%	42%	11%	14%	7%	100%	
Specifications identify  quality and operational characteristics	0	24	24	57	40	145	
	0%	17%	17%	39%	28%	100%	
Specifications require the ability of the end user to accurately and concisely describe the product or service required	38	54	15	35	3	145	
	26%	37%	10%	24%	2%	100%	
Contract implementation plan is clearly shown	86	40	11	7	1	145	
	59%	28%	8%	5%	1%	100%	
All procurement takes place according to the set guidelines	54	82	8	0	1	145	
	37%	57%	6%	0%	1%	100%	
End users supervise implementation of the services	59	55	18	9	4	145	
	41%	38%	12%	6%	3%	100%	
The Accounting Officer supervises the implementation of the services	40	78	12	13	2	145	
	28%	54%	8%	9%	1%	100%	
Every transaction pertaining to public procurement is done in an open manner	38	51	23	24	9	145	
	26%	35%	16%	17%	6%	100%	
Adherence to PPDA guidelines improves accountability	5	17	16	28	79	145	
	3%	12%	11%	19%	54%	100%	
Instituting measures to improve financial management system will enhance accountability	2	20	16	61	46	145	
	1%	14%	11%	42%	32%	100%	
Whistleblower protection enhances accountability by encouraging reporting of corrupt officials.	2	20	12	65	46	145	
	1%	14%	8%	45%	32%	100%	
Interdictions against improper conduct enhance accountability	5	35	10	70	25	145	
	3%	24%	7%	48%	17%	100%	
The technical evaluation committee adheres to evaluation criteria as set	37	65	15	17	11	145	
	26%	45%	10%	12%	8%	100%	

Appendix 4: Findings about procurement organization 
	SD	D	U	SA	A	Total	
My Local government has a procurement and disposal unit (PDU) in place	10	29	7	44	55	145	
	7%	20%	5%	30%	38%	100%	
My Local government has a district contracts committee in place	8	36	19	52	30	145	
	6%	25%	13%	36%	21%	100%	
Decentralization of local government has improved service delivery in my local government	49	56	8	26	6	145	
	34%	39%	6%	18%	4%	100%	
Decentralization of local governments has led to conflicts in local governments	7	50	8	52	28	145	
	5%	34%	6%	36%	19%	100%	
Decentralization of local governments has promoted accountability	31	69	18	23	4	145	
	21%	48%	12%	16%	3%	100%	
Decentralization of local governments reduced bureaucracy	26	38	19	52	10	145	
	18%	26%	13%	36%	7%	100%	
Decentralization of local governments led to greater efficiency of civil servants	33	65	17	26	4	145	
	23%	45%	12%	18%	3%	100%	
Decentralization of local governments helped to bring services nearer to people	31	68	16	26	4	145	
	21%	47%	11%	18%	3%	100%	
My district could perform better if it were returned to central control by the government (re-centralized)	12	47	20	47	19	145	
	8%	32%	14%	32%	13%	100%	
My Municipality/ division has its own contracts committee	1	13	20	74	37	145	
	1%	9%	14%	51%	26%	100%	

Appendix 5: Findings about contract management 
	SD	D	U	SA	A	Total	
The award of tenders in Mbarara district is politically influenced	16	42	21	47	19	145	
	11%	29%	14%	32%	13%	100%	
Tenders can be used as a tool by politicians to economically empower the seemingly disadvantaged groups	29	54	10	49	3	145	
	20%	37%	7%	34%	2%	100%	
Award of tenders is communicated openly to both successful and unsuccessful bidders	34	64	12	30	5	145	
	23%	44%	8%	21%	3%	100%	
Contracts are awarded basing on the best bidders	21	50	25	43	6	145	
	14%	34%	17%	30%	4%	100%	
I believe being politically well placed enhances chances of being awarded tenders	18	37	16	48	26	145	
	12%	26%	11%	33%	18%	100%	
Local bidders are given preference in the open bidding method	48	62	5	19	11	145	
	33%	43%	3%	13%	8%	100%	
Standard bidding documents are used in all procurements	33	56	25	29	2	145	
	23%	39%	17%	20%	1%	100%	
All potential tenderers are aware of the evaluation criteria at the time of submitting their bids	33	71	22	17	2	145	
	23%	49%	15%	12%	1%	100%	
Each department is an independent purchasing entity	18	79	22	23	3	145	
	12%	54%	15%	16%	2%	100%	
All public purchases are subject to procurement plans as approved by the contracts committee.	29	40	28	44	4	145	
	20%	28%	19%	30%	3%	100%	
All procurement activity is monitored by technologically aided equipment	19	70	22	19	15	145	
	13%	48%	15%	13%	10%	100%	
The district has sufficient personnel to monitor implementation of contracts.	17	30	24	67	7	145	
	12%	21%	17%	46%	5%	100%	
Suppliers supply as per the specifications	15	37	15	63	15	145	
	10%	26%	10%	43%	10%	100%	
Disputes are handled tactfully, effectively and in a timely manner	18	70	13	41	3	145	
	12%	48%	9%	28%	2%	100%	
Contractors, service providers adhere to all specifications	32	72	12	21	8	145	
	22%	50%	8%	14%	6%	100%	
Bids are evaluated by an evaluation committee appointed for that purpose	2	18	9	81	35	145	
	1%	12%	6%	56%	24%	100%	
The technical evaluation committee is appointed before bids are submitted	22	27	11	50	35	145	
	15%	19%	8%	34%	24%	100%	
The technical evaluation committee adheres to evaluation criteria as set	27	87	10	16	5	145	
	19%	60%	7%	11%	3%	100%	
The technical evaluation method is used in evaluation of works	32	69	16	26	2	145	
	22%	48%	11%	18%	1%	100%	
There is total assurance on confidentiality in the procurement process.	33	60	12	33	7	145	
	23%	41%	8%	23%	5%	100%	
The public is involved in assessing the quality of public projects that are being implemented.	35	82	11	12	5	145	
	24%	57%	8%	8%	3%	100%	
Contractors produce quality work with minimal supervision	25	75	19	23	3	145	
	17%	52%	13%	16%	2%	100%	
Most procured goods and services are of poor quality	6	17	10	66	46	145	
	4%	12%	7%	46%	32%	100%	
There is high level of quality of goods, services and works in Mbarara district local government	35	77	6	26	1	145	
	24%	53%	4%	18%	1%	100%	
Political interference always affects the quality of goods, services and works	3	22	22	47	51	145	
	2%	15%	15%	32%	35%	100%	
District officials inspect to verify that goods, equipment or services conform to specifications	27	63	17	36	2	145	
	19%	43%	12%	25%	1%	100%	
Subcontracting leads to poor quality.	4	22	26	49	44	145	
	3%	15%	18%	34%	30%	100%	

Appendix 6: Findings about procurement legal framework 
	SD	D	U	SA	A	Total	
The district procurement personnel adhere to the PPDA Act and Regulation.	41	48	10	40	6	145	
	28%	33%	7%	28%	4%	100%	
The procurement legal framework contributes to a sound business climate	20	55	18	45	7	145	
	14%	38%	12%	31%	5%	100%	
The procurement legal framework has successfully prevented any potential arbitrations	25	73	22	20	5	145	
	17%	50%	15%	14%	3%	100%	
Guidance for by the PPDA ensures that transparency and competitive procurement is carried out	28	47	20	42	8	145	
	19%	32%	14%	29%	6%	100%	
I believe tenders are awarded competitively in accordance with the procurement law	35	57	17	30	6	145	
	24%	39%	12%	21%	4%	100%	
The contracts committee observes a minimum meeting quorum of 3 members	9	26	9	85	16	145	
	6%	18%	6%	59%	11%	100%	
Requirements are submitted to the Accounting Officer before the contracts committee	23	46	29	26	21	145	
	16%	32%	20%	18%	14%	100%	
The Accounting Officer confirms availability of funds before commencement of procurement	4	30	10	80	21	145	
	3%	21%	7%	55%	14%	100%	
The Accounting Officer communicates all contract awards to successful bidders	35	68	11	26	5	145	
	24%	47%	8%	18%	3%	100%	
The Accounting Officer signs contracts/ Local Purchase Orders	26	34	7	55	23	145	
	18%	23%	5%	38%	16%	100%	

Appendix 7: Findings about service delivery 
	SD	D	U	SA	A	Total	
Services are delivered to the right places	16	65	22	31	11	145	
	11%	45%	15%	21%	8%	100%	
Services are usually delivered on time	20	62	28	31	4	145	
	14%	43%	19%	21%	3%	100%	
Service providers are competent on their job	20	52	34	32	7	145	
	14%	36%	23%	22%	5%	100%	
Service providers are committed to their job	33	65	17	23	7	145	
	23%	45%	12%	16%	5%	100%	
All divisions and district technical personnel are involved in the monitoring and supervision of procured goods, services and works	16	40	16	58	15	145	
	11%	28%	11%	40%	10%	100%	
The public is also involved in assessing the quality of public projects	39	64	18	17	7	145	
	27%	44%	12%	12%	5%	100%	
Service providers are paid on time	23	66	13	33	10	145	
	16%	46%	9%	23%	7%	100%	
Every service provider gets paid in the office of the CAO	33	24	16	49	23	145	
	23%	17%	11%	34%	16%	100%	
Service providers are given ample time to deliver their job	20	85	13	17	10	145	
	14%	59%	9%	12%	7%	100%	
Service providers are always complaining	16	22	27	27	53	145	
	11%	15%	19%	19%	37%	100%	
All listed contractors have a proven record of reliability and dependability	18	65	13	40	9	145	
	12%	45%	9%	28%	6%	100%	
Contractors can produce quality work with minimal supervision	23	70	13	30	9	145	
	16%	48%	9%	21%	6%	100%	
Contractors are awarded with consideration for cost effectiveness	21	66	14	38	6	145	
	14%	46%	10%	26%	4%	100%	
Political patronage always affects the quality of goods and services procured at the local government level	13	45	15	59	13	145	
	9%	31%	10%	41%	9%	100%	
Most procured goods and services are of poor quality	8	29	19	59	30	145	
	6%	20%	13%	41%	21%	100%	
Public satisfaction is the overall gauge for effective service delivery	33	64	19	22	7	145	
	23%	44%	13%	15%	5%	100%	
Knowledge of the basic procurement principles , practices, and procedures is still lacking among some contractors	5	14	20	82	24	145	
	3%	10%	14%	57%	17%	100%	
Service providers bring back some money to the CAO	27	67	27	19	5	145	
	19%	46%	19%	13%	3%	100%	
Public officials usually endorse projects which are likely to attract bribes	5	21	11	69	39	145	
	3%	14%	8%	48%	27%	100%	
Quality procurement management is very instrumental in the realization of government programmes	37	82	10	13	3	145	
	26%	57%	7%	9%	2%	100%