Nigeria Bans Contract Variations Without BPP Clearance

The Federal Government of Nigeria has introduced new guidelines to combat contract inflation, which ban any variations in contract sums without prior clearance from the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP). This decision, announced by Zira Nagga, aims to address persistent issues of cost inflation and corruption within Nigeria's public procurement system.

The guidelines, effective immediately, replace the previous 2013 framework and require that all requests for contract variations, regardless of size, be submitted to the BPP for review. Variations above N10 billion will require Federal Executive Council approval, while those between N5 billion and N10 billion will go through the ministerial tender board.

The guidelines also stipulate that any variation must be justified and that the BPP will enforce strict compliance across all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs). Variations arising from design flaws or unnecessary changes will be outright rejected, and any contractor found to be delaying project execution to increase claims will face sanctions.