Public procurement in Zambia

Law and regulator

The Public Procurement Act 2020 was assented to and published in the Government Gazette on 23 November 2020 ¹. It came into force on 16 April 2021 under a commencement order ¹. It repeals the Public Procurement Act No. 12 of 2008 ². The ZambiaLII consolidation shows amendments by the Public Procurement (Amendment) Act 2023, Act No. 17 of 2023, noted from 26 December 2023 ².

Section 5 continues the Zambia Public Procurement Authority as a body corporate ². Section 6(1) describes it as an independent regulatory body responsible for regulation, standard setting, compliance and performance monitoring ². ZPPA lists the Preference and Reservation Scheme, S.I. No. 45 of 2025, among its legal documents ⁵.

Procurement methods

Section 37 lists the methods ². Open bidding is the preferred method under section 54(1), and an entity using another method must record its reasons under section 38(4) ².

• Open national and international bidding and selection ².
• Limited bidding and selection, where only a limited number of suppliers can deliver or an urgent need makes open bidding impractical, under section 42(2) ².
• Simplified bidding and simplified selection ².
• Direct bidding and direct selection ².
• Force account, electronic reverse auction and purchases from other procuring entities ².
• Private financing and concessions, community participation and, since 2023, Government to Government procurement ².

When direct bidding is allowed

Section 46(2) allows direct bidding in five cases ².

• The item is only available from a single source and no reasonable alternative or substitute exists ².
• An emergency creates an urgent need that makes other methods impractical ².
• Additional items must come from the same source for compatibility, standardisation or continuity ².
• An existing contract can be extended for similar items where further competition brings no advantage ².
• The estimated value is below the prescribed threshold ².

Thresholds and timelines

The Act does not state amounts. It refers to prescribed thresholds in sections such as 44(2), 46(2)(e) and 54(3) ². Regulation 29(1) of the 2022 Regulations says the thresholds for each method are in the Second Schedule, and regulation 28 points to the Third Schedule for levels of authority ⁴. The copy of the Regulations reviewed for this page did not show those schedules, so this page gives no kwacha figures ⁴.

• Minimum bidding period of four weeks for open national bidding and six weeks for open international bidding, under regulation 86(2) ⁴.
• Bid security of at least two percent of the estimated contract value, under regulation 88(4) ⁴.
• Contract awards published within fourteen days of award, under regulation 26(1) ⁴.
• Records kept for at least ten years after contract completion, under regulation 16(8) ⁴.

e-procurement and appeals

Section 16(1) says a procuring entity shall use the electronic government procurement system ². Section 16(2) lists functions the system must support, such as bid submission, bid evaluation and publication of contract awards ². ZPPA links to the e-GP System from its home page and lists weekday helpdesk hours ⁵.

A bidder can appeal a procuring entity's decision to the Authority under section 100(1) ². The Authority accepts an application only if it is submitted within five working days of the bidder becoming aware of the circumstances ². No contract award may be made before the application is resolved, and the Authority must give a written decision within fifteen working days ². A bidder aggrieved by that decision may go to arbitration within ten working days ².