The ARSP Director General to verify the application of Subcontracting Law in Haut Katanga, DRC
Visit of the DG of the ARSP – Autorité de Régulation de la Sous-traitance dans le secteur PrivéAhmed Kalej Nkand to the headquarters of the management of the ARSP Haut/Katanga as part of the official launch of inspection and control missions to contracting companies and subcontractors in order to verify the effective application of the Law on subcontracting and its implementing rules.
During his working mission, the DG of the ARSP – Autorité de Régulation de la Sous-traitance dans le secteur Privé made a visit to the headquarters of the ARSP Haut/Katanga where he said he was satisfied with the working conditions of the agents and officially announced the launch of inspection and control missions to the main companies and subcontractors in order to verify the application of Law No. 17/001 of 08 February 2017.
During his working mission, exchanges also took place with the provincial authorities, the FEC and subcontractors, around issues related to subcontracting.
At the end of these exchanges, the DG of the ARSP noted that indeed the main companies do not seem to play the game as it should be.
“Many subcontractors continue to face difficulties in accessing subcontracting contracts. And this is materialized by various facts, including many main companies have created or established central purchasing offices outside the country. This is a way of circumventing the law,” he said.
In the aftermath, he points to the lack of transparency of those companies in the launch of calls for tenders.
“Then, the tenders are launched in a way that is not very transparent. First, these tenders are written in English or Chinese. This complicates the task for the Congolese who have to respond to these calls for tenders. There is already a language problem. These calls for tenders are not counted in the presence of the tenderers. This is an impediment to the procedure,” he said.
In addition, DG Ahmed KALEJ NKAND also refers to the discrimination suffered by subcontractors, thus limiting their access to the various contracts relating to subcontracting.
“There is a certain discrimination that takes hold, which means that Congolese subcontractors only have access to markets up to a certain level of price or business volume. And beyond this amount, all these markets are reserved for companies with foreign capital. This does not favor the promotion of Congolese-owned companies, let alone the emergence of a Congolese middle class,” he said.
