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PurposeSeveral intergovernmental organizations claim that the involvement of women in public procurement has a direct impact on sustainable development and growth, especially in the developing world, yet we know very little of such claim. This study aims to empirically examine how public procurement can contribute to women empowerment by boosting the competitiveness of women-owned businesses (WOBs) in Uganda.Design/methodology/approachIn this study, a cross-sectional survey method is used. Quantitative data were gathered from a sample of 371 respondents in Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and a section of women entrepreneurs in Uganda's capital Kampala. From the literature review, six hypotheses were formulated and tested using structural equation modelling (SEM). A research model is developed and presented.FindingsAll hypotheses, except for one, were supported. Procurement policy had a significant influence on evaluation criteria, contract management and most importantly, on the competitiveness of WOBs. Within the procurement process, evaluation criteria had a significant influence on the competitiveness of WOBs, while the influence of contract management on competitiveness of WOBs was not statistically significant. We, therefore, concluded that public procurement can indeed enhance women empowerment through a gender-responsive procurement policy. Above all, pre-contract award interventions such as streamlining evaluation criteria to ease access of WOBs to public procurement contracts seem have the most significant impact to competitiveness of WOBs compared to post-ward interventions during contract management.Originality/valueThis study offers a research-based model that articulates the role of procurement policy as an enabler for competitiveness of WOBs in developing countries. The model proposes a combination of both policy (a direct influence) and interventions in the supplier selection process (an indirect influence) to boost the competitiveness of WOBs.

The potential for artificial intelligence (AI) to drive digital supply chain transformation today is beyond question. However, its full potential to address more complex supply chain management (SCM) problems is still unclear partly due to AI’s black-box problem both in practice and in literature. This paper attempts to highlight the significance of explainable AI (XAI) in SCM and shades light on SCM areas where AI’s black-box problem remains problematic. The goal of this integrative literature review paper is to provide new insight into the status of XAI as a solution to AI’s black-box problem in SCM where AI techniques have made rapid in-roads. The AI techniques in SCM literature and the significance of XAI in SCM are contrasted. We present an integrative research typology for XAI in SCM to better align how SCM literature has conceived AI deployment in SCM this far. The typology should help us understand the gap between what we know about AI deployment in practice, AI maturity in SCM, and the extent of XAI in SCM .

Despite agriculture being the main economic activity in Uganda, increasing food prices within the country point to the growing challenge of food insecurity. In 2016, food shortage was reported in some parts of Uganda (mainly in Karamoja sub-region and parts of Serere) and government resorted to temporary relief distribution of food from other regions of the country. The acute food shortage in one part of the country while another part, a few hundred kilometers away, has excess farm output calls into question the efficiency of the supply chain of some agro-commodities. This research attempts to examine the challenges faced in the production and supply of bananas in Uganda and how the supply chain perspective can help us address these challenges better. We juxtapose the supply chain approach against the value chain perspective and argue that the supply chain perspective offers a much deeper understanding of market-based challenges, which affect livelihoods of smallholders who often sell their products at rock-bottom prices. A cross sectional survey of various banana production and consumptions points in Uganda was conducted. The findings show that losses in the supply chain accounted for about 29% of banana production – a figure slightly lower than that 40% previously reported in the literature. In addition, the farmers did not benefit from increased food prices due to inadequate market information at their disposal despite banana value chains having recently received significant development attention. We also found that infrastructural bottlenecks and limited collaboration and coordination among smallholders heavily affected the supply of bananas in the country. This is arguably a key factor that strongly explains the food insecurity problem in Uganda. We conclude that the findings point to a different problem, which is that of a dysfunctional supply chain structure of bananas from the rural areas to urban centres in Kampala. This article is available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). You may copy and distribute the article, create extracts, abstracts and new works from the article, alter and revise the article, text or data mine the article and otherwise reuse the article commercially (including reuse and/or resale of the article) without permission from Elsevier. You must give appropriate credit to the original work, together with a link to the formal publication through the relevant DOI and a link to the Creative Commons user license above. You must indicate if any changes are made but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use of the work.

This purpose of this study was to establish the relationship between contract management and performance of road maintenance projects in Arua Municipality. A cross-sectional survey design was used, with data collected from a sample of 102 respondents using questionnaire survey and interviews. The study found a significant relationship between contract administration, relationship management and contract closure and performance of the maintenance projects. We conclude that improved payment mechanism, controlled contract variations, improved communication channels and dispute management improve project performance. The study recommends that the government of Uganda should increase the budget for road works; internal audit function be strengthened, contract management meetings be regularly held and contract specifications clearly articulated and adhered to; and technical staff should be trained in contract management and stringent performance measures provided as controls to adequately punish errant officials. These findings offer a useful foundation in the road sector for policy and practical improvement in Uganda.

The purpose of the study was to establish the extent to which community capacity building influenced sustainability of palliative care projects in Mayuge district. Specifically, the study strived to establish the extent to which top down, bottom up and community organizational approaches of capacity building could influence the sustainability of palliative care projects. We used a cross-sectional survey design to cover a population of 150 respondents comprising of NGO officials, Health centre IV and Health centre III palliative care personnel, district health team officials and patients on palliative care. Using a self administered questionnaire and in-depth interviews emerging data was analyzed using simple descriptive statistics like mean and standard deviations, Pearson’s correlation and regression analyses. We report that top down organizational capacity building approach had a high positive significant relationship with project sustainability and it predicted 23.4% of the variance in project sustainability. Bottom up organisational capacity building approach had a high positive significant relationship and it predicted 25.7% of the variance in project sustainability. Finally, community organizing approaches had a very high positive significant relationship with project sustainability and it predicted 57.2% of the variance. We conclude that the financial, technical and managerial self reliance aspects of project sustainability are significantly dependant on the kind of efforts by the management teams of the NGO. By building capacity through top down, bottom up and community organizing approaches, there is a high possibility of ensuring sustainability. We therefore draw a number of managerial and theoretical implications whose scope appeals to a wide range of audiences. Key words: Capacity building approaches, project, sustainability, palliative care.

This paper focuses on the use of Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) as a strategy to address deficiencies in the energy sector of Uganda in order to remedy the power generation shortage in the country. Public Private Partnerships have become popular and gained wide adoption in public sector management though with varying degrees of success especially in Africa. This paper borrows from the transactional theory to help examine the contractual structure, assets specificity, and comparative costs of buying decision making in the Public Private Partnership in the energy sector. The paper also borrows from the stakeholders¡¯ theory as it highlights the need to identify and establish the different stakeholders in the Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) in the energy sector. It highlights the common concepts and forms of Public Private Partnerships in utilities; presents two case experiences of PPP in the energy generation of Uganda and lessons learnt. A review of the two case studies suggests a number of learning points related to involvement of stakeholders, need for government monitoring of the Public Private Partnership contracts and fostering of a win-win outcome. The paper highlights that successful implementation of a PPP depends to a large extent, on the development of capacity, sound legal procedures, agreements, and contracts that clearly define the relationship between government agencies and private firms.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the determinants and constraints of effective contract management and its implications on service delivery since public procurement authority has persistently reported low compliance levels as far as contract management is concerned. Empirical research in this area is relatively sparse. Data was collected using a closed ended questionnaire. Significant predictors of determinants for effective contract management were: clear definition of processes and having in place contract management plans, appropriate methods of capturing key lessons from contract management process, accurate definition of roles and having a knowledgeable contract manager. While the major constraints were found to be: lack of political will to monitor contracts; inadequate capacity and lack of integrity. These findings offer a useful foundation for policy and practical improvement in this important area in Uganda.

Bad governance is regarded as one of the root causes of all evil within our societies. Good governance ought to be participatory, consensus-oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective, efficient, equitable, inclusive and follows the rule of law. In our context, it assures that corruption is minimised, the views of minorities are taken into account and that the voices of the most vulnerable in society are heard in decision-making. Local governments globally have been established as key public service delivery centres. However, this function at the local government level has had serious concerns about graft and procurement-related malpractice hence undermining the role government officials responsible for public funds. Such incidences suggest serious impediments to the governance agenda in Uganda’s public sector. Using a survey of respondents from Uganda’s four regions, we examine the forms of procurement corruption that threaten many lives of poor citizens through denial of effective services.

In the public sector, the issue of efficiency and effectiveness (value for money) is now a key governance agenda. Electronic procurement has become prominent in the language and strategy of the public sector effectiveness in both developed and developing countries. E-procurement is currently one of the key topics in the e-government arena; many organisations need advice and guidance about proceeding with this new approach. In this paper, we examine the critical success factors (CSFs) for implementation of e-procurement technologies in Uganda’s public sector context. The findings of this study confirm that in Uganda’s context, the major CSFs for e-procurement include: 1careful involvement of suppliers 2systematic risk management approaches 3systematic redesign of organisational processes 4use of experienced consultants 5careful selection of software providers. We suggest policy and managerial implications in the adoption of e-procurement.