Green procurement practices in the public sector: the case of parastatals in Kenya

Abstract

Using the OECD (2006) public procurement estimates, the public sector organisations in Kenya is estimated to have procured between US$ 4.29B and US$ 7.16B in 2010. Given the rising environmental concerns and awareness among various stakeholders in the supply chain as well as interest groups such as consumer groups, public sector organisations may find it appropriate to adopt green procurement practices. It is not clear, given the absence of legislation in Kenya on green procurement, to what extent public sector organisations are practicing green procurement and if so, the drivers for adopting the same and the challenges they face in the process. This study sought to answer the aforementioned questions. This study surveyed all parastatals in Kenya with a questionnaire that targeted procurement managers. It found out that green procurement management practices were still low in the public sector in Kenya as most of the practices had a mean of 3 and 4. The mean scores indicated that there were eight factors which the respondents considered important drivers of green procurement. The results of descriptive analysis revealed that the major challenge was insufficient knowledge on concept of green procurement. The study also concludes that the most common driver of green procurement was environmental regulations while the least driver was pressure from shareholders. The study concludes that the most important challenge to the adoption of green procurement is insufficient knowledge on the concept of green procurement while the least challenge was financial resources. Consequently the research recommended that with the global warming and environmental concerns from all sectors, there is need for the public sector organisation in Kenya to adopt green procurement practices in order to help in the efforts to conserve the environment.