Niger’s competitive dialogue at three years: reform breakthrough or just paperwork?

When Decree No. 2022-743/PRN/PM was signed on 29 September 2022, it was presented as a decisive break with the past. By introducing the competitive dialogue procedure, the authorities pledged to streamline public spending, strengthen transparency and give the state the technical expertise it needed for major development projects. Three years on, one question dominates every corridor of Niger’s procurement world: did the reform ever stand a chance of working, or was it doomed from the start?

An ambitious mechanism that never left the drawer

The logic behind competitive dialogue sounded convincing enough: let public buyers sit down with several shortlisted bidders and jointly design the most suitable technical, legal or financial solutions. In the daily routine of Nigerien administrations, however, the provision has remained a dead letter.

• No technical ownership: without proper training or clear methodological guides for procurement officers, the mechanism is seen as too complex and too heavy to handle.
• Sticking with habit: contracting authorities keep favouring traditional methods or, more worryingly, lean on derogatory procedures without delivering the added value promised by the 2022 text.
• No flagship project delivered: in three years, the large infrastructure contracts that were supposed to benefit from this competitive flexibility have produced no visible spin-offs and no measurable efficiency gains for the public purse.

From talk of rebuilding to the reality of single-source deals

While the rhetoric of “refoundation” and rigorous management fills every official speech, the persistence of direct awards and negotiated contracts contradicts the intentions set out in the 2022 decree. Instead of fostering fair competition and transparency, the revamped legal framework often serves as an administrative shop window meant to reassure observers, while conditions on the ground remain marked by opacity and a lack of accountability. Local firms, which were supposed to be the first to benefit from a more open dialogue with the state, still complain about restricted access to major opportunities and the slow pace of procedures.

What three years of a legal framework that does not work actually tell us

After three years of theoretical application, the record of the 29 September 2022 decree exposes the gap between legislative inflation and operational reality:

• No effect on cost reduction: the financial optimisation expected from stronger competition has not shown up in public accounts.
• Transparency that is all appearance: audits and evaluation reports on the actual use of competitive dialogue are virtually non-existent.
• A brake on investment: the distance between the texts on paper and their real application feeds uncertainty for serious economic partners.

The stakes for Niger’s public procurement going forward

Decree No. 2022-743 has amounted to a legal facelift with no knock-on effect. Tested by time, the introduction of competitive dialogue looks less like a genuine lever for transforming public procurement in Niger and more like a communication exercise — one whose cost is now measured in lost opportunities and stalled investment.

By Claire Mvondo — Security and State Policy Expert