Kathmandu, August 1

Ncell has stated that it has been giving priority to local suppliers for procurement of various services based on the recommendation of the government to utilise local vendors for the benefit of the country and promote local employment.

The company has said that it is now producing its scratch cards through local suppliers.

Most of field installations and maintenance works related to network and infrastructure projects are being carried out by Nepal-based vendors, as per the firm.

Contractors for organising events, media services, and above- and below-the-line promotions are all local, according to Ncell. These types of services constitute the majority in total volume of services purchased by Ncell.

Following the global reorganisation at its majority shareholder, TeliaSonera Group, Ncell had established a Centralised Procurement Department (CPD) in the beginning of 2014. After that, it had brought all its purchasing processes and procedures in line with the group’s new operation model of conducting business in a fair and transparent manner.

“We have very strict and transparent purchasing procedures, whereby we must obtain offers from multiple vendors for any purchase and assess them based on a variety of criteria, including, but not limited to, price, quality and delivery terms,” said Ingrid Bol, director of CPD of Ncell.

She added that as per TeliaSonera’s new rules, they are also obliged to conduct due diligence of vendors for all purchases exceeding $5,000.

The due diligence questionnaire, among others, includes questions regarding ownership, involvement of politically influenced persons and payment terms. It is a widespread practice in developed markets, to which the Nepali suppliers are gradually adopting.

Bol said that they help and navigate Nepali vendors through the procedures, to enable them to participate in Ncell tenders.