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On the morning of Monday, April 27 public procurement professionals from across North, Central and South America gathered at the Capitol Hilton in Washington, DC to kick off the 2009 Public Procurement Conference of the Americas. As the conference chairman, CACI's own Chairman, Dr. Jack London, gave the opening remarks and first keynote speech.

His remarks are given here.

On behalf of the PPCA organizing committee, conference partners and generous sponsors, welcome to the 2009 Public Procurement Conference of the Americas! It has been four years since many of us met in Atlanta, GA for the last conference. This time, we meet here in Washington, DC. Washington is well known for its many historic sites, its monuments, its world class museums and multitude of procurement agencies and professionals… well, at least well known to us!

Many years ago, a famous American science fiction author once noted: "The universe never did make sense; I suspect it was built on [a] government contract." (I believe that translates!) Now I wouldn't say procurement and contracting is that complicated. But I have been in the government contracting business for nearly four decades. And I can say that, at least in the U.S., the procurement process has changed quite dramatically. I'm sure many of our visiting colleagues would say the same thing about their countries.

And there will be many changes ahead as well. We have assembled here for the next three days to find ways to improve the procurement process through cooperation and collaboration. In the audience here today there are representatives from the government, corporate, non-profit and academic worlds. There are attendees from all over the Americas, from Chile to Canada.

The Public Procurement Conference of the Americas gives us a unique opportunity to bring our various professional perspectives and cross cultural experiences to the table.

Because the U.S. and Latin America share an intertwined economic, social and political history – one we will always share – it is imperative that we work together. Why? Because what we do will not only advance the practice of government procurement, but also create opportunities for national and regional development.

The importance of public procurement cannot be underestimated. Here in the U.S, the federal government alone spends approximately $556B annually for a wide range of goods and services. In Latin America, public procurement accounts for at least a quarter of annual budgets. But public procurement is more than financial management or transactions. It is about what that money is spent on and how it affects everyday citizens – like you and me. I know at my company, CACI, when the U.S. government awards us a contract, it means we are entrusted with providing the best quality service and goods to the U.S. military. Service and goods that not only support and empower our armed forces, but enable them to provide security to our country. But procurement also means dependable infrastructure, education, environmental and other programs that keep our countries moving forward every day.

And costs of inefficient, problematic and even abused procurement systems – "fraud, waste and abuse" – go beyond the wasting of tax payer money. It prevents progress. Let's take a look at investment. In Latin America, for example, foreign investment is an important source of financing of much needed national and local programs. In turn, problems with public procurement in Latin America have a significant impact on regional/international trade, political stability, development and participation in the global economy.

So, we can all see that our exchange of knowledge and experiences at PPCA is a powerful tool in creating a better future for all our people! And some of you may have thought you were just attending a conference!

Because so much is at stake, I want to re-emphasize the goals of this conference.

We are here to advance the body of public procurement knowledge and expertise. We will capture lessons learned and best practices, and perhaps create a network of information exchange that will continue beyond our time here in Washington.

We are here to create opportunities. Opportunities to improve and reform procurement practices. Opportunities to break down social, political and economic barriers. And opportunities to improve our quality of life.

Over the next three days we will also be covering a lot of ground. This year's Public Procurement Conference of the Americas will focus on five main themes at the forefront of public procurement today:

First, we will examine role of public procurement in governance. According to Transparency International, "It is estimated that systemic [embedded] corruption can add 20-25% to the costs of government procurement, and frequently results in inferior quality goods and services and unnecessary purchases." The perfect description of "fraud, waste and abuse."

During our meeting, we will aim to identify principles of good governance in public procurement, and public procurement "best" and "worst" practices. As a 2007 OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) procurement in Latin America and the Caribbean report reminded us, "Procurement reform is a political, not technical, process; the prerequisite for success in any reform is political engagement and ongoing support." And this process will include many stakeholders, including NGO's, academia, businesses and policy makers. But, most importantly, it will take a commitment from all... from top leaders to contracting officers… to create a culture of good business practices, ethics and integrity.

Second, this year's PPCA will review ways to increase supplier participation in government contracting. There are many potential vendors who shy away from selling to the government, particularly across borders. I believe this anxiety allows too many opportunities for both vendors and the government ways to slip away – opportunities to take advantage of competitive products, services and technologies. Our distinguished panel will discuss how to reduce bureaucratic obstacles, minimize fraud and increase competition. They will also identify what has to be done to break down barriers to access – domestic, regional and global – for vendors and suppliers across the board.

The goals of an improved and dynamic procurement process for the future will only be accomplished through highly-skilled and talented procurement professionals… like yourselves. PPCA will look at ways to develop an effective public procurement workforce and improving professional public procurement administration across all levels of government.

Our conference will also examine a topic that I am well aware of – best practices and the future of IT in public procurement.

I know that Latin American countries have made significant progress with e-procurement systems. Information technology has made procurement management much easier by reducing procurement time and costs, connecting systems across government organizations, enhancing procurement performance metrics and also by improving transparency.

Here at PPCA, we will examine the latest technologies and processes in the supply chain. We will also look into the future of technology as a tool in creating procurement systems that are focused on relationships rather than transactions.

Our final topic of this year's PPCA will examine the concepts and practices of sustainability in procurement across the Americas. I have always subscribed to the philosophy that "good procurement is sustainable procurement." Modernizing public procurement has typically looked at improving procurement as a process. But it must include the impact procurement has the economic, social, environmental needs and goals of our nations. It will also be necessary for suppliers and vendors to be prepared for requests of more sustainable products and services. We will look at the roles of various stakeholders in sustainable procurement, including the private sector and professional networks. We will examine accounting for the social, economic and environmental impacts of procurement through Triple Bottom Line reporting. It is vital to see sustainable procurement not as a burden, but as opportunities for innovation and new business. And as ways to improve our quality of life.

So you see, we have an ambitious agenda ahead of us! But I believe that those of us here today are committed to working together to advance public procurement for the future and across the Americas.

I would like to thank in advance to everyone involved in putting conference together. You have worked very hard to bring all of us together here in Washington. I also want to extend my appreciation to all of our distinguished keynote speakers, moderators and panelists. I trust you will guide us in our discussions and give us much to think about. Finally, I would like to thank all of our attendees. I like to think of you as pioneers in professional public procurement. I believe that the true measure of success for this conference will be how much you will learn and take home with you to improve procurement in your country. I know after four decades in this business, I'm still learning!

I also look forward to seeing you all at tomorrow night's gala. I trust you will be working very hard over the next three days and will deserve some well earned fun!

So welcome once again to the 2009 Public Procurement Conference of the Americas in Washington, DC - your "Gateway to Prosperity"!

Thank you!