Nigeria and Peers Lose N587 Billion to Manual Procurement
Nigeria and other African countries are losing an estimated N587 billion annually due to outdated, manual procurement systems that foster corruption, contract inflation, and systemic leakages. Stakeholders and technology experts have warned that continued reliance on paper-heavy processes remains the single greatest vulnerability in Africa's public and private supply chains, crippling corporate growth and stalling national development.
This pressing financial crisis was the focus of the just-concluded Digital Procurement Africa (DPA) Summit 2026, organized by Gloopro in Lagos. The executive forum brought together policymakers, C-suite executives, and supply chain leaders to confront the continent's unstructured distribution channels and chart a decisive path toward full automation.
To plug the monumental fiscal holes, experts at the summit stressed that African enterprises must urgently transition from manual oversight to data-driven, unified digital frameworks. By adopting modern procurement-as-a-service (PaaS) platforms and electronic bidding portals, organizations can effectively eliminate human interference, rein in unrated local vendors, and transform procurement from a hotbed for financial leakage into a transparent tool for corporate governance.
Panel Exposes Hidden Costs
While moderating a panel session titled 'The Hidden Leakage Audit: Exposing the True Cost of Manual Procurement', the President of the Association of Digital Financial Practitioners of Nigeria, Isa Aliyushatta, revealed that Africa loses N587 billion yearly to manual procurement. He urged efforts to be rechanneled to block loopholes through digital systems, calling on large enterprises to adopt digital procurement platforms to tackle hidden spending leakages, supplier risk blind spots, and governance failures.
Speaking as a panellist, Indirect Procurement Manager for Supply Chain at Coca-Cola HBC, Adenrele Thompson, noted that many businesses historically treated small procurement transactions as too insignificant to monitor, creating major governance gaps over time. Thompson observed that most organizations approve tail spend without in-depth scrutiny because the value appears small. However, he noted that modern systems can now provide transparency, governance, and due diligence around those transactions.
Technology as a Solution
Recommending improved use of technology, Thompson said procurement fragmentation that once seemed impossible to control can now be managed through digital tools that centralize approvals, vendor records, and spending data. He compared the shift to how mobile apps transformed everyday consumer behaviour, stating that procurement digitization is becoming inevitable for enterprises operating in fast-moving markets. "If you are not digital, it is just a matter of time," he warned. "The consequences are inevitable."
On his part, Supply Chain Leader at Aradel Holdings, Chukwuma Nkwodinmah, warned that unmanaged procurement transactions expose organizations to financial, regulatory, and reputational risks. He explained that repeated emergency purchases outside approved procurement systems often create parallel procurement structures lacking transparency and effective accountability mechanisms.
