APPRAISAL OF THE ROLE OF PROCUREMENT FUNCTION ON ORGANIZATIONAL EFFICIENCY IN FEDERAL MINISTRY OF EDUCATION ABUJA, NIGERIA

This study appraises the role of the procurement function on organizational efficiency in the Federal Ministry of Education Abuja, Nigeria, focusing on three key procurement constructs: disposal of stock, supplier management, and strategic sourcing. Cross-sectional survey design was adopted for the study whose population was 144 staff that performs procurement related activities in the Federal Ministry of Education Abuja, Nigeria. Census approach was adopted and 144 copies of structured questionnaire was administered to respondents within the ministry, while only 118 were retrieved. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics for personal attributes of respondents while regression analysis was used to achieve the study objective and t-values and p-values were used to test the study hypotheses. Findings revealed that supplier management had the highest contribution to organizational efficiency (β = 0.713, p = 0.000), followed by disposal of stock (β = 0.339, p = 0.002) and strategic sourcing (β = 0.307, p = 0.001). The study concludes that strengthening procurement policies and supplier engagement strategies can significantly improve organizational efficiency in the ministry. It recommends continuous evaluation of procurement practices, increased adherence to regulatory standards, and enhanced capacity-building initiatives for procurement personnel. Future research should explore the impact of digital procurement systems on efficiency and the role of policy implementation in public sector procurement.