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National Treasury bids farewell to Mr Kenneth Brown as he vacates his position as the first Chief Procurement Officer (CPO) of the South African Government. Mr Brown expressed his intentions in June 2016 to leave the National Treasury to pursue a lucrative career opportunity in the private sector. He was, however persuaded to stay on to solidify the processes and initiatives he led to establish the Office of the Chief Procurement Office following his appointment by Minister Pravin Gordhan in 2013. His last day is 31 December 2016 which will mark the end of his 19 year tenure at National Treasury and 34 years as a public servant.

Mr Brown joined the Department on 1 January 1998 as a Deputy Director and quickly rose through the ranks to become the Head of Intergovernmental Relations Division until his appointment as the CPO. In just three years, Mr Brown created and strengthened the OCPO, and led a series of key reforms aimed at elevating supply chain management in the public sector to its rightful strategic place. Under his leadership, great strides have been made in ensuring that government continues to get value for money through increased efficiency and reduction in wastage and corruption.

The OCPO is now fully established with capability in policy and legislative formulation; governance monitoring and compliance; SCM automation; centralised procurement; strategic procurement; and stakeholder management. The Office is staffed with diligent and dedicated staff who will continue to strive for public sector SCM excellence.

Speaking about Mr Brown’s departure, Minister Pravin Gordhan said:
“During his tenure at National Treasury, Mr Brown has served the public service with distinction and commitment. Like a model civil servant who is not motivated by pay alone, in spite of lucrative offers from the private sector he agreed to delay his departure until some of the reforms he had started had reached a certain level of maturity “.

Minister Gordhan pointed out that, Brown’s dedication and commitment was un-waivered even in the midst of allegations by Mr Mzwanele Manyi, which to date have not been substantiated.

On behalf of all National Treasury staff, Minister Gordhan thanked Kenneth Brown for his sterling contribution to the reconstruction and development of post-apartheid SA and wishes him well in his new endeavours.

Issued by National Treasury