Abstract:
The concept of public procurement as a tool to encourage participation by special groups seems to
be very interesting agenda front developmental and economic perspective. Generally, the study
aimed to assess the determinants of the participation of special groups in public pprocurement
opportunities. Specifically, the study aimed to determine the influence of the access to information
towards participation of special groups in public pprocurement opportunities, to examine the
influence of creating awareness on the participation of special groups in public procurement
opportunities, to examine the contribution of financial capacity building on the participation of
special groups in public procurement opportunities and to determine the influence of implementation
of established laws and regulations towards participation of special groups in publicc procurement
opportunities. The study was guided by the Inclusive Development and Agency Theory as the basis
for the study. A cross-sectional research design was adopted while stratified and proportional random
sampling techniques were used to obtain 224 respondents. Data were collected through
questionnaire and interview descriptive statistics and Multiple Linear Regression Models were used
in analysing data. Ihe findings revealed that access to information; awareness creations; financial
capacity building; and implementation of procurement law are the determinants of the participation
of special groups in public procurement opportunities. The study concluded that there was a
significant relationship between independent variables (access to information, awareness creations,
financial capacity building, and implementation of established laws) and the participation of special
groups in public procurement opportunities. The study recommends to the Local Govemment
Authorities (LGAs) that they should invest much in creating awareness to the special groups and
PE's staff about the given preference scheme on public procurement opportunities. Additionally, the
study recommends that the PPRA ought to monitor the effective implementation of the established
procurement law and regulations by all public procuring entities to ensure participation of special
groups in public procurement opportunities. Finally, the study suggests that further study to be
conducted on reasons for low implementations of established procurement law and its regulations
towards participation of special groups in taking public procurement opportunities