THE EFFECTS OF E-TENDERING PRACTICES ON PERFORMANCE OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUTHORITIES IN TANZANIA: A CASE OF IRINGA MUNICIPAL COUNCIL

This study assessed the effects of e tendering practices on the performance of Local Government Authorities (LGAs) in Tanzania, using Iringa Municipal Council as a case study. Specifically, the study examined the effects of e-advertisement, e-evaluation and e-award practices on LGA performance. A convergent research design with a mixed methods approach was adopted. Stratified random sampling was used to select 60 respondents from a population of 172. Data were collected through questionnaires and unstructured interviews, then analyzed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis with SPSS version 22. The findings revealed that e-advertisement enhances organizational performance by reducing fraud, increasing supplier participation and building confidence in the procurement process. E-evaluation practices were found to minimize exclusion errors, promote merit based decisions and improve transparency and accountability. Similarly, e-award practices reduced administrative delays, ensured timely procurement activities and improved efficiency and reliability. The study concludes that the adoption of e-tendering practices particularly e-advertisement, e-evaluation and e-award has significantly improved the performance of Iringa Municipal Council. It recommends continued strengthening of e tendering implementation through investment in ICTinfrastructure, user-friendly systems and regular upgrades. Further research should explore the long term impacts of e-tendering on cost efficiency, project quality and supplier diversity as well as comparative studies across regions.