Consultants

Consultants continued to provide specialised skills not available in the department and where staff or other in-house resources were limited.

The CEI instructions on procurement contain procedures and guidelines for engaging consultants. Proposals for consultancies are required to specify project requirements, justify the use of a consultant, identify the expected costs, recommend a procurement method and explain how the consultant’s performance will be evaluated and monitored.

During the year, the department engaged 163 new consultancies valued over $10 000 for a total commitment of $13,331,747. A total amount of $18,659,299 was spent on new and existing consultancies in 2002-03. For details see Appendix 2.