Abstract:
The aim of this study was to assess the role of e-procurement on development of SME’S in LGA
in Tanzania using Songea Municipal Council as a case study. A descriptive study research design
and a mixed research approach was used in this study. The study population included suppliers
from different procurement categories. The sample size was 104 who were selected using a
purposive and simple random sampling technique. The questionnaire, interview and documentary
review were used to collect data. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze quantitative data and
content analysis was used to analyze the qualitative data collected from participants in order to
decode their meaning. The study concluded that e-tendering increases competitiveness of the
procurement process. However, most SMEs lack an online supplier contract management system
that facilitates tendering processes. It was established that e-tendering has improved customer
satisfaction. In the second objective, the study concluded that E-sourcing has improved
performance of the business. Adoption of e-sourcing enables businesses to generate savings from
their supply chains, to increase the visibility of crucial business information and reduce the time
required to accomplish procurement tasks. In the last objective, the study concluded that E-
payment system offers a convenient means of making payments.This increases the effectiveness
of the supply chain and increases information and transparency. By speeding up payments, e-
payment speed ups the procurement and ensures timely delivery of goods, which subsequently
improves customer satisfaction. It is recommended that SMEs should adopt and utilize e-tendering
to streamline the process of procurement and reduce the costs involved. The study found adoption
of electronic payment by all SMEs in Tanzania so as to ensure easy, fast and safe transactions hence
increasing the level of customer satisfaction. The study further recommends that all SMEs should
adopt e- payment to improve performance by improving efficiency in payments and reducing errors
related to cash transactions.
