Exploring E-Procurement Adoption in the Context of a Developing Country: The Case of Lesotho

An E-Procurement system allows organizations to automate and streamline the internal procurement processes and also allow them to integrate and share information with their suppliers and customers for better business results. Despite these and other benefits promised by E-Procurement systems, their adoption remains a challenge in most organizations in developing countries, and in Africa in particular. This could be partly because of the fact that the phenomenon has not received sufficient attention in Africa, and as a consequence, adoption is enacted in a manner that is exclusive of contextual challenges the organizations face. It is also not clear whether E-Procurement benefits in literature do translate into actual benefits by African public organizations. The purpose of this study is therefore to identify the perceived benefits and contextual challenges posed during the implementation of an E-Procurement system in the Lesotho electricity sector. Following an interpritivist approach, grounded in the study context; the study identified two key perceived benefits of efficiency and transparency. The challenges faced includes the organizational lack of adequate training, system failure, employee resistance and lack of project management skills by top management. There were consistent reports of a lack of expertise from the external market to address implementation issues and that perceived knowledgeable agents such as consultants were not able to deliver what was tasked of them.