(1) Prior
to awarding a procurement contract by way of direct procurement under section 25
of the Act, a public body shall ascertain that –
(a) the item to be procured
is not available in existing stores or under any applicable framework
agreement;
(b) the provider
possesses the qualifications required to perform the procurement contract;
(c) the quality and
technical aspects of the provider’s proposal meet the requirements of the
public body; and
(d) the price to be
paid to the provider is fair and reasonable.