E-government procurement adoption in Somalia’s public procurement: A two-staged hybrid SEM-ANN for enhancing good governance and sustainable development

Abstract

E-Government Procurement (e-GP) is critical for improving good governance and long-term economic development in Somalia. Decision-makers need to create fundamental strategies that will allow e-GP to operate efficiently and optimize operational effectiveness and transparency. A total of 178 valid responses were gathered from survey questionnaires sent to policymakers and government procurement practitioners. The two-staged approach of Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) and Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) evaluated hypotheses and identified the significance levels of model factors. This study uses a hybrid method that combines SEM and ANN to verify theoretical structures and assess the significance of quantitative variables. SEM research results suggest that the adoption of e-GP in Somalia is significantly influenced by factors such as institutional quality, good governance, and sustainable development. Furthermore, the ANN analysis revealed that institutional quality and good governance are the key factors that control the adoption process. The results of the study provide Somali policymakers with valuable knowledge for developing effective e-government procurement and sustainable development programmes.