The employment of overseas contractors in place of qualified local professionals was the focus of the morning session of Tuesday's sitting of the Public Accounts Commission (PAC).
The concerns were raised during the Committee's examination of the 2007/2008 audited accounts of Fiscal Services Limited (FSL).
The Auditor General had queried the award of contracts valued at US$2.2 million that were not subject to approval by the National Contracts Commission.
Acting CEO of the FSL Dyon Woolcock explained that some contracts had predated the enactment of the Finance Ministry's Procurement Guidelines and were followed on from year to year.
She added that the agency was in the process of becoming compliant with the NCC however committee members raised questions as to why the FSL reused the same consultants year to year and if there was any system in place to introduce qualified local professionals.
"There is a certain set of skills that is overseas and for some strange reason that set of skills isn't in Jamaica, and if it is in Jamaica there is someone there already that we have been working with over the years who has basically fixed oneself in the system now," asked committee member Ian Hayles.
"The question I want to ask is, when do we start looking at young Jamaicans that are professional in whatever field that you need the services. At what point do you do that," he said.
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