World Bank blacklists Kenyan firm over fraud and collusive practices

[Deeq A.]

The World Bank has black­listed a Kenyan consultancy firm, Africa Development Professional Group (ADP), for engaging in corrupt and fraudulent practices in several multi-million shilling projects for top government agencies.

According to Business Daily, World Bank took action after an investigation conducted by the World Bank’s corruption-fighting unit established that the Nairobi based firm had engaged in fraudulent practices during a bank-funded project in Somalia.

The anti-poverty lender said it had banned Africa Development Professional Group (ADP) and its affiliates, together with any organisation they directly or indirectly control for 21 months.

“The debarment makes ADP ineligible to participate in projects and operations financed by institutions of the World Bank Group,” said the World Bank in a statement.

“The (Somalia) project was designed to strengthen the staffing and institutional capacity of selected line ministries and central agencies to perform core government functions.”

By this resolution, and under the agreement for mutual enforcement of debarment decisions, ADP is prohibited from doing businesses with the Asian Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Inter-American Development, and the African Development Bank (AfDB) for a specific a period of 21 months. The pact aligns with the resolution of the five international financial institutions (mostly owned and financed by governments) signed on April 9, 2010.

“The debarment makes ADP ineligible to participate in projects and operations financed by institutions of the World Bank Group,” said the bank.

“It is part of a settlement agreement under which the company acknowledges responsibility for the underlying sanctionable practices and agrees to meet specified corporate compliance conditions as a condition for release from debarment.”

According to the ADP’s website, some of past clients include Kenya’s Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, the Gambian Office of the President, the Government of Ghana, the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (Kenya) and the Department for International Development (DfID), Rwanda.

The above projects are, however, not related to the debarment, Business Daily reported.

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