The African Development Bank (ADB) Group has banned Global Interjapan (Kenya) Limited with effect for three years for fraud.
An investigation conducted by the Bank’s Office of Integrity and Anti-Corruption established that Global Interjapan (Kenya) Limited engaged in fraudulent practices during a tender for the Bank-financed Small Scale Irrigation and Value Addition Project in Kenya.
The debarment renders the civil engineering company registered in Kenya and all its affiliates ineligible to participate in Bank Group-financed projects during the debarment period, ADB said in a statement to Malawi24.
At the expiry of the 36-month-debarment period, the company will only be eligible to participate in Bank Group-financed projects on condition that it implements an integrity compliance program consistent with the Bank’s guidelines.
The Small Scale Irrigation and Value Addition Project aimed at reducing poverty by enhancing agricultural productivity, income and food security among the residents of 11 counties in Kenya, and was co-financed by the African Development Bank, a constituent entity of the African Development Bank Group.
Global Interjapan (Kenya) Limited joins another Kenya company, Techno Brain, which was banned by the World Bank for collusive and fraudulent practices the company used to influence the awarding of a contract in its favor.
Techno Brain was banned for twenty-eight-months from October last year while its parent company, United Arab Emirates-based Techno Brain Global FZ-LLC (“Techno Brain UAE”) has been debarred for ten-month.
Techno Brain has a branch in Malawi and according to the company’s website, it conducts business with the Malawi government. Such deals include a contract to design and implement an Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS) for 35 Local councils.
Techno Brain was also engaged in supply of Malawi Passports and in 2018, the Anti-Corruption Bureau opened investigations against the company over procurement of passports.
Following the debarment by World Bank, there were calls in October for government to cancel any deals with the company. Calls fell on deaf ears as the Lazarus Chakwera administration continued engaging with the company despite the fraudulent accusations leveled against the parent company.
Meanwhile, the debarment of Global Interjapan (Kenya) Limited by ADB qualifies for cross-debarment by other multilateral development banks under the Agreement for Mutual Enforcement of Debarment Decisions, including the Asian Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Inter-American Development Bank and the World Bank Group.
