The debarment of three PricewaterhouseCoopers affiliates in Africa is set to extend beyond the World Bank Group, after the sanction qualified for cross-debarment by other multilateral development banks.
- •The move follows a 21-month debarment, with conditional release, imposed on PricewaterhouseCoopers Associates Africa Ltd, PricewaterhouseCoopers Limited Kenya, and PricewaterhouseCoopers Rwanda Limited over collusive and fraudulent practices linked to an Ethiopia-based regional power project.
- •Under the Agreement for Mutual Enforcement of Debarment Decisions signed in April 2010, sanctions imposed by one participating multilateral development bank can be enforced by others, potentially barring the firms from a broader pool of donor-funded projects globally.
- •The World Bank’s action stems from irregularities in the Eastern Electricity Highway Project, part of the Eastern Africa Power Integration Program, which is designed to boost electricity supply in Kenya while enabling Ethiopia to earn revenues from power exports.
Investigations found that the firms improperly obtained confidential procurement information from project officials in 2019 to influence the award of a consultancy contract involving International Financial Reporting Standards implementation at Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation.
They were also found to have sought to influence the award of a fixed asset inventory and revaluation contract for Ethiopian Electric Utility. In addition, PricewaterhouseCoopers Associates Africa Ltd misrepresented the availability and qualifications of key experts and failed to disclose all subconsultants during contract execution.
The World Bank said the conduct amounted to collusive and fraudulent practices under its Consultant Guidelines.
As a result of the debarment, the firms and any entities they control are ineligible to participate in World Bank-financed projects for the duration of the sanction. The cross-debarment mechanism could significantly widen that exclusion across other development finance institutions.
The penalty was issued under a negotiated settlement in which the firms admitted wrongdoing. The World Bank said the reduced sanction period reflects cooperation during investigations, internal disciplinary measures, and steps taken to strengthen compliance systems.
