The World Bank has blacklisted six Chinese companies operating in Nigeria for fraud and corruption.
The companies are China Railway Construction (International) Nigeria Company Limited, China Railway 18th Bureau Nigeria Engineering Company Limited, CCECC Nigeria Lekki (FTA) Company Limited, CCECC Nigeria Railway Company Limited, CRCC Petroleum & Gas Company Limited, and CCECC Nigeria Company Limited.
All the companies are very active in Nigeria, with ongoing or completed contracts for the construction of railways, highways, housing estates, airport terminals, municipal engineering, water resource, and hydro-power engineering projects for federal and state governments.
The World Bank on its website, accused the companies and several others around the world of violating the bank’s fraud and corruption policy.
Consequently, the six companies were debarred and declared ineligible to be awarded any World Bank-financed contracts for at least a year, between June 4, 2019 and March 3, 2020.
Fraud & corruption policy
It was not clear what specific infractions the companies committed, as there were no available details. No official of the World Bank in Nigeria Country office responded to calls for clarifications.
But, details on the bank’s website said the companies were accused of violating the provisions of the Procurement Guidelines, 1.16(a)(ii) bordering on fraud and corruption.
The policy is spelt out in the procurement and consultant guidelines for projects executed before July 1, 2016; or through the World Bank Procurement Regulations for Investment Project Financing Borrowers for projects after July 1, 2016.
The bank’s policy requires borrowers, including beneficiaries of its loans, to observe the highest standard of ethics during the procurement and execution of bank-financed contracts.
In pursuit of this policy, the bank sees a corrupt practice as the “offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting, directly or indirectly, of anything of value to influence improperly the actions of another party.
Similarly, the bank sees the fraudulent practice as “any act or omission, including a misrepresentation, that knowingly or recklessly misleads, or attempts to mislead, a party to obtain financial or other benefits, or to avoid an obligation.”
More about affected companies
China Railway Construction (International) Nigeria Company Limited is involved in the construction of the 186 kilometres single standard gauge tracks of the Abuja-Kaduna Railway.
The project is part of the $8.3 billion (N2.5 trillion) federal government rail modernisation programme, whose contract was awarded in 2010 to replace the existing narrow gauge system.
Although the contract was awarded initially in 2006, its implementation could not proceed due to funding constraints. In 2010, the contract was reviewed and broken into different stand alone segments.
The CRCC also won the $1.53 billion contract for the rehabilitation of the 312 kilometres double-track standard gauge Lagos-Ibadan rail line.
All the contracts were to be funded under a financing deal involving concessionary loans facilitated by the China export-import, EXIM, bank and the federal government.
China Railway 18th Bureau Nigeria Engineering Company Limited, with Registration No: N1000201800131), has its corporate office at Plot 60, Cadastral Zone B09, Kado District, Abuja.
Also, China Railway 18th Bureau Nigeria Company Limited, which specializes in the provision of heavy construction services, is another Chinese company operating in Nigeria and was along with China Railway Construction Electrification Bureau Group Company Limited, awarded the contract for the construction, housing and transportation Ministry of Railways to the Kano City Light Rail (1,2,3,4 line) in August 2016.
The other companies sanctioned by the World Bank include CCECC Nigeria Lekki FTA Company Limited which is involved in the ongoing development of infrastructure at the Lekki FTA in Lagos.
The World Bank also named CCECC Nigeria Railway Company Limited among the affected companies.
CRCC Petroleum & Gas Company Limited, with registration, an oil and gas subsidiary of the CRCC was also blacklisted by the World Bank.
At press time last night, none of these companies could be reached for comments as neither telephone calls nor text messages pulled their phones was replied.
