Thursday, March 28, 2024

World Bank sanctions Chinese engineering firms for corruption in Zambian power project

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The World Bank has sanctioned a Chinese state electric engineering group and its subsidiary over fraudulent practices in a power project in Zambia.

The action bars China Electric Design and Research Institute Co Ltd (CEDRI) from participating in World Bank projects for up to 18 months, with the ability to meet new compliance conditions and end the ban.

The firm’s parent company, China National Electric Engineering Co Ltd (CNEEC), was allowed to continue to participate in projects under a settlement agreement, but could be banned if it fails to meet agreed conditions, the bank said.

The sanctioned firms are contractors on the $210 million Lusaka Transmission and Distribution Rehabilitation Project which aims to reinforce and upgrade the power transmission and distribution network in Zambia’s capital.

“CEDRI engaged in fraudulent practices by failing to disclose a conflict of interest and by presenting false documents with CNEEC’s company name in order to meet the requirements of a contract under the project,” the World Bank said in a statement.

“CNEEC, as a controlling affiliate of CEDRI, failed to oversee CEDRI’s misconduct.”

The debarment of CEDRI also disqualifies the firm from participating in projects of other multilateral development banks, the World Bank said.

The settlement agreements allow for the sanctions period to be reduced from 18 months if both companies cooperate and adhere to the World Bank’s integrity compliance guidelines.

18 COMMENTS

  1. What a surprise. Zambia. China. Corruption. These days those three words seem to always go together… and we are selling our country to them.
    What a disgrace.

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  2. Why don’t we just adopt the World Bank Integrity Compliance Guidelines as one of the ways of showing seriousness in combatting corruption?

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  3. Why should world bank start involving China who is helping so much in a rich country called Zambia and world calls us poor what’s their interest in Zambia colonialism ended long time ago Zambia is a sovereign state and can make independent decisions let’s stand firm its one way of to start colonising us again and we know that the so called developed countries come to take our natural resources for a song Africans Wake up

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  4. If Zambia is a sovereign nation, it will punish this corruption by Chinese companies. If it won’t, then everyone knows where the sovereignty has gone.

  5. A company has been found wanting and yet some monkey here will say pf is corrupt. Since when was pf government a Chinese company

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  6. There is no evidence available as far as the Zambian side is concerned. If so, we will drag the culprits to court and have them acquitted. We have no time for nonsense here! There are 48 houses that are busy building themselves and if you stop disturbing there will soon be 96… no vundu bakaamba

  7. Iwe Zulu now I can confirm that you are a diasporan. Everyone who lives in Chambia knows PF can’t be separated from the Chinese Companies

  8. @KZ, I have a civil question and I hope you will give me a civil answer.

    *Name 2 areas where the PF government has failed and 2 areas where they have succeeded?*

  9. @KZ you could have named 2. There’s no system, government, religious, industrial, political, environmental etc that has never failed. Name 2 areas the PF has failed?

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