Several of you, particularly Messrs Dampha and Touray, have raised the
issue of corruption in your reaction to the $500,000 grant from the AfDB to
The Gambia to help alleviate the suffering recently experienced by rural
population in NBD, CRD and URD.  Mr. Dampha and others wondered what the
AfDB is doing or can do to ensure that the resources provided are utilised
solely for the purposes for which they were intended.  Please find below
excerpts of AfDB policy on corruption/good governance applicable to all
RMCs, which, I hope, will partially answer some of your concerns, and help
allay fears:

“…the Agreement establishing the African Development Bank, requires…that
proceeds of any loan made or guaranteed by it are used ONLY (emphasis mine)
for the purposes for which the loan was granted, with due attention to
considerations of economy and efficiency.  The spirit of this requirement
broadly guided the rules of procedure for the procurement of goods and
services laid down by the Bank in 1980.  These rules and procedures were
significantly revised in 1996 and 1999.  It is now possible for the Bank to
cancel part of or an entire loan or grant if the procurement procedure is
tainted by acts of fraud or corruption.  Similarly, the Bank may SANCTION
(again, emphasis mine) a firm found guilty of fraud or corruption following
a special audit or judiciary decision.”

“ At the internal level, the Bank has earmarked resources, prepared
documentation and perfected procedures to ensure that the procurement
process is as transparent as possible, and enables a close monitoring in
which contracts financed with bank loan and grant resources are awarded.
Through the establishment of the Procurement Review Committee, the Bank can
at all times, receive and examine complaints by bidders who are not
satisfied with the way in which their bids were processed by borrowers or
executing agencies.  This Committee is INDEPENDENT and its decisions, which
can even lead to cancellation of the PROCUREMENT PROCESS or the financing,
are FINAL.”

“The Bank will remain alert to changes in international procurement
practices and adopt its own rules accordingly.  It will maintain permanent
dialogue with other international financial institutions and all
governmental and non-governmental organizations working towards greater
transparency in procurement.  It will also strengthen its role in
monitoring and ensuring effective use of the resources provided to member
countries, while remaining open to complaints from bidders, and organizing
reviews of current contract award procedures.”

The AfDB has cancelled several loan proceeds since the first review of the
policy in 1996 and several more after the second review in 1999 in member
countries due to corrupt practices and/or mis-procurement.  In the case of
the Gambia, the AfDB has never had the cause to revert to loan cancellation
due to either corruption and/or mis-procurement.  However, the AfDB has had
to, on at least one occasion that I am aware of, cancel the PROCUREMENT
PROCESS and ordered the executing agency to re-start the entire procurement
process to the satisfaction of the Bank.  The AfDB’s policy recognises that
the elements of good governance (creation of an enabling regulatory
framework and economic environment for genuine participation by members of
society, generation of legitimate demands and monitor government policies
and actions, framing of unambiguous laws that are uniformly applied through
an objective and independent judiciary etc., etc.) are complex concepts.
It recognises also that there are two distinct but closely related
dimensions: one is political and relates to genuine commitment to achieving
good governance; and the other technical, and relates to issues of
efficiency and public management.  Both of these must be addressed
sincerely to create a truly enabling environment where both public- and
private- sector operations can flourish and poverty reduced. (The language
employed in the final paragraph is a paraphrase of the AfDB Policy on Good
Governance, which I do not claim to be my own.)

NOTE: The Information Disclosure Policy of the AfDB empowers the Public
Information Centre of the Bank to serve the public of Member States through
the Communications Unit (COMU) of the Bank Group.  Information not for
restricted circulation can be obtained through COMU.

Sidi Sanneh

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