The World Bank Group announced on Wednesday, March 18, a 21-month debarment, with conditional release, of PricewaterhouseCoopers Associates Africa Ltd., PricewaterhouseCoopers Limited, Kenya, and PricewaterhouseCoopers Rwanda Limited for collusive and fraudulent practices linked to the Eastern Electricity Highway Project in Ethiopia.
The project, part of the First Phase of the Eastern Africa Power Integration Program, aimed to expand electricity supply in Kenya and generate revenue for Ethiopia through exports.
Investigations found that the PwC firms improperly obtained confidential procurement information in 2019 to influence consultancy contract awards and misrepresented the qualifications and employment of key experts under the Ethiopian Electric Utility Fixed Asset Inventory and Revaluation (EEU FAIR) contract.
As part of a settlement, the companies admitted to misconduct, cooperated with the Bank Group, and implemented voluntary remedial measures, including internal investigations, staff training, ceasing business with implicated subconsultants, and strengthening compliance programs.
The debarment prohibits the firms and their affiliates from participating in Bank Group-financed projects and qualifies for cross-debarment under the 2010 Agreement for Mutual Enforcement of Debarment Decisions among multilateral development banks. The regional PwC oversight entity, PricewaterhouseCoopers Africa Limited, was not sanctioned, as it provides coordination and compliance oversight for member firms.