Fraud: AfDB suspends Nigerian firm Maxicare for 3 years

Fraud: AfDB suspends Nigerian firm Maxicare for 3 years

The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has slammed a 36-month debarment on Maxicare Company (Nigeria) Limited.

In a statement titled ‘African Development Bank debars Maxicare Company (Nigeria) Limited for 36 months for collusive and fraudulent practices’, it said this took effect from 23 February 2021.

It stated that Maxicare Company was a limited liability company registered in Nigeria.

The statement said, “An investigation conducted by the Bank’s Office of Integrity and Anti-Corruption established that Maxicare Company (Nigeria) Limited engaged in collusive and fraudulent practices during a tender for the construction of weigh stations and supply of equipment under the Transport Facilitation Programme for the Bamenda-Mamfe-Abakaliki-Enugu Road Corridor connecting Cameroon and Nigeria.

The debarment renders Maxicare Company (Nigeria) Limited and its affiliates ineligible to participate in bank group-financed projects during the debarment period.

“Additionally, the debarment qualifies for cross-debarment by other multilateral development banks under the Agreement for Mutual Enforcement of Debarment Decisions, including the Asian Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Inter-American Development Bank and the World Bank Group.”

At the expiry of the debarment period, it stated, Maxicare Company would only be eligible to participate in bank group-financed projects on condition that it implemented an integrity compliance programme consistent with the bank’s guidelines.

“The Transport Facilitation Programme for the Bamenda-Mamfe-Abakaliki-Enugu Road Corridor is aimed at increasing trade and strengthening cooperation generally between the countries of the Economic Community of Central African States and those of the Economic Community of West African States and between Cameroon and Nigeria in particular,” it stated.

It added that it was co-financed by the African Development Fund, an entity of the African Development Bank Group.