World Bank bans Serbian contractor for fraud

Serbian contractor Energoprojekt Niskogradnja has been debarred from winning World Bank projects for 2.5 years after admitting fraud on a Bank-financed road and development project in Uganda.

The ban is part of a negotiated resolution agreement between Energoprojekt and the Bank following an investigation by the World Bank Integrity Vice Presidency.

The World Bank said this debarment qualified for cross-debarment by other development Banks – including the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development – under the 2010 Agreement of Mutual Recognition of Debarments.

World Bank Integrity Vice President Leonard McCarthy said the Energoprojekt case was another example of why fighting corruption mattered for the World Bank as well as for companies that are engaged in development projects.

“Clean business is smart business. We will pursue our efforts to maximise the value of infrastructure development,” he said.

In 2012, the World Bank debarred 83 companies and individuals, bringing the total number of banned entities to 541.