By John Ikani
The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group has announced an 18-month debarment of Rockey Africa Limited and its affiliates, including Aerospace Aviation, Eva-Top Agencies, Sony Commercial Agencies, Beta Trading Company and Madujey Global Services.
The Bank has also debarred for 24 months, Mr. Robert Kamau Wachira, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Rockey Africa Limited. The debarments take effect from August 5, 2021. All six companies are registered under the laws of the Republic of Kenya.
According to a statement issued by AfDB group, an investigation conducted by the Bank’s Office of Integrity and Anti-Corruption, established that Rockey Africa Limited, its above-named affiliates and Mr. Wachira, engaged in fraudulent practices in several tenders under the Support to Enhancement of Quality and Relevance in Higher Education, Science and Technology Project implemented in Kenya.
During the debarment periods, Rockey Africa Limited, its affiliates and Mr. Wachira will be ineligible to participate in Bank Group-financed projects. Additionally, this 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 periods, Rockey Africa Limited and its affiliates will only be eligible to resume participation in AfDB Group-financed projects after implementing integrity compliance programs consistent with the Bank’s guidelines; and in the case of Mr. Wachira, after completing an accredited business integrity training.
The Support to Enhancement of Quality and Relevance in Higher Education, Science and Technology Project is aimed at increasing the number of qualified and skilled engineers in line with Kenya’s Vision 2030 priorities for science, technology and innovation. The Project is co-financed by the African Development Fund, an entity of the African Development Bank Group and the Government of Kenya.
