Monrovia – An audit by the Normal Auditing Fee (GAC) has uncovered widespread monetary mismanagement and attainable misappropriation within the Ministry of Agriculture’s administration of the Liberia Emergency Meals Manufacturing Program, often known as the Emergency Rice Manufacturing Offensive (ERPO).
By Selma Lomax, [email protected]
The challenge was funded by the African Improvement Financial institution (AfDB) via a mixture of loans and grants totaling US$5,288,529.59 in 2023.
The audit, which lined fiscal years 2023 and 2024, has been submitted to each the Nationwide Legislature and the African Improvement Financial institution. Its findings increase severe issues about transparency, accountability, and the correct use of public and donor funds.
Throughout discipline visits to Bong, Gbarpolu, and Margibi counties, GAC auditors tried to confirm 114 farms listed within the challenge database. Nonetheless, the report states that auditors had been unable to confirm 81 of these farms attributable to inadequate data supplied by District Agriculture Officers, County Agriculture Coordinators, and Regional Agriculture Coordinators.
“The GAC couldn’t confirm 81 out of a pattern of 114 farms listed on the challenge database as a result of restricted data obtainable in regards to the places of the farms from District Agriculture Officers, County Agriculture Coordinators, and Regional Agriculture Coordinators,” the report famous.
In consequence, the existence of the farm lands and the implementation of the authorised farming actions couldn’t be confirmed.
The audit additionally discovered that US$633,000.00 was disbursed to guide farmers for onward distribution to sub-farmers. Nonetheless, there was no documentation or proof exhibiting that the cash reached the meant sub-farmers or that the farms existed.
“The GAC obtained no proof of subsequent remittance of funding to sub-farmers and places of the sub-farms,” the report acknowledged. “In consequence, the GAC couldn’t validate the completeness and accuracy of remittances of authorised funding to sub-farmers nor may the GAC validate the existence of authorised farming actions at most sub-farms.”
The auditors additional famous that the Ministry disbursed the preliminary 50 p.c of funds to farmers with out first conducting the required complete evaluation of their capability or verifying whether or not they had entry to the land measurement they’d declared. The report acknowledged:
“There was no proof of complete and satisfactory pre-assessment of farmers’ capability and management over the required farm land measurement declared by farmers as required, earlier than disbursement of the preliminary 50% of funding.”
Moreover, when it got here time to launch the second installment of 30 p.c of funding, farmers had been nonetheless unable to display that they’d planted rice on the preliminary hectares of land as claimed. Regardless of this, the Ministry proceeded with the disbursement of funds based mostly on what the GAC described as unexplained administration discretion.
“Evaluation carried out earlier than the following disbursement of the 30% funding to farmers revealed that farmers didn’t show cultivation of rice on the preliminary hectares of land declared. In consequence, Administration discretionarily facilitated disbursement of the required 30% funding. The premise of the disbursement was not established by the GAC,” the report added.
The audit additionally revealed procurement and documentation irregularities. Expenditures totaling US$168,169.00 in FY 2023 and US$22,838.00 in FY 2024 lacked primary supporting paperwork resembling fee vouchers, invoices, and supply notes.
Additional evaluation by the GAC confirmed important value inflation in gadgets bought below the challenge in comparison with unbiased market costs. In 2023, the Ministry procured three reaper harvesters for US$58,500. Nonetheless, the GAC’s unbiased market survey confirmed the identical gadgets ought to have value solely US$10,000, a distinction of US$48,500.
In one other occasion, in 2024 the Ministry bought 5,500 models of NPK 15-15-15 fertilizer at US$65 every, totaling US$357,500. The GAC’s market survey priced the same amount at US$42 per unit, amounting to US$231,000, reflecting a distinction of US$126,500.
When it comes to bodily belongings, the GAC reported that fastened belongings valued at US$82,430.00 couldn’t be discovered throughout a verification train. These belongings had been additionally not recorded within the challenge’s Mounted Belongings Register. Moreover, there was no proof of the existence of agricultural tools resembling harvesters valued at US$36,300.00 and energy saws value US$6,800.00, which had been reportedly bought to be used by beneficiary farmers.
A photograph included within the audit confirmed a dilapidated harvester parked on the Ministry of Agriculture’s Monrovia workplace, additional highlighting the difficulty of poor asset administration.
The audit additionally pointed to main weaknesses in stock management. There was no guide or automated stock administration system to watch agricultural inputs valued at US$760,000.00 in FY 2023 and US$508,460.00 in FY 2024. The absence of such a system meant there was no clear monitoring of things ordered, acquired, distributed, or remaining in inventory.
In FY 2023, US$240,000.00 was disbursed for the acquisition of upland rice agri-inputs. Nonetheless, the GAC discovered no proof of their receipt, storage, or distribution. Equally, in FY 2024, the Ministry bought paddy rice value US$30,000.00 from native farmers, transferring the quantity to the MOA–Liberia Feed Your self Agenda Paddy Rice account. But once more, the GAC discovered no documentation exhibiting that the rice was saved or distributed.
The audit findings paint a troubling image of how public and donor funds had been dealt with below the ERPO challenge. The GAC concluded that there have been severe lapses in monetary administration, procurement, and accountability.
The report has been formally submitted to the Nationwide Legislature and the African Improvement Financial institution for applicable motion. It requires additional investigation and corrective measures to make sure correct utilization of donor assist and safeguard the way forward for meals safety interventions in Liberia.
