WASHINGTON, November 30, 2017—The World Bank Group announced the debarment for 2.5 years of Oberthur Technologies SA (Oberthur), a French digital security company (now part of a company called Idemia). The sanction relates to corrupt and collusive practices under the Identification System for Enhancing Access to Services Project (IDEA), a project designed to establish a secure, accurate and reliable national ID system in the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.
The sanction is part of a Negotiated Resolution Agreement (NRA) following the company’s acknowledgment of improper payments to a sub-contractor and collusive misconduct to obtain and modify bid specifications to narrow competition and secure the award of the contract.
The sanction reflects Oberthur’s extensive cooperation with the World Bank investigation, its voluntary acknowledgment of misconduct and the company’s proactivity in pursuing corrective action, including an internal investigation, while holding individuals connected with the misconduct accountable. The company also took preliminary steps to improve its governance and compliance procedures.
Under the terms of the NRA, Oberthur will not be eligible for any World Bank-financed contracts for the length of the sanction. The company commits to implementing an integrity compliance program that is consistent with the principles set out in the World Bank Group Integrity Compliance Guidelines, and agrees to continue its cooperation with the World Bank Group Integrity Vice Presidency.
The debarment of the company qualifies for cross-debarment by other MDBs under the Agreement of Mutual Recognition of Debarments that was signed on April 9, 2010.
