WASHINGTON, November 20, 2019 — The World Bank today announced the 15-month debarment of Jiangxi Geo-Engineering (Group) Corporation (Jiangxi GE) in connection with fraud in the World Bank-financed Heilongjiang Cold Weather Smart Public Transportation System project in the People’s Republic of China. Jiangxi GE is a state-owned enterprise organized under the laws of the People’s Republic of China.
The debarment makes Jiangxi GE ineligible to participate in World Bank-financed projects during the sanction period. It is part of a settlement agreement under which the company acknowledges responsibility for the underlying sanctionable practices and agrees to meet specified corporate compliance conditions as a condition for release from debarment. Consistent with standard practice, the company’s 14 wholly-owned subsidiaries have also been debarred.
The project, which will close in 2020, was designed to upgrade the quality and efficiency of public transport services in selected public transport corridors in the cities of Harbin and Mudanjiang, China.
According to the facts of the case, to fulfill the experience requirement for bidding, Jiangxi GE submitted a falsified completion certificate of a previous outside contract. In an attempt to mislead the bid evaluation committee and the project management office, the certificate falsely asserted that the company had completed this outside contract. This is a fraudulent practice under the World Bank Procurement Guidelines. The company did not ultimately win the contract for the Heilongjiang Cold Weather Smart Public Transportation System project.
The settlement agreement provides for a reduced period of sanction in light of the company’s cooperation and voluntary remedial actions. As a condition for release from sanction under the terms of the settlement agreement, the company commits to adopt bid policies and complete corporate ethics training consistent with the principles set out in the World Bank Group Integrity Compliance Guidelines. The company also commits to continue to fully cooperate with the World Bank Group Integrity Vice Presidency.
The debarment of Jiangxi GE qualifies for cross-debarment by other multilateral development banks (MDBs) under the Agreement for Mutual Enforcement of Debarment Decisions that was signed on April 9, 2010.
