Business 20 March 2026 The Observer (Uganda)
World Bank Bans Three PwC Subsidiaries in Africa for 21 Months Over Corruption in Power Project
The World Bank and partners have imposed a 21-month ban on PwC Associates Africa Ltd, PwC Limited Kenya, and PwC Rwanda Limited after they admitted to fraudulently accessing confidential bid information for a $1.1 billion Ethiopia-Kenya electricity interconnection project. The debarment stems from collusive practices that gave the firms an unfair edge, with potential for early release based on compliance measures. Source: https://observer.ug/news/how-corruption-stripped-pwc-naked
Three subsidiaries of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in Africa face a 21-month exclusion from World Bank and partner projects following admissions of corrupt practices.
PwC Associates Africa Ltd (Mauritius), PwC Limited Kenya, and PwC Rwanda Limited confessed to obtaining confidential bid details for the $1.1 billion (Shs 41.6 trillion) Ethiopia-Kenya electricity interconnection project. This 1,068-km high-voltage line supports the Eastern Africa Power Pool (EAPP), enabling power exports from Ethiopian hydropower to Kenya and neighboring countries.
The EAPP unites 11 Eastern African nations—including Burundi, DRC, Djibouti, Egypt, Libya, Rwanda, Sudan, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda—to link grids, leverage excess capacity, and trade electricity amid 6-8% annual demand growth.
The World Bank enforces a strict zero-tolerance stance on corruption in contract awards, having barred over 1,000 entities since 2011. PwC’s cooperation led to a negotiated settlement, shortening the ban with conditions for early release.
As part of the deal, PwC pledged internal probes, disciplinary actions, ending ties with implicated sub-consultants, staff training, and enhanced integrity programs matching World Bank standards. They also paused bidding on Bank-financed contracts during talks.
The ban extends to partners like the African Development Bank ($354 million funding) and Agence Française de Développement (AFD). This could curb PwC’s donor-funded revenue and intensify oversight on Big Four firms in African infrastructure.
Uganda has seen similar World Bank actions, including debarments of Burhani Engineers Ltd (24 months, 2023) for misrepresenting experience in a rural energy project, Energoprojekt Niskogradnja (2.5 years, 2013) for road project fraud, and Ugandan firm Emmyways Engineering (3 years, 2019) for project misconduct. Others like Pioneer Construction Ltd and individuals faced bans for procurement issues.
These measures bar entities from World Bank contracts, often tied to integrity reforms.
Source: The Observer (Uganda)