Punish the NACA fraudsters

An investigative report of the Global Fund Grants to Nigeria released in May on the use of funds meant for health planning, research and statistics in the National Agency for the Control of HIV/AIDS revealed frauds that have put the integrity of the agency in doubt. The report says out of $4.03 million expended in […]

An investigative report of the Global Fund Grants to Nigeria released in May on the use of funds meant for health planning, research and statistics in the National Agency for the Control of HIV/AIDS revealed frauds that have put the integrity of the agency in doubt. The report says out of $4.03 million expended in Nigeria between 2010 and 2014, some $1.3 million was allegedly misappropriated.  The report said the funds were stolen in four different ways, including 1] Misrepresenting or inflating the amounts paid to hotel venues for meeting facilities and rooms; 2] Inflating and/or falsifying receipts related to Daily Subsistence Allowance entitlements, transportation expense to and from the venue, fuel and stationery; 3] Claiming expenditure for travel not undertaken; that in some instances Department of Planning, Research and Statistics [DPRS] of the Federal Ministry of Health’s staff colluded with and received kickbacks from hotels and suppliers; and 4] Inflating the number of attendees at a meeting or training or its duration.
The report said these frauds sailed through because DPRS, which received the grants, failed to implement the systems put in place for internal controls to safeguard grant funds from being stolen. The department’s Project Coordinator and Assistant Accountant, the report said, “were complicit in the schemes.” Also NACA, the principal recipient of the fund, did not monitor its disbursement. It says, “NACA failed to either recognize or address the indicators and risks of fraud. Some indicators that were recognized went unchallenged and there was no follow-up. Furthermore [NACA] did not audit annually its sub-recipients, which is required under the grant agreement.”
This fraud was perpetrated at a time when local funding for health has diminished. In 2014 and 2015, for instance, many departments and agencies in the Federal Ministry of Health did not receive much of the funds appropriated for capital projects. What the agencies depended upon were funds from foreign donors to tackle polio, malaria, maternal health, children health and other besetting health problems.  Global Funds figures show that Nigeria has an estimated 3.3 million people living with HIV. It ranks second in global HIV burden behind South Africa. Also, the burden of malaria cases in Nigeria is one-fourth of Africa’s and we account for one-third of malaria deaths in Africa.  Nigeria is also one of the 22 countries with 85% of the global tuberculosis burden. Under this atmosphere, it is criminal for officials to misappropriate funds set aside to tackle these challenges.
Though NACA has said it has initiated the process of ensuring that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) investigates and prosecutes those involved in the fraud, it is vital that this is done to a logical conclusion. We call on the anti-graft agency to do a thorough job and ensure those involved are punished according to the law. If this fraud is swept under the carpet, or if the judiciary does not dispense justice, the vital lessons that would serve as deterrents to other civil servants will not be learnt. As a result of fraud by civil servants in government agencies, the British Department for International Development (DFID), at a point, decided never again to disburse funds for developmental projects through government departments. It said it would prefer to help the country through credible Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs). In this case, Global Funds says its Local Funds Agents would now engage in routine spot checks to forestall fraud in future. Though this is the way to go, it shows that the organization has lost confidence in NACA, and, no doubt, other international donors may have begun to lose confidence in Nigeria and managers of the grants they provide, not only in the health sector, but in other areas where the country needs developmental support.  At a time of dwindling income, at a time when Nigeria needs whatever foreign support it could get, this is an ugly signal to those who are ready to help not to do so.