Malawi’s government has awarded China Railway 20 Bureau Group Corporation an over US$ 84M contract to design, restore, and upgrade the Marka-Bangula Railway line, according to the Ministry of Transport and Public Works.
The contract was initially given to Mota Engil, a Portuguese group in the sectors of civil construction, public works, port operations, waste, water, and logistics, but the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) stopped the granting of the agreement in September last year. This came following a complaint citing anomalies and potential corruption in the procurement process.
Dispute over Marka-Bangula Railway Section Tender
The Bureau stated in December that its investigation into the deal discovered that the evaluation team significantly deviated from the requirements of the bidding document when evaluating the bids, which was in violation of the provisions of the Public Procurement and Disposal of Assets Act and the Bidding Document for this contract.
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The Bureau then directed the Ministry of Transport and Public Works to re-evaluate the final three bids with a different team from the one that conducted the first study where Mota-Engil won the bid with the lowest price, beating out two other bidders: China Railway 20 and China Civil Engineering.
Residents lack faith in China Railway 20 Bureau Limited
China Railway 20 was also granted the slightly over US$ 13.6 Nsanje-Marka Road project contract in Nsanje, Southern Region of Malawi. The business began constructing the 26-kilometer tarmac road in 2019, but neighborhood residents have expressed concerns about the project.
During a trip organized by the Centre for Democracy and Economic Development Initiatives (CDEDI) on Thursday, community residents reported schools and rural health centers had been swept away by water that CR20 redirected to the facilities during construction. Because of the inadequate work previously done on their roadways, community people raised concerns about the condition of the Marka-Bangula Railway Section.
