The  African Development Bank (AfDB) is strengthening its project verification and control tools in collaboration with the Office of Integrity and Anti-Corruption (PIAC), the institution said.

Quoted in a statement on her website on a recent webinar on international Anti-Corruption Day, the Director of the Department of Non-Sovereign Operations and Private Sector Support, Kodeidja Diallo, noted that in the face of the health situation, the Bank had created new tools for the verification and control of projects.

"We are trying to find standards during this difficult situation, but the Bank is especially strengthening these mechanisms with PIAC. We need to use internal resources to ensure that the Bank continues to maintain its values and integrity," she said.

For his part, the AfDB's Shareholder Relations Officer, Modibo Touré, on behalf of the Bank's President, Akinwumi Adesina, welcomed the contribution of experts to the reflection on the need for the fight against corruption in the context of Covid-19.

In this context, he added "we must be innovative to strengthen anti-corruption practices. Despite the challenges, we will continue to adapt our processes in order to carry out our projects in a corruption-free environment. We must be able to recover with integrity in the face of the pandemic," he concluded.

The international experts participating in this round table considered that the ground was "favorable to fraud and corruption, given the perpetual recourse to urgency", reports by the AfDB.

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For Sennye Obuseng, an economist and governance expert at Speck Dynamic (Botswana), mechanisms need to be strengthened to achieve transparent, regulation-based tenders.

In this regard, he stressed the need for strong, independent and courageous judicial institutions."If we want to protect public resources, there is no other way than to strengthen monitoring, evaluation and audit and accountability processes. Those who fight against fraud and corruption must create a culture of good citizens," he added.

Initiated by the AfDB's PIAC, the virtual roundtable focused on the theme "Restoring with Integrity. Adapting the fight against corruption to the new normal."

PIAC is responsible for the prevention, deterrence and investigation of corruption, fraud and other sanctionable practices in operations financed by the AfDB Group .