Sri Lanka fall behind in blacklisting corrupt contractors: Verité Research

Sri Lanka has the worst record among South Asian countries in blacklisting corrupt contractors in public procurement, according to a new report by Verité Research.

The report emphasises the importance of urgently fixing these gaps to combat corruption and restore fiscal governance

Sri Lanka has the worst record among South Asian countries in blacklisting corrupt contractors in public procurement, according to a new report by Verité Research.

The report shows that Sri Lanka is the only country in South Asia that 1) does not recognise engaging in corrupt and fraudulent activities during procurement as a valid reason for blacklisting 2) has not blacklisted contractors that have defaulted on contractual obligations despite having the provisions to do so.

The first issue can be attributed to gaps in the procurement guidelines of 2006, which govern almost all public procurement in Sri Lanka — except in a few instances such as pharmaceutical procurement.

The report emphasises the importance of urgently fixing these gaps to combat corruption and restore fiscal governance.

The second issue – not blacklisting defaulting contractors – shows a lack of compliance with existing regulations. Sri Lanka has provisions not only to blacklist defaulting contractors, but also to publish their names on a public, online database.