2 firms awarded Sh3.7b nets tender had failed KEMSA bid, senate told
By Mercy.Mwai, July 13, 2023
The scandal surrounding the Sh 3.7 billion Long-Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLINS) took a new twist yesterday after senators were shocked to learn that Global Fund (GF) awarded the tender to two companies that initially failed in the KEMSA bid.
The two companies, A to Z Textiles Mills Limited and Tianjin Yorkool International Trading Companies were among 17 others that failed to meet the threshold for the tender for the provision of mosquito nets.
National Treasury Principal Secretary Chris Kiptoo in a document tabled before the senate health committee chaired by Uasin Gishu senator Jackson Mandago confirmed that the two manufacturers were actually part of the 17 unsuccessful bidders.
When asked to indicate whether due diligence was carried out on the two bidders, Kiptoo said that following the decision to have the tender procured through Global Fund pooled mechanisms, due diligence was left to the Global Fund country team in Geneva.
Initial specifications
The decision by Global Fund to award the tender to the duo came after it terminated the earlier contract that it had given Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA) after it emerged that the authority had changed the initial specifications of the tender.
Reads the document: “These two manufacturers are part of the initial 17 bidders in the Kemsa tender no GF ATM MAL NFM-2022/2023 OIT -02 for the supply of long-lasting Insecticidal Nets.”
Global Fund, the documents show, decided to move the procurement to Global Fund Pooled Procurement Mechanisms website (wambo.org) after terminating the initial one with KEMSA following noted gaps in the procurement process, urgency of obtaining LLINS that need to arrive in time for the launch of the next mass campaign in November 2023 as well as due to the need to complete the LLIN mass campaign by the end of the grant, June 30, 2024.
Kiptoo who was accompanied by other ministry officials including a representative of the global fund however clarified that Global Fund is always free to change bidders whenever it wishes if it raises questions on the procurement strategy deployed.
“Global Fund if it has issues with any tender they can opt to raise questions about it all even pull out altogether. However, Kenya being among the only African countries benefiting from this and we need to resolve these issues as quickly as possible.” But in order to deal with the claims of irregularities in awarding the tender, Kiptoo said that they had rolled out e-procurement in government where all tenders will be advertised and issued electronically.