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Hertta-Maria Amutenja  The auditor general, Junias Kandjeke, has reported that the Tsandi Village Council breached the Public Procurement Act when it paid a consulting engineer more than N$1.49 million for services on a project initially awarded at N$326 176. In the report of the auditor general on the accounts of Tsandi Village Council for the financial years ended 30 June 2021 and 30 June 2022, the payments were found to have exceeded the 15% adjustment limit set by the Public Procurement Amendment Act of 2022. “On 09 July 2019, Tsandi Village Council awarded a contract with the cost value of N$326,176.80 (VAT inclusive) to a consulting engineer,” the report stated. On 16 July 2019, the council issued terms of reference for municipal services design and supervision for sewer, water, and electrical reticulation at Tsandi Extension 6.  The auditor general recorded that a project kick-off meeting between the client and the consultant led to agreements on expanding the scope of works. “The project scope was further refined to encompass both bulk and internal municipal services, comprising water, sewer, and electricity infrastructure,” the report said. A situational analysis identified further infrastructure needs.  “Through a comprehensive situational analysis, it was detected that Extension 6, situated on the outskirts of existing developed areas, necessitated the establishment of a sewer pump station,” the report stated. The council and the contractor agreed to divide the project into two phases. Phase 1 covered water and sewer services together with electricity infrastructure.  Phase 2 included construction of the sewer pump station and rising main services. Kandjeke recorded that the project was implemented through three separate contracts covering water and sewer works, electrical works, and the pump station with rising main. “At the end of the contract, the consulting engineer was paid a total of N$1,491,404.08 (including VAT) for various invoices, which is more than 15% of the initial awarded amount,” the report stated. The Public Procurement Amendment Act of 2022 limits such adjustments. Section 62(3) states that the adjustment of the contract price may not exceed 15%, except for reasons specified in section 36(2)(b) or (c) of the Act.  This indicates that direct procurement is allowed within the specified limits when additional works, not included in the initial contract, become necessary due to unforeseeable circumstances, and separating these additional works from the initial contracts would be technically or economically challenging. This was recorded in the report under the section “incurred expenditure contrary to the Public Procurement Act”.

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By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Federal Aviation Administration has failed to resolve persistent issues with SkyWest (NASDAQ:SKYW) Airlines’ maintenance practices, a government report said Thursday. The Transportation Department Office of Inspector General said SkyWest, the largest U.S. regional airline that operates flights for United Airlines , Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL), American Airlines (NASDAQ:AAL), and Alaska Airlines, said FAA safety inspectors have been unable to fully resolve issues pertaining to remote return to service maintenance practices for more than four years. SkyWest did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The audit said FAA inspectors found that SkyWest was "inappropriately deferring maintenance for minimum equipment list items, dispatching aircraft for flights without required inspections, and using pilots to perform maintenance tasks not approved in SkyWest’s maintenance manuals." Since 2021, the FAA has been working to resolve 32 issues at SkyWest. The report said at the time of the IG’s analysis, the FAA had resolved 26 issues but noncompliance persisted with SkyWest’s remote return to service maintenance practices. Even though several FAA inspectors identified similar systemic hazard issues, the agency did not initiate a systemic risk review until two years after issues were found. The report said FAA inspectors were frustrated their efforts were being delayed "and concerned that the airline’s remote maintenance practices could contribute to an accident." The FAA said it agrees with six of the seven recommendations and plans to implement them by July 2026. The FAA said it agreed delays in submissions can hinder safety assessments. In March 2020, an accident in New York revealed pilots were performing unauthorized maintenance procedures, the report said, adding in 2023, remote return to service maintenance actions may have resulted in flights that did not meet FAA safety or requirements. The report cited an aircraft released for flight without a required operational altimeter and another flight that included an improperly deferred fuel fault advisory message.

Justicia Shipena Six exclusive prospecting licences (EPLs) held by gold mining companies exceeded the legal seven-year renewal limit without ministerial approval.  This is one of several violations uncovered by a government audit released by the Office of the Auditor General. The audit reviewed the licenses and operations of QKR Namibia, Navachab Gold Mine, B2Gold Namibia, and Osino Gold Exploration and Mining.  It assessed their compliance with mineral licensing laws between the 2020/2021 and 2022/2023 financial years. Auditor general Junias Kandjeke said some companies failed to reduce their exploration areas during renewal as required.  The audit also found weak enforcement of licence conditions and poor oversight by the ministry of mines and energy. “The audit revealed notable deficiencies in the enforcement and compliance of mining licence terms and conditions, especially regarding the disclosure of beneficial ownership and obligations to promote local skills development,” Kandjeke said. QKR Namibia and B2Gold Namibia did not comply with section 50(e) of the Minerals Act. The act requires cooperation with local stakeholders for skills and technology development.  Meanwhile, QKR also failed to meet section 50(c) requirements for two consecutive years. The audit flagged transparency issues in ownership structures.  QKR Namibia’s ownership was listed as 92.5% multinational and 7.5% Namibian, but the company did not provide documents to confirm who owns the multinational share.  B2Gold’s official ownership is recorded as 90% Mauritian and 10% Namibian. The company claimed its parent company is Canadian but submitted no proof, according to Kandjeke.  The report noted that Osino missed the one-month deadline to accept extra licence conditions.  It also failed to submit a clear shareholding structure, raising questions about how local stakeholders will benefit. The report also found that the mines and energy ministry was also found to be non-compliant.  Kandjeke said the ministry could not provide documents that guide local participation, beneficiation, and research and development.  Only B2Gold consistently met capacity-building targets in all three years. QKR met the target in 2022/2023. Osino has not yet been evaluated, as it is still in the exploration stage. “It is essential that the ministry ensures the timely submission of documents, facilitates transparency in ownership structures, and fosters sustainable development through local beneficiation,” Kanjeke said. Namibia’s gold sector plays a vital economic role.  In 2023, gold output rose by 31%, reaching 9,800 kilograms. The sector’s GDP contribution grew from 9% in 2021 to 14.4% in 2023, driven by higher production from Navachab and Otjikoto mines.

Hertta-Maria Amutenja The Ministry of Health and Social Services spent over N$54.8 million through irregular emergency and direct procurement, despite laws limiting these methods to exceptional situations.  This is according to the latest audit report by Auditor General (AG) Junias Kandjeke. The report shows the ministry used emergency procurement to buy goods and services worth N$19.2 million, even though these items were already listed in its procurement plan.  Under the Public Procurement Act of 2015, this method is allowed only during disasters or wars or when lives or the environment are in danger.  The AG’s office found that the ministry did not meet these conditions. The audit notes that using emergency procurement in this way bypassed the standard process, which is meant to ensure fairness and transparency in public spending. The ministry also used direct procurement to spend N$35.6 million without inviting competitive bids.  This method is only allowed when a supplier has exclusive rights or no alternative is available.  However, the audit found that the ministry used this method often, even when alternatives existed. Kandjeke raised concerns about relying on single suppliers, saying it reduces competition and could lead to inflated prices. The audit also found the ministry exceeded its budget in one main division by N$66.9 million, or 2.35% of the total.  Despite Treasury approving some virements, the ministry still overspent by N$106.8 million across 15 operational and 5 development subdivisions.  This overspending was not authorised and violated the State Finance Act of 1991. Analyst Ndumba Kamwanyah said the findings point to a pattern of abuse. “The auditor general’s report shows over N$54 million was spent by the Ministry of Health through emergency and direct procurement. While emergency procurement is meant for true crises, it is often abused. This can lead to overpricing, poor quality goods, corruption, and misuse of public funds. In health care, such failures can directly harm people’s lives,” Kamwanyah said. He added that large amounts spent without competitive bidding suggest weak internal controls and possible manipulation of procurement rules. “This may only be the tip of the iceberg. To protect public funds and restore public trust, a fully independent presidential commission of inquiry is urgently needed,” he said. The ministry’s procurement practices have faced scrutiny before.  Last month, reports surfaced about overpayments for malaria medication, with documents showing large markups between supplier prices and what the government paid. Concerns were also raised about the purchase of drugs no longer recommended for use and whether the ministry was misled by middlemen. In 2023, the Central Procurement Board of Namibia (CPBN) came under fire for a proposed N$458 million medical supply tender.  In another case, a CPBN evaluator awarded a tender to a close corporation owned by a relative. The health ministry did not respond to requests for comment by the time of publication.