REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON LEGAL AFFAIRS, GOVERNANCE, HUMAN RIGHTS, GENDER MATTERS AND CHILD AFFAIRS FOR THE

FIRST SESSION OF THE ELEVENTH NATIONAL ASSEMBLY APPOINTED ON FRIDAY, 21 OCTOBER, 2011

Consisting of:

Mr J J Mwiimbu, MP (Chairperson); Mr S Chisanga, MP; Mrs S T Masebo, MP; Mr Mushili Malama, MP; Mr L Mulusa, MP; Mr S Mushanga, MP; and Mr C Miyutu, MP;

The Honourable Mr Speaker National Assembly Parliament Buildings P O Box 31299 LUSAKA

Sir, Your Committee has the honour to present its Report for the First Session of the Eleventh National Assembly. Functions of the Committee 2. In addition to any other duties placed upon it by Mr Speaker or any Standing Order or any other order of the Assembly, the duties of the Committee on Legal Affairs, Governance, Human Rights, Gender Matters and Child Affairs are as follows: (a) to study, report and make appropriate recommendations to the Government through the House on the mandate, management and operations of the Government ministries, departments and/or agencies under its portfolio; (b) to carry out detailed scrutiny of certain activities being undertaken by the Government ministries, departments and/or agencies under its portfolio and make appropriate recommendations to the House for ultimate consideration by the Government; (c) to make, if considered, necessary recommendations to the Government on the need to review certain policies and/or certain existing legislation; and (d) to consider any Bills that may be referred to it by the House. Meetings of the Committee 3. During the year under review, your Committee held eleven meetings.

In line with its programme of work, your Committee considered the topic: Public Sector Corruption: The Procurement Process of Goods and Services in Zambia. 1

Procedure Adopted by the Committee 4. During the course of their deliberations, your Committee considered and adopted the programme of work set out below. Consideration of the Action-Taken Report (ATR) 5. The Committee considered the Action-Taken Report on the Report of the Committee for the Fifth Session of the Tenth National Assembly. Objective The purpose of this activity was to review the responses of the Executive to the previous Committees report with a view to closing those matters that would have been dealt with or responded to satisfactorily. In cases where your Committee was not satisfied with the responses or action taken, your Committee would have an opportunity to make further recommendations for action. CONSIDERATION OF TOPICAL ISSUE Your Committee considered the topic: Public Sector Corruption: The Procurement Process of Goods and Services in Zambia. Background 6. The scourge of corruption has in the last decade received so much publicity in both the private and public media in Zambia. It is generally agreed that different forms of corruption exist in both the private and the public sector, albeit, public sector corruption is said to have become endemic, thereby becoming very difficult to detect and control. In developing economies generally, corruption has become pervasive, hence leading to a growing belief that public sector corruption is the greatest obstacle to achieving steady growth in an economy, as it deprives the Government, of resources needed to undertake infrastructure development and to provide goods and services for the governed. In Zambia, it has been revealed that corruption in public institutions is rife and keeps increasing, leading to less confidence among citizens that anything tangible is being done to fight the scourge. (TIZ: Bribe payers Index 2009). In light of the foregoing it was, therefore, important for your Committee to inquire into this matter and make appropriate recommendations to the Government, as to how public sector corruption can be curbed. Objectives 7. (a) The purpose of the study is as follows: to appreciate the extent of public sector corruption in Zambia with respect to procurement and award of contracts for services; to analyse the procedures or stages involved in the process of procuring public goods and services and awarding of contracts for services under the Public Procurement Act; 2

(b)

(c)

to assess the impact on the economy, of public sector corruption in the procurement process; to understand the challenges, if any, that are being encountered in so far as curbing public sector corruption is concerned; to understand government institutional arrangements in the fight against corruption; and to recommend possible solutions to the challenges identified.

(d) (e) (f)

PART I CONSIDERATION OF THE TOPIC; PUBLIC SECTOR CORRUPTION: PROCUREMENT PROCESS OF GOODS AND SERVICES IN ZAMBIA.

THE

8. Corruption is continually revealed in numerous areas of public affairs including public procurement, which creates greater temptations or offers more opportunities for corruption because of the large amounts of public funds, which are directed towards the public procurement of goods, services and works required by Government agencies and departments. When corruption takes place in the public procurement process, it is referred to as public procurement corruption. It entails deliberate failure to follow the expected minimum standard of behaviour in managing the procurement process by Government Agencies and Departments. Corruption takes place once the procurement laws and regulations are broken for the benefit of an individual or group of individuals against the public interest. Public procurement corruption therefore, could be defined as the offering, giving, receiving or soliciting; directly or indirectly, of anything of value to influence the action of a public official in the procurement process or in contract execution or the abuse of authority by bureaucratic officials who exploit their powers of discretion, delegated to them by the government, to further their own interests by engaging in illegal, or unauthorised activities (World Bank; Guidelines: Procurement of Goods and services, (2004). In light of the above and in view of general public perception that public procurement corruption had become entrenched in Zambia, your Committee undertook a study of corruption in the procurement process of public goods and services in Zambia. To assist your Committee to fully appreciate the subject under consideration, your Committee invited the following to provide both written and oral submissions: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) (vii) (viii) (ix) (x) (xi) (xii) (xiii) The Director General, Anti Corruption Commission; The Commissioner, Drug Enforcement Commission; The Director General, Zambia Public Procurement Authority; The Auditor General; The Inspector General, Zambia Police Force; The Executive Director, Transparency International; The President, Law Association of Zambia; The Executive Director, Zambia Competition and Consumer Protection; The President, Zambia Institute of Purchase and Supply; The Executive Director, Caritas Zambia; The President, Zambia National Farmers Union; The Executive Director, Zambia Federation of Employers; The President, Zambia Chamber of Commerce and Industry; 3

(xiv) (xv)

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice; The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance and National Planning.

SUMMARY OF SUBMISSIONS BY WITNESSES 9. In summary, the stakeholders who appeared before your Committee made submissions as set out hereunder. (a) The Procurement System in Zambia According to the Public Procurement Act No. 12 of 2008, all procurement business is coordinated by the Zambia Public Procurement Authority (ZPPA). The Authority is an independent body with responsibility for policy, regulation, standard setting, compliance and performance monitoring, professional development and information management and dissemination in the field of public procurement. In terms of administration, the Authority has a governing board, which is chaired by the Minister responsible for Finance. There is also the Central Tender Committee (CTC), which is chaired by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance. The CTC has the power to ensure that all procurements submitted by procurement entities for its prior authorisation are conducted according to the Procurement Act. The CTC is therefore, the highest approvals authority, to which all procurement entities, submit procurements above their authorised thresholds. The ZPPA also has an Inspectorate Unit mandated by the Public Procurement Act, to monitor the procurement performance of procurement entities. A procurement entity, such as a Ministry or a Government Spending Agency, is responsible for the management of all procurement activities within its jurisdiction and consists of a Controlling Officer or Chief Executive Officer, a procurement committee, procurement unit and user departments. The Controlling Officer or Chief Executive, apart from ensuring that the Act is adhered to in all procurements, has the responsibility to among others, appoint the members of a procurement committee and be the chairperson of the committee. According to section 20 of the Public Procurement Act No. 12 of 2008, every procurement entity is obliged to establish a procurement unit responsible for managing all procurement activities of the entity in accordance with the Act, and obtaining all required approvals from the appropriate approvals authority, amongst other things. (b) The Procurement Cycle and Incidences of Corruption in the Cycle The procurement cycle consists of the following phases:

(i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v)

needs assessment phase or demand determination phase, preparation or process design and bid documents preparation phase, contractor selection or award phase, contract implementation phase, and final accounting and auditing phase.

According to the stakeholders who made submission before your Committee, corruption could take place at any stage or phase of the procurement cycle as outlined below.

(a) Needs Assessment Phase/Demand Determination During this stage, the investment, purchase or demand is unnecessary or is induced so that a particular institution could make a deal, but is of little or no value to the concerned government, agency or society at large. Additionally, goods or services that are needed are overestimated to favour a particular provider. To detect corruption at this stage, the critical issue is to make sure that the goods and services to be purchased or the investment to be made, is socially and economically justified and the best of the various alternatives are chosen to meet the assessed need. (b) Preparation Phase/Process Design and Bid Documents Preparation At this stage, bidding documents or terms of reference are designed to favour a particular provider so that competition is not possible or restricted. The goods or services needed are over or underestimated to favour a particular bidder. Sometimes there is unnecessary complexity of bidding documents or terms of reference, which are used to create confusion to hide corrupt behaviour and make monitoring difficult. In other instances, the design consultants prepare a design that favoures a particular bidder or the grounds for direct contracting or single sourcing are abused. (c) Contractor Selection and Award Phase During this stage decision makers are biased and bribes, kickbacks, or conflicts of interest are common. The selection criteria are subjective in ways that allow biases to play a role and remain unattended. An advantage to a particular bidder is granted through the exchange of confidential information before bid submission or during the clarification period where clarifications are not shared with all the bidders. In other instances, the grounds of the selection of the winner of the bid are not made public and there is unnecessary delay between receipt of bids and evaluation. (d) Contract Implementation Phase During this stage, contractors that have won bids would compensate their winning a contract with poor quality workmanship, defective or different specifications than those contracted. Faulty or subspecification work execution, requiring early repairs or expensive correction, are common place. The resultant contract renegotiation or change orders introduce substantial changes to the contract, often in small increments that could be decided by a site engineer. Price increases during execution through change orders reflecting changes in specifications or cost increases are common place and are facilitated often by collusion between corrupt contractor and corrupt control official. In addition, Contract supervisors or monitors are bought or are not independent and willing to justify false or inexistent claims. (e) Final Accounting and Audit (When Applicable) Under this phase, Accountants doing final accounts and audits are biased and willing to support false certificates. The stakeholders also submitted to your Committee that the early and late stages of the procurement cycle were increasingly exposed to corruption. Among the most important areas of increased risk were: limited or restricted access to information; abuse of exceptions to open public bidding; limited or 5

ineffective control and monitoring within the contracting process and particularly during the contract implementation phase; and deficiencies and lack of transparency during the budget phase. (c) The Effects of Corruption in the Procurement Process on National Development With regard to the effects of public sector corruption, the stakeholders identified the issues set out hereunder. Economic Effects (a) Financial impact: this consists of unnecessarily high cost of purchases, burdening a government with financial obligations for purchases or investments that are not needed and early repair costs to repair and maintain investments, diverting budgetary resources away from the provision of public goods, works and services. Economic impact: this consists in burdening a government with operational, maintenance and debt servicing liability for investments or purchases and when capital investment levels decrease because of corruption costs and threats to business operators. Lack of competition: this leads to the neglect of innovation. Corrupt institutions would not spend resources on innovation, and non-corrupt companies felt less inclined to make the necessary investments if they could not access markets due to corruption. Corruption by corrupt bidders, damages and possibly destroys the honest competitor and leads to job losses on the part of an economic operator who is better and more innovative. Increased cost of doing business: exaggerated high prices led to high cost of procurement of products. Weakened institutional capacity. Serious danger to economic development: If a government commonly allowed corruption in the context of purchases and investments, often, projects are selected not on merit but by the amount of bribe payments made. Due to this a country would soon end up squandering investment opportunities and external development assistance, thus seriously retarding the countrys economic development.

(b)

(c)

(d)

(e)

(f) (g)

Social Effects (a) Environmental effect: This includes bad choices, which have adverse environmental impact. Non-compliance with the countrys (or international) environmental standards, could have environmental or health risks or long-term adverse impact on the environment. Effect on health and human safety: damage could consist of human health and safety risks due to quality defects, environmentally unacceptable investments or non compliance with environmental or health standards.

(b)

Cultural Effects (a) Erosion of values: When people observe lack of concern for integrity and common good and corrupt behaviour is not being sanctioned; officials in the government easily reduce their own integrity standards. Erosion of trust in Government: When people observe that corrupt behaviour among government officials is not being penalised, they conclude quickly that government in general is not to be trusted and that cheating government is morally acceptable.

(b)

(d) Governments Institutional Framework and Reforms to Fighting Corruption With regard to what Governments institutional arrangements in fighting corruption were, the stakeholders submitted that the institutional framework for anti-corruption in Zambia comprised law enforcement agencies, oversight institutions and political and socio-economic programmes and institutional reforms. However, issues of public sector corruption in procurement and award of contracts were dealt with by the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC), which was mandated to enforce the Anti Corruption Act as the principal anti-corruption institution. Some oversight institutions involved in the fight against corruption include:

(a) the Zambia Police Service, which is tasked to maintain law and order; (b) the Anti-Money Laundering Authority and Anti-Money Laundering Investigations Unit ( hosted
by the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC), which is an inter-agency unit tasked with combating money laundering in Zambia;

(c) the Office of the Auditor General, which monitors expenditure of public resources with respect to
the purposes for which Parliament appropriated them;

(d) the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly, which examines the financial
management of accounting officers of the public service, state owned enterprises and statutory institutions, whose accounts were audited by the Office of the Auditor General;

(e) the Commission for Investigations or Ombudsman, which inquires into the conduct of any public
office holder in the exercise of his/her office or authority; and

(f) the Judicial Complaints Authority, which is mandated to investigate allegations of misconduct
against Judicial officers. In terms of institutional reforms in the fight against corruption, the key one, which is relevant to anticorruption, is the Public Service Reform Programme (PSRP). These institutional reforms and programmes target capacity building in Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) whose mandate include anti-corruption, law and order, regulation and oversight, and, public service delivery of goods and services to the general public. The PSRP targets efficient, transparent and accountable provision of public goods and services, which interventions reduce opportunities for corruption. The PSRP provides institutional and social interventions at public points of service delivery, as it introduces elements of accountability, simplification of operations to reduce errors and opportunities to conceal corruption, and changes in work 7

attitudes and culture. Further, the Sixth National Development Plan for Zambia (2011 - 2016) under the governance chapter and sub chapter on transparency and accountability, spells out interventions seeking to result in a significant reduction in corruption in Zambia. Your Committee was also informed that the Ministry of Finance and National Planning is the custodian of all government funds and as such it is at the centre of government expenditure. The Ministry therefore, ensures that the institutions that are charged with the role of fighting corruption are financially supported by funding them adequately. All Internal auditors are under Ministry of Finance and National Planning and seconded to all Ministries, Provinces and Spending Agencies (MPAs). This entails that the Internal Audit Department has presence in all MPAs; for the purpose of ensuring that internal controls with regard to public resources exist and are complied with as required by law and other regulations. The Ministry of Finance and National Planning through the Internal Auditor checks the adequacy, effectiveness, and efficiency of internal controls before payments for goods and services are made. They also check for the adherence to the ZPPA procurement procedures and carry out their investigations if they were in doubt of the values of the quotations submitted by procurement personnel. The Ministry of Finance and National Planning, under section 12 of the Public Finance Act No. 15 of 2004, has established Audit Committees in all MPSAs in order to re-enforce good governance practices in the Public Sector, including the procurement process for goods and services. Audit Committee members are appointed by the Secretary to the Treasury from within the public and the private sector for the purpose of establishing relevant performance measures and indicators to monitor the effectiveness of implementing the recommendations from internal audit by Controlling Officers. The Audit Committees further produce reports based on their findings in MPAs for the Secretary to the Treasury, which include internal control and make appropriate recommendations for sanctions as recommended in the Public Finance Act. The Ministry of Finance, through the Public Procurement Act, has established the ZPPA as an oversight body. The legal framework defines clearly the responsibilities of the ZPPA, which include ensuring that procedures are complied with and to monitor the public procurement system and recommend improvements. Further, the Public Procurement Act, requires that ZPPA shall co-operate with other organs exercising oversight functions over public procurement in Zambia and may, for that purpose, establish mechanisms for sharing information and working jointly with the organs listed above. (e) Challenges in Curbing Corruption in the Procurement Process With regard to challenges encountered in curbing public sector corruption, witnesses submitted to your Committee as set out below.

(a)

Notwithstanding the passing of the Public Interest Disclosure (Protection of Whistleblowers) Act No. 4 of 2010, there were very few public sector employees who would immediately report an alleged act of corruption to law enforcement agencies such as the Anti Corruption Commission, especially if this act had been committed by their superiors for fear of reprisals. Hence, certain acts of corruption in the public service go unnoticed and unreported;

(b)

The law enforcement agencies have inadequate man power and financial resources to effectively carry out their operations and their functions as required by the law. For example, the public sector in Zambia was very big, but the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) only had presence in provincial headquarters. Hence, certain alleged acts of corruption that needed immediate attention, especially in the public service in remote parts of the country were difficult to address. It was difficult for people in these parts of the country to find comprehensive ways of reporting acts of corruption to the ACC. Due to limited funds there was hardly any training conducted by the Zambia Public Procurement Authority (ZPPA) to other institutions. As a result the majority of procurement officers in most procurement entities were ill equipped to effectively advise their procurement committees on best practices and rules and procedures to follow in all procurements. This was coupled with poor remuneration for public workers generally, which made them susceptible to receiving bribes. Due to low salaries for procurement staff in the public service in general, Government was faced with inadequate human resource because it was not able to retain qualified and experienced staff, who were usually trained at a high cost to Government. From time to time there was political interference, especially in the procurement of big capital projects. Stakeholders cited the composition of both the ZPPA Board and the Central Tender Committee as being filled with presidential appointees, who could easily be influenced by the Appointing Authority to achieve a desired end, with no regard to the provisions of the Public Procurement Act. There was a lack of advanced Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) infrastructure and training. The world was now a global village and most of the transactions including complex corrupt transaction were done electronically, hence there was urgent need for proper ICT infrastructure and capacity building in law enforcement officers to operate and understand the ICT. The law relating to procurement was currently not in line with international standards and best practices such as the 2011 United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Procurement, which allows government purchasers to take advantage of modern commercial techniques, such as electronic procurement (eprocurement). There was a general lack of good management and accountability by public officials in the use of public funds. This was attributed to moral decadence, inadequate qualified staff to perform the procurement function and lack of professional ethics among procurement staff. Most Government Agencies lacked clear procurement plans and failed to follow procurement plans. This renders the process difficult and open to abuse. This resulted in a loss of interest in developing new plans. In most instances, these plans were underfunded, which further dampened the interest of the government departments. Participation by key stakeholders such as civil society and the private sector in the procurement of goods and services was very minimal. These key players were vital to the process because they enhanced transparency as they were free of political influence.

(c)

(d)

(e)

(f)

(g)

(h)

(i)

(j)

Local traders, suppliers, consultants, contractors, architects and engineers had not built enough capacity to participate in tenders advertised internationally and locally particularly when the values were big. Local suppliers and contractors often did not have the capacity to raise credit, bid bonds and securities from local banks and insurance companies considering that they had high interest rates. Other capacity issues were in terms of systems and processes within the country. There was a tendency to use non competitive processes in big procurements, such as single source contracting, where procurement entities put forward the argument of an emergency for abandoning competition requirements. Such limited bidding or single source contracts, were potentially a recipe for corruption as the purported emergency was self-inflicted or induced to justify the non use of competitive bidding.

(k)

COMMITTEES OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 10. Your Committee notes the submissions made by the various stakeholders who appeared before it, and make observations and recommendations set out hereunder. (a) Your Committee observes that public procurement corruption could take place at any stage of the procurement cycle. In this regard, your Committee recommends that funds should be set aside for training and development of procurement staff, to ensure that all procurement units in Ministries, Provinces and Spending Agencies (MPSAs) are staffed by qualified personnel. Additionally, the ZPPA inspectorate needs to be strengthened to ensure effective and timely monitoring of procurement activities. In this respect, there is need to step up training of inspectorate staff and ensure availability of support equipment, enhance professional ethics among procurement staff and leave procurement functions to the experts. (b) Your Committee recommends that the Government should as a matter of urgency, improve the conditions of service for public workers particularly those procurement staff and staff engaged in law enforcement agencies. This cadre was especially susceptible to being corrupted due to the critical role they play in both the procurement cycle and the fight against corruption. Your Committee observes that despite the Internal Audit Department having presence in all MPAs, year after year, the Auditor Generals Reports highlight serious financial irregularities and non adherence to accounting and procurement procedures on the part of internal auditors in various Government institutions. Your Committee, therefore, recommends that the Government should equally remunerate this cadre well and adequately train the audit committees in the MPAs, so that they can carry out their functions effectively, and help in curbing corruption in their institutions of operation. (d) The Committee observes that as corruption has become entrenched in society, morals and values have been eroded to the extent that citizens generally no longer show concern for integrity and common good. To reverse this trend, your Committee recommends that the Government should consider introducing into the school curriculum the subject of corruption and its evils. This should start at primary school level so that children can grow up abhorring the vice. 10

(c)

(e)

Your Committee urges the Government to vigorously sensitise public officials and promote the Public Interest Disclosure (Protection of Whistle Blowers) Act No. 4 of 2010, so as to encourage them to disclose freely, to law enforcement agencies, acts of corruption, without fear of victimisation. The Act was explicit in terms of safeguarding the rights, including employment rights of persons who make public interest disclosures. It also provides a framework within which persons could be protected.

(f)

Your Committee observes that apart from the Police, most law enforcement agencies had no presence at the lowest level of communities. Your Committee urges the Government to adequately fund institutions such as the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) so that it could carry out its operations and functions effectively and reach the far flung areas of the country. Your Committee observes that according to the Public Procurement Act No. 12 of 2008, the ZPPA board comprises several Ministers who are Presidential appointees. Similarly, part of the Central Tender Committee, which is the highest approvals authority, is predominantly composed of Permanent Secretaries who are equally Presidential appointees. This state of affairs has the potential to compromise these bodies in the event that the Appointing Authority desires a particular outcome in a public procurement. Your Committee observes that in their current state, these bodies, lack both functional and financial autonomy as they are both chaired by the Minister of Finance and National Planning and the Finance Permanent Secretary, respectively. Your Committee, therefore, recommends that the Act should be amended to allow for more participation by stakeholders such as civil society and the private sector so as to enhance transparency and independence of these bodies. By so doing, public procurement corruption will be curbed.

(g)

(h)

Your Committee is alive to the fact that public procurement corruption has become a complex crime which requires specialised skills. Your Committee, therefore, urges the Government to invest in training and building capacity in law enforcement officials in ICTs. This will enable the officers so trained, to detect complex and questionable procurement transactions.

(i)

There was also need to align the Procurement Act with the 2011 UNCITRAL Model Law on procurement, which allows government purchasers to take advantage of modern commercial techniques such as electronic procurement (e-procurement), which was done with a software application that could not easily be manipulated. The 2011 UNICITRAL Model Law on public procurement contains procedures and principles aimed at achieving value for money and avoiding abuses in the procurement process.

(j)

Your Committee notes that in order to enhance or build capacity in local suppliers or contractors, the Government through the ZPPA should enforce the provisions of Section 26(b) of the Public Procurement Act No. 12 of 2008 which provides that where open 11

international bidding is used, a foreign bidder shall partner with a citizen or local supplier or bidder. Your Committee is of the view that once the above provision is strictly enforced, more local suppliers will be empowered and the incidences of corruption in the procurement cycle will be reduced because capacity would have been built in the locals to competitively participate in procurements. (k) Your Committee recommends that whenever possible, the procurement entities should use open competitive bidding. Non competitive processes such as limited bidding or single sourcing should be used where it is truly justified and fully explained and documented.

In terms of Section 29 (1) of the Public Procurement Act No. 12 of 2008, the object of limited bidding is to obtain competition and value for money to the extent possible where the circumstances do not justify or permit the use of opening bidding. Section 29 (2) also provides that limited bidding may be used where the goods, works or services are only available from a limited number of suppliers, or there is an urgent need for the consulting services and engaging in open bidding would therefore be impractical. In view of these provisions, your Committee strongly recommends that single sourcing should only be used in the context of the law. Otherwise, open bidding should always be used to encourage transparency in the bidding process. Your Committee further recommends that procurement entities should take some steps before the procurement process starts, to help eliminate corruption in the process. These steps include the following:

(i)

debarment or excluding from bidding processes bidders that had been involved in corrupt deals; implementing Integrity Pacts before beginning of the process; using open competitive bidding whenever possible, non-competitive processes could be used only where it was truly justified and fully explained and documented; ensuring that during the bidding clarification phase (questions and answers), the questions and the answers given were shared with all the bidders and not just given to a few; restricting or managing contacts between bidders and procurement staff or members of the decision committee to avoid unclear situations to both and the other bidders; setting up and use a conflict of interests register for officials that allowed managing possible conflicts of interests with bidders and officials involved in the selection and decision making processes; developing and using strict rules regarding civil servants that ensure they are well selected, trained, paid, supervised and controlled and that they had to provide disclosure of assets and income; and

(ii) (iii)

(iv)

(v)

(vi)

(vii)

(viii) developing red flags for staff such as; 12

(a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f)

expensive lifestyle unexplained by known income; frequent social contacts with suppliers and contractors and other clients; unapproved external jobs; absence of complaints where complaints are to be expected; frequent award of contracts to the same bidder; and unexplained and undocumented delays in the process as compared to time plan.

Your Committee urges the Government to set up mechanisms to ensure that these steps are complied with by the Government and its agencies.

PART II

LOCAL TOUR REPORT 11. In line with its topic of study, your Committee undertook a local tour to Eastern province, particularly to Petauke, Chipata and Mambwe Districts. The purpose of the tour was to enable your Committee to interact with various procurement committees to learn on how they undertook procurements for their respective procurement entities, in relation to the provisions of the Public Procurement Act No. 8 of 2010. (a) Petauke District After paying a courtesy call on the District Commissioner, your Committee interacted with Petauke District Council as well as Heads of Institutions at District level. At the District Council, your Committee learnt that the Procurement Committee was permitted to procure goods and services up to a threshold of K500 million. Beyond that, approval was sought from the Central Tender Committee in Lusaka. Your Committee was informed that all procurements in the District were authorised via the Council resolution. However, where procurements were below K50 million, the principal officers in the respective departments could authorise. After the Council gave approval, the District Procurement Committee then sits and employs the normal procurement process. This means the committee calling for bids mainly through open tender, selective tender or direct bidding, as the case may be. Your Committee was informed that usually, tenders were advertised in the press so that all the possible suppliers of goods and services are given an opportunity to bid. Your Committee learnt however, that the Procurement Unit has no qualified procurement officer as required by law. The one who was holding the position was a marketer by profession and was currently pursuing a procurement course at certificate level via correspondence. The Council has recommended to the Ministry at Local Government and Housing Headquarters, to have a trained officer sent to Petauke but the Ministry did not respond. Your Committee also learnt that the Council has requested the ZPPA to conduct an in-house workshop for the Procurement Committee but the request was turned down on account of lack of funds. 13

The Council appealed to your Committee to urge the ZPPA to decentralize its operations to the district level. This would help especially with regard to obtaining authority much quicker from the Central Tender Committee as the highest approvals authority. Currently, procurement entities at district level write to Lusaka to seek written approval, which more often than not is granted late, by which time the cost of some supplies would have increased. Your Committee also learnt that comparatively, Government funded projects took long to be completed because of lack of funds or intermittent release of funds from the Central Government. Donor funded projects on the other hand, were completed in time because they were fully funded. As a result of delayed completion of projects, corruption set in, especially at the implementation stage, where some contractors connived with public officials to change specifications that would attract more unplanned expenses. Your Committee also interacted with Heads of Government Ministries and Departments at district level, who included the District Education Officer, District Medical Officer, District Agriculture Coordinator, among others. Your Committee was informed that procurements for various District Departments were done by the District Tender Committee. Procurements at district level were usually preceded by authority via a council resolution. The Heads of Departments however, were authorised to procure on their own if the threshold was between K5,000,000 and K10,000,000. Your Committee learnt that due to untrained procurement officers and low salaries for public workers, corruption in procurement at district level was on the increase. Your Committee was also informed that big capital projects were centrally tendered in Lusaka by respective Government Ministries. The District was merely informed and did not have the mandate to monitor or supervise such projects. An example of such big projects was the construction of schools in the education sector. Your Committee was informed that construction of high schools at places like Nyamphande and Ntumbata were procured in Lusaka. The District Education Board Secretary (DEBS), merely showed the bidders the sites during the bidding process. After that, the DEBS had no role to play even in the event that the contract departed from its specifications. COMMITTEES OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS (i) Your Committee observes that there is lack of trained procurement staff in the District and recommends that the Government should, as a matter of urgency, embark on training this cadre. Your Committee recommends that the Zambia Public Procurement Authority (ZPPA), should in line with its mandate, organise an in-house workshop for the Petauke District Procurement Committee so as to train them in the current trends in procurement processes. Your Committee recommends that as a long-term goal, the ZPPA should decentralise its operations to Districts for easy accessibility and efficiency in granting approvals to procurement entities procuring above their authorised thresholds. Your Committee observes that big capital projects for the District are tendered in Lusaka. As a result, the District Departments are completely precluded from supervising or 14

(ii)

(iii)

(iv)

monitoring such projects. Your Committee recommends that despite big projects being contracted from respective Government Ministries, Headquarters, for the purpose of curbing corruption and achieving value for money, the District should be involved in the procurements so as to empower them to carry out routine monitoring as beneficiaries of such projects. (b) Chipata District

Meeting with the Provincial Procurement Committee In Chipata, your Committee paid a courtesy call on the Provincial Minister, after which it interacted with the Permanent Secretary as Chairperson of the Procurement Committee together with the entire Provincial Procurement Committee. Your Committee was informed that the Province has two types of procurements, namely; non project procurement (day to day operations of the office) and project procurement. The methods of procurement used include; selective tender, shopping and open tender. The Provinces commonly used method of procurement was shopping, which was used to procure day to day goods and services. For project procurements, the Province uses the open tender as the preferred method because it was more transparent. It involves advertising in the media inviting bidders to buy tender documents. Once the bids were submitted and the bidding process closes, the technical team evaluates the bids and makes recommendations to the Main Tender Committee for award of contract. The functions of the Provincial Committee include the consideration of recommendations from the technical committee and scrutinising the evaluation process of the technical committee to determine its consistency with the procedures of evaluation. When the main Committee was satisfied with the recommendations, then the recommended contractor was awarded. If not, the committee would reject the recommended contractor and call for a re-evaluation or re-advertisement. The Provincial Procurement Committee experience a number of challenges in the procurement process as set out below. (a) Coordination and supervision by the Province over some Districts was difficult because some District Commissioners had little or no idea about how the civil service operated in general and particularly with regard to the procurement process. There was some level of political influence on some procurements, where senior Government officials issue instructions to public officers to stifle the process in favour of certain preferred bidders. This was usually common in big capital projects such as construction of roads. Corruption was rampant mainly in procurements where the Province has no control in terms of monitoring and supervision because contracts were centrally awarded in Lusaka. Certificates of completion were issued from Lusaka with instructions to pay and it was difficult to turn them down even in the light of poor workmanship. The Province has no fully fledged Procurement Unit to undertake or handle big procurements. 15

(b)

(c)

(d)

COMMITTEES OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Having noted the submission from the Provincial Procurement Committee, your Committee recommends as set out below.

(i)

There is urgent need for the Government to train District Commissioners in procurement processes and orient them on the operations of the civil service so that they can assist in supervision and monitoring of projects within their jurisdiction. Once the District Commissioners are trained or oriented, coordination with the Province will be made easier, and they will be better positioned to detect acts of corruption in the procurement cycle. Ministers and other senior Government officials should allow the experts in procurement to carry out their duties without undue influence on them, to decide in a manner that suits the ulterior motives of such Ministers or senior Government officials. The Provincial Procurement Committee, should be allowed to have some level of participation in the procurements that are centrally done in Lusaka to necessitate monitoring and supervision of such projects, which are implemented in their jurisdiction. As a matter of urgency, the ZPPA should help the Province to establish a fully fledged Procurement Unit as required by the Public Procurement Act.

(ii)

(iii)

(iv)

Meeting with Chipata Municipal Council At Chipata Municipal Council, your Committee interacted with the Municipality Procurement Committee, which was the highest approvals authority at District level. The Committee was also responsible for providing guidance and prior authorisation of procurements in the District, including procurements made by other Government Departments that were above their thresholds. Your Committee was informed that the Municipality Procurement Committee has power to approve tenders that range from the threshold of K50 million to K500 million. Any tender above this threshold is referred to the Central Tendering Committee at the ZPPA. Your Committee learnt that currently, the Council together with the Road Development Agency (RDA), were de facto consultants or supervisors on the Chipata District township roads, which were being constructed by a contractor called Sable Transport Limited. Your Committee learnt that this contract had been in existence for the last four years, although the quality of work was reportedly poor. Your Committee however, learnt that about ninty-eight percent of the works have been done and eighty percent of the contract sum paid. The Council has written to the contractor to be paid liquidated damages for the poor quality works. COMMITTEES OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Your Committee observes that the contract for the construction of Chipata township roads was procured from Lusaka but, there were no consultants to supervise the works. As a result, the Council Director of Engineering and the Regional Engineer stepped in, to supervise the project. Your Committee also observes that despite the engineers asserting that the quality of the township roads is poor, the works so far done were certified by the same engineers and payment of up to eighty per cent of the contract has been made to the contractor. 16

Your Committee recommends to the Government that urgent intervention and investigation in this contract is required to ascertain where the problems lie, otherwise, public funds would continue going to waste. Site Visit of the Chipata/Mfuwe Road In order to appreciate the practical aspect of a procurement cycle, your Committee undertook a site visit of the construction works of the Chipata/Mfuwe Road. Your Committee was joined on this tour by the Consultant of the project, BCHOD Consulting Engineers, the Contractor, Sable Transport Limited, engineers from Road Development Agency (RDA), the Regional Engineer and the Council Director of Engineering, among others. During the site meeting, your Committee was informed by the stakeholders present that construction works on the road began in December, 2009. To date, only thirty-five kilometres has been surfaced, leaving about sixty-five kilometres. The Contractor assured your Committee that the remaining portion will be completed by April, 2013. To achieve this, the Contractor has moblised another surfacing team so that works could progress simultaneously from both sides of the road. Your Committee was informed by the Consultant of the project that there has been three corrections already done on the first ten kilometres of the road attributed to poor workmanship. Works so far done however, have been certified and fully paid for. Your Committee travelled the whole stretch of the road and learnt that from kilometre thirty-five to about kilometre eighty, earthworks, road bed preparation, sub-grade and sub-base works have been done. From kilometre eighty to the end of the road in Mfuwe, no works were being undertaken and the road was in a bad state. Meeting with the Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication Following your Committees conducted tour of the Chipata/Mfuwe Road, the Committee interacted with the Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication with a view to addressing some of the pitfalls on the Chipata/Mfuwe Road project. The Minister informed your Committee that the contract for the construction of the Chipata/Mfuwe Road was awarded to Sable Transport Limited at a cost of about K290 billion. The start date was December, 2009, with a contract period of forty months. To date, the Contractor had been paid about K136 billion, subject to certifications by the Consultants called, Brian Colquhoun, Hugh ODonnell and Partners (BCHOD) Consulting Engineers. With regard to delays in completion of the project, the Minister attributed this to the following:

(i) (ii) (iii) (iv)

the award of the contract was done for political expediency; as a result, a number aspects were overlooked in the initial Bill of quantities (BOQ); subsequent to the above, the Contractor sought a number of variations to the contract, which came at a huge cost to the Government, and have further delayed the project; there have been reports of high rate of staff turnover on the part of the contractor; there have been weak monitoring or supervision by the consultant as well as Government engineers from RDA and the Local Authorities; and 17

(v)

the Contractor has been awarded a lot of projects and was failing to cope due to inadequate machinery and staff.

Your Committee was however, informed that termination of the contract would be the last option because Government would incur huge cost and lose more time, due to the laborious procurement process and the cumbersome procedure of engaging another contractor. Your Committee learnt that these processes would take a minimum of nine to twelve months. The Minister assured your Committee that a round table meeting has been arranged with the Contractor to iron out matters such as the quality of the Chipata Township Roads and the Chipata/Mfuwe Road and the completion of the remaining portion of the Chipata/Mfuwe Road. Your Committee was also informed that the Government was committed to ensuring that all the road projects currently under construction, are completed. The Ministry would in future ask contractors in advance as to whether or not they would need a variation. If not, contractors will be required to put this commitment in writing. As regards consultants that are contracted by the Ministry who fail to supervise works on behalf of the Government, the Minister informed your Committee that such would have their contracts cancelled and if found to have been corrupted by the contractor, both would be blacklisted. COMMITTEES OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS (i) Your Committee observes that the thirty-five kilometre so far surfaced on the Chipata/ Mfuwe road has been done in the last two years. It is therefore difficult to envisage how the Contractor will complete the remainder of the road under one year, given that from about kilometre eighty to the end of the road, the state of the road is deplorable. Your Committee having travelled the whole stretch of the road is of the opinion that some portions of the road are not smooth and will require to be redone, or attended to in accordance with the specifications of the contract and design. Your Committee recommends that the Government through the Road Development Agency should step up supervision of the Consultant of the project so that there is value for money. Your Committee expresses its disappointment with the Consultants as well as the Regional Engineers from RDA, for certifying and paying for works of poor quality. Your Committee urges the Government to ensure that experts given the responsibility to supervise big capital projects adhere to the procurement regulations as well as their professional ethics for the good of the citizens safety who would use the road after it is commissioned. Your Committee notes that like in the case of the Chipata Township roads, there are complaints on the Contractors quality of work as well as the delay in completing the projects. Your Committee therefore recommends that the Ministry should ensure that pressure is applied on the contractor to complete the project as agreed, without compromising on quality. Your Committee urges the Government to undertake thorough investigations into the awards of these contracts as well as their implementation, to assess exactly, where the difficulties lie and how these difficulties can be addressed. 18

(ii)

(iii)

(iv)

(v)

(vi)

(vii)

Your Committee urges the Government to build the capacity of its engineers so that they can take-up supervision of some road projects at a reduced cost to Government.

(viii) Your Committee recommends that the monitoring and evaluation mechanisms in the Ministry should be strengthened to ensure that works are implemented on time. (ix) Your Committee observes that the procurement process of big capital projects such as roads, is very long and cumbersome and as a result, it is subject to manipulation and corruption by various players involved. In this regard, your Committee recommends that the procurement processes should be made shorter and more user friendly, but without compromising on the quality of works to be procured. Your Committee urges the Government in general and in particular the Ministry of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication, to be decisive in dealing with issues of corruption or companies or institutions, especially in the road sector that have compromised themselves, by blacklisting them in accordance with the procurement law. Your Committee recommends that for major civil contract works, the Government should apply pre-qualification procedures that require the bidders to provide integrity assurances and to disclose any convictions or investigations relating to corruption violations. If any such convictions or investigations exist, the bidder could be excluded from participating in the bidding process. Your Committee also recommends that in the spirit of openness and transparency, the Government should not frequently award contracts to the same bidder, as this arouses suspicions of corruption in the bidding process. Mambwe District

(x)

(xi)

(xii)

(c)

On its last stop, your Committee visited Mambwe District. After paying a courtesy call on the District Commissioner, your Committee proceeded to interact with the District Procurement Committee. During the meeting, your Committee learnt that all the four Heads of Department in the Council were members including heads of other Government Departments and some members of the community. Your Committee learnt that the Procurement Committee usually handled small tenders which required obtaining three quotations, after which money would be released for implementation. Your Committee was also informed that most contracts were labour based, where the community participated. On any current significant procurements that have taken place in the District, your Committee leant that in the water sector, boreholes have been sunk at various locations. However, three of them turned out to be dry and to date, the Contractor has not returned to attend to them. Your Committee was also taken on a conducted tour of bridges under construction. Your Committee was satisfied with both the quality work, as well as the level of monitoring by the District officials. COMMITTEES OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Having interacted with the Mambwe District Procurement Committee, your Committee observes that there is a serious lack of knowledge by the Procurement Committee generally, on the laws governing public procurement. 19

Your Committee therefore, recommends that ZPPA should organise some training for the officials who are keen on learning, so that they can be abreast with current trends in procurements, as well as the rules and regulations of public procurements as stipulated in the Public Procurement Act. Your Committee also recommends that the relevant Ministry should intervene in locating the whereabouts of the Contractor who sunk dry boreholes in the District, so that he can account for the money. Your Committee also notes that the Chipata/Mfuwe Road passes through Mambwe District. Therefore, its completion is key in enhancing the lives of the people in Mambwe District Your Committee re-emphasises the need for the Government to ensure that this road is completed in the shortest possible time.

PART III

12. CONSIDERATION OF THE ACTION-TAKEN REPORT ON THE REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE FOR THE FIFTH SESSION OF THE TENTH NATIONAL ASSEMBLY (i) Implementation and Enforcement of the Electoral Code of Conduct The previous Committee had urged the Government that the overall objective of the Electoral Code of Conduct was to enhance the integrity of the electoral process and give credibility to the outcome of elections. The Electoral Code of Conduct needed to be acceptable, user-friendly, compliable and enforceable. The Committee was of the view that the Electoral Code of Conduct in Zambia had become a source of conflict, mistrust and erosion of public confidence in the electoral process, largely because it was not enforced.

The previous Committee also urged that in order to enhance the credibility of the 2011 tripartite elections, they needed to be governed by a new electoral code of conduct. In response your Committee learnt that the Government through the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ), had put in place measures to ensure that the Electoral Code of Conduct was effectively enforced during the 2011 general elections. The ECZ had also put in place a joint programme with the Zambia Police aimed at enhancing police officers capacity and skills to effectively police the elections. Your Committee also learnt that the ECZ had undertaken to embark on voter education as well as emphasising to the public media the need to adhere to fair and balanced reporting of election activities. Recommendations Your Committee notes that the 2011 tripartite elections were conducted under the new Electoral Code of Conduct. Your Committee therefore resolves to request a progress report from the Electoral Commission of Zambia on the conduct of the 2011 general elections vis-a-vis enforcement of the Electoral Code of Conduct, highlighting breaches of the Code if any, and how these were dealt with within the framework of the code of conduct.

20

(ii) Consideration of the Report of the Human Rights Commission on its Findings From the Inspection Tour of Prisons, Police Stations and Police Posts Undertaken in 2008, 2009 and 2010 Your previous Committee had recommended that the Government should take urgent measures to redress the situation in Zambia's detention facilities. It emphasised that being in detention, either as a prisoner, remandee or suspect, did not take away the fundamental rights of that person, aside from those rights that were taken away following the due process of the law. Therefore, the Government should take a lead in ensuring that the rights of all detainees were accorded to them in accordance with the state's obligations. In particular: (a) Your Committee implored the Government to urgently pay attention to the issues of overcrowding, medical care, uniforms and bedding, hygiene and sanitation, the rights of female detainees and female detainees' special hygiene needs, the detention conditions of juveniles and circumstantial children. Your Committee further called upon the Prisons Department to mobilise transport to deliver mattresses to all needy prisons.

In response, your Committee was informed that the Ministry of Home Affairs was addressing the problem of overcrowding in prisons by transferring inmates to less congested prisons, constructing more prisons (i.e Mwembeshi, Kalabo, Luwingu and Monze); and expanding the capacity of some of the existing infrastructure. With regard to medical care, the Ministry of Home Affairs has established a medical directorate under the Prisons Services in an effort to improve medical care for the inmates. The Ministry also planned to commence procurement of uniforms for inmates as well as officers in the 2012 fiscal year. As for the beddings, the issue would be dealt with when funds were available. (b) For juvenile offenders and circumstantial children, your Committee called upon the Government to ensure that the Social Welfare Department was involved in the handling of these juveniles and children upon their incarceration and throughout their detention in accordance with the law.

In response, your Committee was informed that the Department of Social Welfare was involved in the handling of juvenile offenders and children from the time they were arrested to the final disposal of the cases in the Courts of law. Your Committee was however, informed that the Ministry has challenges in administering juvenile justice that stemmed from human resource, financial and the high demand for social services. The Ministry would endeavour to improve on the way cases concerning juvenile offenders and circumstantial children were handled. Recommendation Your Committee wishes to be availed a progress report on the matter. (a) Women in Decision Making Process Your previous Committee had noted that the Anti-Gender Based Violence Bill had since been passed by the National Assembly. However, the Committee awaited a progress report on the ratification of the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development. In response, the Government through the Action-Taken Report indicated that the Gender in Development Division reported to your Committee that the Strategy and Implementation Plan for Engendering the Public Service, 2010 - was launched by the Secretary to the Cabinet on 27th May, 2011 and has been 21

disseminated to all line Ministries' and Provincial Permanent Secretaries and their Chief Planning Officers. The next level of dissemination would be at the Province, where District Commissioners would in turn be given instructions to facilitate dissemination at district level for implementation. The previous Committee had urged the Government to expedite the implementation of the strategy for engendering the public service and also extend it to the private sector and ensure that this strategy was disseminated to all line ministries and the various unions representing the workers. Recommendation Your Committee resolves to await a progress report on the matter. (b) Local Tour Report (a) Sesheke Prison Your previous Committee had requested for a progress report on the sinking of the borehole at the prison. In response, the Government indicated in the Action-Taken Report that the contractor to drill and equip the boreholes at the prisons was identified and had since commenced works. The boreholes had been done at Kaoma, Mazabuka and Choma prisons. The contractor would soon move to Namwala and later to Sesheke. Recommendation Your Committee requests a progress report since the contractor has not yet moved to Sesheke prison. (b) Senanga Prison Your previous Committee had requested for a progress report on the matter In response, it was stated in the ActionTaken Report that the Ministry of Home Affairs, through the Office of the Commissioner of Prisons had procured the required pipes to be soon delivered to Senanga Prison so that works on the sewer system could commence. Recommendation Your Committee notes that the response has not changed from the previous Action-Taken Report. They await a progress report on the matter. OUTSTANDING ISSUES IN THE ACTION-TAKEN REPORT ON THE REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE FOR THE THIRD SESSION OF THE TENTH NATIONAL ASSEMBLY (i) Corporate Governance and Corporate Social Responsibility in Zambia Your previous Committee wished to be availed a progress report on the review of various pieces of legislation and were these had been reviewed, an explanation of whether the issue of corporate governance was taken into account in the process of reviewing the legislation. In response, it was stated in the ActionTaken Report as set out hereunder.

22

(a) Review of the Companies Act, Cap. 388 The Ministry of Justice received instructions from the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry to amend the Companies Act, Cap. 388. The instructions resulted in the Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2011, considered by the Committee and passed by Parliament in the last session. (b) Review of the Banking and Financial Services Act, Cap. 387 The Ministry of Justice has not yet received any instructions for the amendment of the Banking and Financial Services Act, Cap. 387. (c) Review of the Public Finance Act No. 15 Of 2004 The Ministry of Justice has not yet received any instructions from the Ministry of Finance and National Planning for the amendment of the Public Finance Act, 2004. (d) Review of the Legal Aid Act, Cap. 34 The Ministry of Justice has not yet received instructions for the amendment of the Legal Aid Act, Cap. 34. (e) Review of the Employment Act, Cap. 268 The Ministry of Justice has not received instructions for the amendment of the Employment Act, Cap. 268. (f) Review of the Industrial and Labour Relations Act, Cap. 269 The Ministry has not yet received instructions from the Ministry of Labour and Social Security for the amendment of the Industrial and Labour Relations Act, Cap. 269. (g) Review of the Environmental Protection and Pollution Control Act, Cap. 204 This Act was reviewed and subsequently repealed and replaced with the Environmental Management Act No. 12 of 2011. Under this Act, the Government of the Republic of Zambia, exercises external environmental corporate governance controls over corporations and enterprises as provided in sections; 5,6,38 and 91 among others. Recommendations Your Committee notes that two pieces of legislation have been reviewed and re-enacted. The Committee resolves to close the matter with regard to the Companies Act and the Environmental Management Act. As regards the other pieces of legislation which were yet to be reviewed, the Committee resolves to await a progress report. (ii) Rights Of Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Zambia with Special Emphasis on Children in Orphanages Your previous Committee requested to be availed an update on the progress made towards the establishment of the Zambia Council for the Child.

23

In response, it was stated in the ActionTaken Report that the Cabinet Office through the Office of the Secretary to the Cabinet had made a recommendation that the "Child" component of the Ministry of Sport, Youth and Child Development be transferred to the Ministry of Community and Social Services. This decision was arrived at on the need to have one ministry or institution responsible for the overall custody and co-ordination of child welfare and development functions in addition to being the key champion if the childrens potential was to be fully exploited and their rights realised. Further, the Secretary to Cabinet would in due course provide explanatory notes for use in briefing the National Assembly on this change as per constitutional provisions. The Ministry would inform National Assembly accordingly once this transfer had actually commenced. Recommendation Your Committee notes that the response is silent on the issue of establishment of the Zambia Council for the Child. A progress report is awaited on the matter.

PART IV

CONCLUSION Your Committee wishes to pay tribute to all stakeholders who appeared before it and tendered both oral and written submissions. It also wishes to thank you, Mr Speaker, for affording it the opportunity to serve on the Committee for the year 2012. Your Committee also appreciates the services rendered by the office of the Clerk of the National Assembly. Your Committee is very hopeful that the observations and recommendations contained in this Report will go a long way in improving the governance of Zambia.

J J Mwiimbu, MP CHAIRPERSON 24

June, 2012 LUSAKA

APPENDIX I

LIST OF OFFICIALS National Assembly Mr S M Kateule, Principal Clerk of Committees Mr G Lungu, Deputy Principal Clerk of Committees Mr S C Kawimbe, Committee Clerk (SC) Mr G Zulu, Assistant Committee Clerk Ms K Chisenga, Typist Mr R Mumba, Committee Assistant Mr C Bulaya, Committee Assistant

25