Anxiety is growing at the National Irrigation Board (NIB) that the Galana-Kulalu project at the Coast could be derailed by an intricate web of cartels seeking to control its multi-billion shilling expenditure.
People Daily has learnt that the consultancy for pre-feasibility study and designs was inflated from the initial Sh793 million to Sh920 million.
Questions have also been raised about alleged dubious procurement of at least 50 companies to carry out bush clearing and other preparatory activities to the tune of Sh400 million.
According to official records at NIB seen by People Daily, the estimates indicate the farm and irrigation system would take up to Sh3.5 billion of the Sh14.5 billion model project, knowledge and logistics centre (Sh3.8 billion), piping (Sh846 million), operations and maintenance (Sh3.4 billion) and taxes (Sh2.3 billion).[ad id="186545"]
Lucrative tender “The project has been hijacked by interested parties and is degenerating into a cash-cow,” an insider intimated. A lucrative tender was awarded to twin Israeli firms Green Arava and Agri-Green at a the cost of Sh14.5 billion.
Green Arava, the parent company of Agri-Green Consulting undertook a Sh920 million consultancy on the irrigation technologies for the project.
However, when contacted on the phone, NIB General Manager Engineer Daniel Baraza declined to comment. Among contract awards that have raised questions are Enwag Company (Sh8.4 million), Techno Brain (Sh10.5 million), the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, IITA, (Sh3.2 million) and Services & Computer Industries Kenya Ltd (Sh6.5 million).
On August 15 last year, NIB awarded the Sh15.5 billion contract to Green Arava Limited, the Israeli conglomerate, for the establishment of a 10,000-acre model farm.
People Daily has established that the letter of offer was issued on August 8, 2014 with pre-contract negotiations taking place the following day, two days to the deadline for the submission of tender documents. The opening of the documents was done the same day.
“There was no reasonable alternative competent contractor to implement the design of the model farm other than the sister company of the lead design consultant. There was urgent need to engage the contractor in order to produce maize crop to mitigate the looming hunger, ” a copy of the award of the direct tender dated August 15, 2014 in our possession reads in part.
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