By Ragan M. Conteh

The 2023 Audit Report says that there were non-compliance issues on Clauses in Contract Agreements by some institutions.

The report stated that from the auditors’ review of contracts signed between the Government of Sierra Leone and HID CID Ltd and Zoodlabs (SL) Ltd had flouted certain clauses, resulting in the loss of much-needed government’s revenues.

The report states that typical among them are as follows: According to the contract change note, HID CID Ltd was required to pay the Government of Sierra Leone, a royalty of 9% from the sale of each e-passport.

Auditors however observed that a total royalty of US$744,993 for all e-passports produced in 2023 remains unpaid.

The report stated that Zoodlabs (SL) Ltd owed the Government of Sierra Leone a total of US$1,440,000 in respect of annual fixed fee for the operations, Maintenance and Commercial Management of the Ace Submarine Fibre Optic Cable Landing Station and the Ancillary Infrastructure of Sierra Leone

Cable Ltd.

The auditors had observed that the Minister of Mines signed the lease agreement between the Ministry of Mines and the Kingho Railway and Port Company Limited, instead of the Minister of Finance, in contravention of the Public Financial Management Act, 2016. In addition, there was no evidence that the agreement was ratified by Parliament.

The report stated that the absence of parliamentary ratification and signature of the Minister of Mines raises concerns about the legality and enforceability of tax

exemptions totalling US$5,275,434 granted through this agreement.