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280 Diagnosing Corruption in Ethiopia
society can play in improving accountability within the construction
sector.
• Better, more coordinated use of performance audits. Due to capacity constraints,
neither the PPA nor the Auditor General’s Office nor some
procuring entities themselves routinely undertake performance audits
in the construction sector. Such audits—ideally including a combination
of informed and random targeting—should form an integral part
of any accountability system within the sector. To optimize their relevance
and impact, financial and technical audits should ideally be
combined.
• Improved cost estimation. Strengthening the approach to cost estimation
and benchmarking of costs would provide a more robust basis for
rejecting excessive prices and identifying and constraining possible
collusive practices.
Capacity
• Filling of vacant posts in procuring entities and addressing broader skills
shortages in the private sector. Though identified as a contributing factor
to the risk of corruption, the detailed consideration of such capacity
constraints falls beyond the scope of this study. It is nevertheless recommended
that, as part of the preparation for major construction sector
investment programs, capacity issues should routinely be considered.
The scope of such consideration should necessarily extend beyond the
inclusion of ad hoc, project-specific measures to enhance capacity and
include a broader sectoral view of the need to match investment plans
with anticipated capacity within the sector.
• Clear and consistent enforcement of systems, contracts, and procedures.
The PPA should take the lead in this matter, specifically ensuring that
contracts within the sector are both fair and equitably enforced. This
effort will require an increase in capacity. Consideration should also be
given to the possible need to strengthen the FEACC’s capacity to prevent
and investigate corruption within the sector by employing more
experienced construction sector professionals who have a detailed
understanding of corruption risks within the sector.
• Experience of managing, and competing within, the construction market.
Because of the limited experience of some clients and construction
companies, widespread misconceptions remain about the nature of the