2. Page 2 Page 3 T he Anti - Corruption Commission (ACC), through the National Anti - Corruption Strategy (NACS) Secretariat, has engaged focal persons of Integrity Management Committees (IMCs) of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of Government in order to report on the progress made in the implementation of the NACS 2019 - 2023. The meeting, which was held on 29 th September, 2021 at the Cathedral Hall in Freetown, was also meant for the Commission and the MDAs to share experiences for effective corruption prevention in public institutions. The Commissioner of ACC Francis Ben Kaifala Esq., welcomed representatives of the MDAs, noting that “The fight against corruption cannot be won by the ACC alone”. The establishment of the IMCs in MDAs, the Commissioner furthered, was a deliberate step to make MDAs take ownership of the fight in order to reduce the prevalence of corruption in public service delivery institutions by adhering to proper systems and processes. In his description of the incentives for corruption, he carefully outlined, among other things, that monopoly and pressure from surrounding situations are key in spurring even the most honest of civil servants to be corrupt. In the absence of systems and processes, centralized power in one person creates room for corruption, he further said. Playing by the rules and best practices and reminding one another to do so, Mr. Kaifala noted, is the surest way corruption can be defeated in MDAs. The ACC Commissioner expressed happiness over the reduction of corruption in pub- lic sector institutions as shown by data - led reports conducted by the Afro Barometer and other credible institutions. He therefore congratulated members of the IMCs for the work done and encouraged them to join the ACC in the fight against corruption and work harder in ensuring the systems already established in their various MDAs are given prominence. Earlier, the Chairman of the meeting, Deputy Commissioner ACC, Augustine Foday Ngobie, reminded members of the IMCs of their responsibility in ensuring that their MDAs are compliant with the established systems and processes in order to prevent corruption. Deputy Director of NACS Secretariat EditaFofana, in her explanation of the rea- sons for the meeting, emphasized that the 2019 - 2023 National Anti - Corruption Strategy provided for the establishment of IMCs in MDAs in a bid to make the institutions comply with the provisions of the Strategy. While going through the report, which categorizes the levels of compliance of the MDAs in implementing the NACS, she emphasized that many MDAs have been outstanding while some others have been non - responsive. She encouraged those who are yet to reach their threshold to do better. An experience - sharing discussion by members of the different IMCs climaxed the meeting. ACC Commissioner Francis Ben Kaifala Esq. addressing the IMCs ACC’s Director of Prevention, Barbar Rashid Turay, presenting the Systems Review Report to His Lordship Charles A. M. Campbell T he Anti - Corruption Commission (ACC) has presented a ‘Report on the Review of the Practices and Procedures of the Man- agement of the Serabu Community Hospital, Bo District’ , to the Management and Staff of the Catholic Diocese of Bo, the Serabu Community Hospital and „German Doctors Hilfe, Die Bleibt‟. This follows a comprehensive and thorough systems and processes review on the Hospital. The presentation of the Report took place on 8 th September 2021 at the St. Francis Xavier Hall in Bo. The exercise is in accordance with Section 7(2)(c) (g)(h) of the Anti - Corruption Act 2008 as amended in 2019, which mandates the Commission to review practices and procedures in Ministries, Departments, Agencies (MDAs), persons, authority, public body, or private sector institutions in order to identify corruption vulnerabilities and make recommendations to improve on efficiency and effective service delivery. The ACC‟s intervention to conduct the systems review exercise was prompted by a letter addressed to the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Bo, Most Rev. Charles A. M Campbell, by the „German Doctors Hilfe, Die Bleibt‟. The letter made a series of corruption - related claims against the Management of the Hospital including; “recurring structural problems” at the Hospital, “non - settlement of account dating back to April, 2021”, “not acting on an Independent Audit issues, resulting to some worsening off”, “theft of medicine”, “violation of procurement rules”, and “doctors and CHOs working for weeks without gloves and medicine, even though funding was provided for by the German Doctors”. The review aimed to identify system failures at the Serabu Community Hospital; examine the structural problems raised by the German Doctors; examine the various structures of the Serabu Hospital with a view of identifying weaknesses in practices and procedures and proffering appropriate instructions; instruct the establishment of an appropriate systems and processes in place at the Hospital and; restore trust between the German Doctors and the Management Board of the Hospital to continue their cooperation in the interest of the people of Serabu and its environs. The review exercise captured Seventeen (17) key findings contained under four broad categories: issues highlighted in the letter of the German Doctors, recommendations of an independent review of the operations of the Serabu Community Hospital, corruption risk assessment and grievance redress mechanism to address patients‟ concerns. The findings include; violation of procurement rules, non - availability of gloves for use in hospital, no trained and qualified pharmacist and drug storekeeper, no internal auditor and monitoring and evaluation officer, the existence of a dormant Hospital Board, nonexistence of financial policy and procedure manual, no automated recording of the dispensation of the drugs in the pharmacy, no fixed asset register and fixed asset management, non - issuance of receipt for the various services paid for by patients. These findings underscored the complaints of the German Doctors and many were confirmed. It also took into consideration cooperation lapses in the partnership agreement between the Hospital, the Catholic Diocese of Bo and the German Doctors. Representatives of MDAs at the engagement

1. Contd from Pg.3. Contd on Pg. 3. INSIDE THIS ISSUE Volume 8 Issue 8 ( L ) Minister of Health and Sanitation Dr. Austin Demby and (R) ACC Commissioner Francis Ben Kaifala Esq. display copies of the MoU after the signing ceremony MEET THE TEAM EDITOR - IN - CHIEF Abubakar Turay EDITORS Margaret Murray LAYOUT & GRAPHICS Philippa M Davies EDITORIAL ADVISERS Augustine Foday Ngobie Patrick Sandi Emmanuel Koivaya Amara pg ACC AND MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND SANITATION SIGN MOU TO IMPROVE HEALTHCARE DELIVERY 1 ACC HOLDS EXPERIENCE SHARING MEETING WITH MDAs 2 ACC CONCLUDES SYSTEMS REVIEW REPORT ON SERABU HOSPITAL 3 October 2021 THE ANTI - CORRUPTION COMMISSION T he Anti - Corruption Commission (ACC) and the Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MoHS) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) geared towards strengthening collaboration between the two institutions in order to fight against corruption and other healthcare delivery challenges in the health sector. This historic signing took place on Thursday 2nd September, 2021, at the Ministry's Conference Room, Youyi Building, Freetown. Speaking at the ceremony, the Commissioner of the ACC Francis Ben Kaifala Esq., said since health issues took prominence in Sierra Leo- ne, a lot of resources have been com- mitted to the sector. He said it is how- ever sad that the sector has been rated as one of the most corrupt in successive corruption perception surveys conducted in the country. “We should not have such an important sector with such an anomaly hanging over it,” he said. The ACC Commissioner further said, the Commission had committed so much energy in the past in addressing corruption issues in the sector, using a multi - faceted approach, which includes building systems of healthcare institutions, customized public education engagements with healthcare workers and investigating and prosecuting individuals engaged in acts of corruption. “But I think the most important progress to make now is to change the sector for the better,” he said. The Commissioner said that there is need for the two institutions to pay attention to key challenges in the sector, including the supply chain management of drugs and other healthcare products, in a bid to enhance the wellbeing of citizens. “An unhealthy citizenry will not enjoy the economic benefits of the country,” he emphasized, noting that . there is need for the ACC and the Ministry to partner to sanitize the health sector “A healthcare delivery system has to be well organized, well coordinated and have a degree of accountability that will ensure that citizens benefit from a system that is in place to take care of their health", the ACC Commissioner added. This MoU, Mr Kaifala said, is therefore to create a framework for information sharing and to strength- en the work of the two institutions. In his statement, the Minister of Health and Sanitation Dr. Austin Demby, said there are incredible people working in the health sector to save lives. He said however that all hands must be on deck to ensure that the sector is able to rid itself of fraud, waste and abuse. “Healthcare workers need to know the consequences of their actions, that is why we must build systems and networks that would sanitize the sector,” Dr Demby said. The Minister said that the provision of quality healthcare services is one of the priority areas of the Government, adding that the Government has dedicated 12% of GDP to develop healthcare infrastructure and capacitate health workers so they can in turn do their work diligently and save lives. According to the citation of the MoU, read by the Public Relations Officer of the ACC Margaret Mur- ray, the two institutions have committed themselves to partner and share information critical to the work of each other. They would also conduct joint awareness raising programmes and provide support and assistance with the objective of strengthening the fight against corruption and providing improved healthcare services. The signing ceremony was chaired by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Murray Momoh. Also in attend- ance at the ceremony were, the Deputy Commissioner ACC, Augustine Foday Ngo- bie, the Deputy Minister of Health and Sani- tation I, Augustine Sandy, the Deputy Minister of Health and Sanitation II Dr. Amara Jambai, Directors and staff of the two institutions. Contd. From Pg 1 Contd.pg 4 The Report proffers Seventy - three (73) recommendations which the Commission has urged the Hospital Management to implement with utmost urgency in a bid to address these systems weaknesses. Some of the recommendations are; t hat monthly stock taking be conducted on the Hospital‟s main medical stores and pharmacy; that Close Circuit Televisions (CCTV) be installed in strategic locations such as the gate, pharmacy, corridors of wards and stores; that the Hospital‟s Management to increase the presence of security guards as well as capacitating them on security matters; and that trained and qualified pharmacist and drugs storekeeper be immediately recruited. The Commission shall monitor implementation of the recommendations with- in three months of the date of the presentation of the Report. The Catholic Church, the Hospital and their partners have written to the ACC appreciating the Commission for its timely intervention and remedial actions.