Recruitment of a new external auditor for the ECOWAS-Regional Electricity Access Project (ECOREAP) — Government of The Gambia

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

The Gambia

ECOWAS-REGIONAL ELECTRICITY ACCESS PROJECT (ECOREAP)

Loan No./Credit No./ Grant No.: IDA/ D4070

Assignment Title: External Auditor. (As per Procurement Plan): GM-NAWEC-379210-CS-LCS

The Government of the Gambia (GOTG) has received financing from the World Bank (IDA Grant D4080), towards the implementation of the ECOWAS Regional Electricity Access Project (ECO-REAP) and intends to recruit an audit firm for the audit of the financial statements.

A. Project Development Objective

• The Project Development Objective is to increase grid electricity access in Guinea-Bissau, Mali, and The Gambia. | B. Project Components

• The proposed SOP1 will finance work outlined above in Guinea-Bissau, Mali, and The Gambia. The project aims to provide access to around 1 million people in the three countries. Specific localities in each country have been selected following a least-cost geospatial electrification planning within a 100-km radius of the substations of the OMVG in The Gambia and Guinea Bissau, and the substations of the OMVS in Mali. The project is aligned to the national access programs.
• The project comprises three components:
• Design and build electricity distribution infrastructure (Medium Voltage - MV and Low Voltage - LV) to maximize new connections.
• Supervision of the construction and technical advisory; and
• Technical assistance and project management.
• Component 1: Design, supply, and installation of electricity distribution infrastructure This component specifically supports the detail design, supply and installation of distribution networks from OMVG and OMVS 225/33KV substations with the following scope: (a) 3 700 km of 33 KV medium voltage (MV) lines, (b) 1 000 33KV/400V distribution substations, (c) 3 500 km of 400V low voltage (LV) lines to expand grid coverage and maximize the number of new connections; and d) 140 000 last mile connection equipment, including service drops, prepaid meters, as well as ready boards for low voltage customers.
• Component 2: Supervision of the construction and technical advisory. This component will finance the costs associated with the recruitment of an owner’s engineer (OE) that will be recruited on a competitive basis under the project to supervise the work carried out under component 1. The owner’s engineer will also monitor compliance with safeguard instruments (environmental and social) related to construction. The responsibility of the OE will comprise review of design, technical specifications, and bidding documents; supervision of construction; contract management; and supervision of implementation of Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP) and Resettlement Action Plan (RAP). The OE will assist each PIUs and the RCU during bid clarification, evaluation, and contract negotiation with the selected/awarded bidders/contractors.
• Component 3: Project coordination and technical assistance). In the spirit of strengthening national and regional capacities, this component will finance a combination of technical assistance and project management support to assist recipients in successfully implementing the project and preparing for future phases under the program. Specifically, this component will finance the strengthening of recipient implementation teams responsible for project implementation, expected project costs associated with the management of safeguards excluding the resettlement costs, and technical advisory services pertaining to preparation studies – such as least cost electricity access development plans - for future projects in the region. The component will include three sub-components as follows:
• Sub-component 3.1 –Regional Implementation Support (: This sub-component will finance
• the operation of the Regional Coordination Unit (RCU) and the preparation of the SOP2. It will finance a team comprising a Coordinator, power engineer, procurement, accounting, environmental, social and M&E specialists that will support the project implementation; and, the acquisition of computers and office equipment, training, audits, and other operational costs.
• carry out a study related to the harmonization of equipment and materials to be utilized under component 1 of the project as well as carrying out of a Project-wide assessment at the end of the Project to identify and disseminate lessons relating to absorption capacity and joint procurement the review relating to the harmonization process during the project as well as a program-wide assessment at the end of the project to identify and disseminate lessons relating to absorption capacity and joint procurement; and
• technical studies, ESIA and RAP, gender baseline analysis studies, and bidding documents for future access projects under the program. Sub-component 3.2. - National Implémentation Support.). This sub-component will finance.

• expected costs related to the management of Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) and RAP and the application of the Bank’s safeguard policies.
• recruitment of staff at the national level to strengthen the implementation teams and ensure close oversight throughout the project, including for fiduciary and safeguards supervision. Any physical resettlement costs identified under the project RAP once prepared will be financed by the recipient countries directly.
• OBJECTIVE OF THE AUDIT

2.1 The objective of the audit of the Project financial statements (PFSs) is to enable the auditors to express an independent professional opinion on the financial position of the Project as at the end of each fiscal year; and of the income and expenditure for the accounting period ending on that end. The project’s books of account provide the basis for preparation of the financial statements and are established to reflect the financial transactions in respect of the project.

3.RESPONSIBILITY FOR PREPARATION OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

The project’s management is responsible for the preparation of financial statements, including the maintenance of adequate accounting records and internal controls, the selection and application of accounting policies, the safeguarding of the assets of the project, and adequate disclosure. As part of the audit process, the auditor will request from management written confirmation concerning representations made to us in connection with the audit.

• SCOPE OF THE AUDIT

The audit will be conducted in accordance with International Standards on Auditing. Those Standards require that the auditor plans and performs the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatements. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation.

• In complying with International Standards on Auditing, the auditor is expected to pay particular attention to the following matters, including special considerations for public sector entities:

• In planning and performing the audit to reduce audit risk to an acceptably low level, the auditor should consider the risks of material misstatements in the financial statements due to fraud, as required by International Standard on Auditing 240.
• When designing and performing audit procedures and in evaluating and reporting the results thereof, the auditor should recognize that noncompliance by the entity with laws and regulations may materially affect the financial statements, as required by International Standard on Auditing 250.
• The auditor should communicate audit matters of governance interest arising from the audit of financial statements to those charged with governance of an entity, as required by International Standard on Auditing 260.
• The auditor should appropriately communicate to those charged with governance and to management any deficiencies in internal control that the auditor has identified in an audit of financial statements, as required by International Standard on Auditing 265.
• To reduce audit risk to an acceptably low level, the auditor should determine overall responses to assessed risks at the financial statement level and should design and perform further audit procedures to respond to assessed risks at the assertion level, as required by International Standard on Auditing 330.
• When certain aspects of an entity’s operations are performed by a third-party service provider, the auditor is expected to include an understanding and assessment of the internal control environment of the service provider during the audit process, as required by International Standard on Auditing 402.
• As part of the audit process, the auditor is expected to obtain written representations from management and, where appropriate, those charged with governance, as required by International Standard on Auditing 580.
• When the external auditor decides to use the work of an entity’s internal audit function to modify the nature or timing, or reduce the extent, of audit procedures to be performed directly by the external auditor, the determination shall be in accordance with International Standard on Auditing 610.
• In determining whether to use the work of an auditor’s expert or the extent to which the work of an auditor’s expert is adequate for audit purposes, the determination shall be made in accordance with International Standard on Auditing 620.
• In evidencing compliance with agreed project financing arrangements, the auditor is expected to carry out tests to confirm that:

• All external funds have been used in accordance with the conditions of the relevant financing agreements, with due attention to economy and efficiency, and only for the purposes for which the financing was provided. Relevant financing agreements include [Loan/Credit Agreements].
• Counterpart fu