SEGURA IP3 was selected to implement one important component of GEMAP, the program created by the Government of Liberia (GOL) with the support of the international community to recover from over a decade of civil war and economic chaos. GEMAP comprises six interlocking components:

1. 1)Financial Management and Accountability
   

2. 2)Improving Budgeting and Expenditure Management
   

3. 3)Improving Procurement Practices and Granting of Concessions
   

4. 4)Establishing Effective Processes to Control Corruption
   

5. 5)Supporting Key Institutions
   

6. 6)Capacity Building
   

The GEMAP agreement was signed between the GOL and the international community (represented by the United Nations, the Economic Community of West African States ECOWAS, the African Union, the European Union, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the United States Government), as the means to achieve the following critically important objectives for the country: “ to ensure that all Liberian revenues will be available for the benefit of all Liberian people, to ensure that the Liberian Government will have the appropriate fiscal instruments to capture the revenue required for the development of the country and to strengthen Liberian institutions so that they can take responsibility for reversing decades of deficiencies in economic and financial management…”.

Specifically, the GEMAP agreement mentions the need to appoint “internationally recruited financial controllers with signature authority” at large revenue generating revenue state-owned enterprises (SOEs).  These include the National Port Authority (NPA), the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company (LPRC), Roberts International Airport (RIA) and the Forestry Development Authority (FDA).  The US Agency for International Development (USAID) chose SEGIR Privatization II as the most appropriate procurement mechanism to provide this urgent assistance and signed a Task Order contract with SEGURA IP3 for this purpose.

In addition to our four Internationally Recruited Financial Controllers (IRFCs) the team includes a Senior Ports Operations Advisor and locally hired accounting professionals, plus administrative support personnel.  Local personnel have been provided to us by VOSCON Inc., a reputable public auditing firm in Liberia, affiliated with Deloitte & Touche International.

Our project team is also processing the procurement of $2.6 million of Airport Ground Support Equipment for the RIA.  With subcontractor CrownAgents USA, we have completed the bidding process, the selection of vendors and the delivery of this equipment.  We are currently overseeing its final inspection and acceptance.

The project also includes a component to provide assistance to the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of Liberia for the acquisition of the Bank Master Plus software and it’s integration to the Bill Payment Flag System software for the real-time recognition of government revenues generated at the Customs House in the Port of Monrovia.