Abbey Abramson

  Procurement pitfalls and corruption Procurement Pitfalls: From Bid-Rigging to Ghost Deliveries Why this Chapter Matters As dawn broke over the coastal village , the family of four awoke to an ominous rumble. Sleepily rising from their makeshift beds, they stepped outside only to find the embankment designed to protect them from surging tides was crumbling into the sea. Their home, like many others, stood defenseless. If climate adaptation is only as strong as the infrastructure we build, then procurement is the hinge on which safety swings. When the rules governing public works purchases are bent by cartels, kickbacks, front companies, and "creative" change orders, lives are put at risk. That is not rhetoric. Where collusion raises prices and slashes quality, embankments slump, culverts choke, mangroves die, and shelters fail the night they’re needed most (World Bank, 2014; OECD, 2025). By the end of this chapter, you'll be equipped to identify five common scams in proc...

  Bid-rigging and collusion in climate projects Where the biggest losses happen (and why) Procurement and construction are the two stages with the most significant value at risk. In many countries, between 13% and 20% of the GDP is allocated through public procurement. Estimates suggest 10–25% of contract value is lost to corruption in some settings. These losses result in thinner concrete, undersized culverts, and shorter-lived assets (World Bank; UNODC-cited figures).  Bid-rigging & collusion: A narrow circle of firms takes turns “winning,” chilling competition. Tailored specs: Requirements subtly exclude honest competitors (brand-name materials, unrealistic timelines, unnecessary certifications). Change-order abuse: Lowball to win; profit on variations. Front companies: Real owners hide; sanctions lists fail to bite. Supervision capture: The same insiders sign off on their own work. Evidence from open contracting reforms indicates that publishing end-to-end data, ...