Questions have been raised in Parliament over how beneficiaries of a VT180 million Value Addition Fund were selected, with concerns about transparency and possible conflicts of interest.
The concerns were raised during a public hearing by the Parliamentary Committee on Economic and Foreign Policy with the Ministry of Trade, Commerce and Industry.
Malekula MP Marcellino Barthelemy questioned the process used to select recipients, noting that more than half of the successful applicants appeared to come from Santo.
He also raised concerns that one of the recipients was employed by the ministry responsible for administering the fund.
“The committee wants to understand how recipients were selected. We have noticed that many of the successful applicants are from Santo, and one recipient is working within the ministry. That raises questions about conflict of interest and whether the process was truly national,” Barthelemy said.
Information presented to the committee showed that more than 65 applications were received, with 11 applicants selected for funding.
Questions were also raised about the amount of funding individual beneficiaries could receive under the scheme.
Director General of the Ministry of Trade, Commerce and Industry, Noah Patrick Kouback, acknowledged there were weaknesses in the process and said an internal audit had identified areas requiring improvement.
“The audit identified some loopholes, including criteria that were not clear enough. There were also no formal checks and balances in place regarding conflict of interest issues,” Kouback said.
He said the ministry is working to strengthen future grant processes by introducing clearer criteria and additional safeguards.
Kouback told the committee the changes would help ensure future funding allocations are transparent and accountable.
