On October 20, 2021, the World Bank Group announced a 38-month debarment of Salihu Shehu Ahmad Tijani, a Nigerian national, for engaging in a corrupt practice in connection with a project to provide access to targeted cash transfers for poor and vulnerable households, as part of the National Social Safety Nets Project in Nigeria. According to the World Bank, Salihu made corrupt “appreciation” payments to project officials as a reward for receiving a Bank-funded consultancy services contract on the project.
The World Bank explained that, in making its debarment decision, it took into account that Salihu had cooperated with the World Bank and admitted to the misconduct. The World Bank also stated that, as conditions of his release from debarment, Salihu agreed to undertake corporate ethics training and continue to fully cooperate with the World Bank. During his debarment period, Salihu is ineligible to participate in World Bank projects, and is subject to cross-debarment by other multilateral development banks.