Morocco’s General Inspectorate of Finance has launched an in-depth audit into public procurement practices involving “purchase orders” (Bons de commande) following internal audit reports that flagged potential irregularities and favoritism in contract awards, sources familiar with the matter told Hespress AR.
The investigation focuses on state institutions and public companies that allegedly bypassed proper bidding procedures, awarding contracts to select firms despite competing bids offering lower prices.
Sources revealed that auditors uncovered serious violations, including the fragmentation of large contracts into smaller ones tailored for certain “favored” companies.
As part of the probe, inspectors have requested documents from a private contractor and two public entities over questionable deals completed in 2023. The audit aims to reconcile financial transactions with official expenditure approvals and verify compliance with Morocco’s public procurement decree.
Allegations of Preferential Treatment
The probe revealed repeated instances where purchase orders were awarded to companies offering higher prices, sparking questions about the legality of those decisions. Inspectors have reportedly sent formal inquiries to procurement departments demanding explanations.
Particular scrutiny has been given to excessive reliance on purchase orders for procurement and service contracts — a practice that has surged since the government increased the spending cap for such orders from MAD 200,000 to MAD 500,000.
Sources say that auditors are reviewing allegations made by companies excluded from public tenders, who claim certain officials misused legal loopholes to benefit firms with whom they shared personal or financial ties.
Over MAD 130 Million in Split Contracts
The investigation is reportedly covering public contracts worth over MAD 130 million, which auditors say were deliberately split into smaller deals to avoid the stricter oversight associated with formal tenders. This practice violates existing procurement regulations.
Inspectors noted the lack of oversight committees to evaluate bids or monitor service quality against announced specifications — a breach of procurement laws that was flagged in preliminary findings.
National Audit Authority Previously Warned of Abuse
The Supreme Audit Court (Cour des Comptes) had previously raised alarms about the misuse of purchase orders in a memo, attributing the lack of real competition to weak internal controls.
The court warned that the flexibility of purchase orders, intended to support small and medium-sized enterprises, was being abused to avoid competitive bidding, often leading to contracts being repeatedly awarded to the same contractors.
In some cases, supposed rival bids were later discovered to be fake or coordinated in favor of a predetermined winner.
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