The Economic Development Board (EDB) has been flagged by the Auditor-General’s Office (AGO) for serious lapses in both contract procurement and grant administration, including the use of inconsistent tender pricing data and inadequate checks on over S$1.3 million disbursed under the Singapore Global Network Funding Programme (SGNFP).
The findings were published on 9 September 2025 as part of AGO’s annual report for the financial year 2024/25, and form part of broader concerns about public sector procurement practices and grant disbursement controls.
Contract awarded based on unsupported pricing data
AGO’s audit revealed that EDB awarded a contract for global media agency services using pricing information submitted after the tender closing date, which did not match the original bid price.
Key findings:
- A tenderer submitted required supporting pricing data after the close of the tender.
- The data included a cost figure higher than the tendered bid price.
- EDB did not clarify the discrepancy, nor did it use the original bid price in its analysis.
- Instead, it used the higher derived figure in its recommendation to the Tender Approving Authority (TAA).
AGO flagged that had the actual submitted bid price been used, the TAA could have approved a different contract value or selected another vendor.
“The bid price submitted was not used in the evaluation and award recommendation. Had it been used, the contract price approved could have been different,” the AGO stated.
Although AGO did not name the contract value, media agency procurements of this nature typically involve multi-million-dollar campaigns.
The absence of price verification and reliance on post-tender data undermines transparency and violates public procurement rules.
Over S$1.3 million in SGNFP grants disbursed without checks
AGO also found multiple lapses in the administration of the Singapore Global Network Funding Programme (SGNFP), including the disbursement of S$1.34 million without adequate assurance that the claims met eligibility criteria.
Key figures and observations:
- S$1.34 million was disbursed between 1 April 2022 and 31 March 2024 for event support and networking activities.
- AGO test-checked 15 grant claims, of which:
- None included evidence that the grantee or event attendees met eligibility criteria (e.g. Singapore citizens, PRs, or verified global connections).
- No conflict of interest declarations were collected or verified, contrary to public grant governance best practices.
In one case, AGO found a grantee had reimbursed expenses to an affiliated individual, raising COI concerns.
However, EDB did not detect the issue as no conflict declarations were required during the application or claim stages.
Additionally, the grant scheme’s design allowed applicants to structure events in ways that maximised grant payouts under the co-funding percentage model, without proportionate increase in deliverables or engagement impact.
“There was no requirement for applicants to declare conflicts of interest when submitting claims… there was also no evidence that EDB carried out COI or eligibility checks,” the report noted.
Systemic issues risk undermining public confidence
AGO assessed that the EDB’s approach lacked the basic safeguards expected of public funding and contracting mechanisms.
The combination of procurement irregularities and grant control weaknesses points to systemic gaps in financial governance.
The audit observations were conveyed to EDB via formal management letters. EDB is expected to undertake internal reviews and report to the Public Accounts Committee, which may call for hearings to further examine the lapses.
AGO did not identify any fraudulent intent or misappropriation, but stressed that without adequate controls, the risk of misuse increases sharply.
Broader context: AGO’s spotlight on procurement and grant practices
The EDB was not the only agency flagged. AGO noted 25 significant observations in FY24/25, with 7 related to procurement and contract management and 4 involving grant-related lapses.
In the same report, the Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) was cited for errors in tender scoring amounting to a S$2.43 million difference in outcome, and the Ministry of Education was found to have over S$116,200 in unutilised withdrawals from the Post-Secondary Education Account.
The post AGO finds EDB awarded contract using unverified pricing data and lacked controls in grant programme appeared first on The Online Citizen.
