Project Procurement-Related Reviews

A project procurement-related review (PPRR) is a review of ongoing ADB-financed projects, to confirm compliance with applicable ADB's policies, guidelines, and the loan agreement, with a focus on preventing and detecting integrity violations. PPRRs provide greater assurance that project funds are used for intended development objectives and beneficiaries. See the PPRR process.

The Office of Anticorruption and Integrity (OAI) conducts PPRRs to fulfill its proactive and preventive role in combating fraud and corruption. PPRR is one of OAI's core activities, in line with ADB's efforts to manage for development results. OAI conducts PPRRs in close collaboration with Supreme Audit Institutions—national organizations that set standards for audit work.

PPRRs do PPRRs do not
  • focus on procurement, financial management, and asset verification;
  • assess adequacy of internal controls in place;
  • identify irregularities and non-compliance;
  • inspect project outputs;
  • make recommendations to mitigate/eliminate fraud, corruption or abuse of resources
  • evaluate to assess development effectiveness of ADB projects
  • review project outcomes or development impact, which can only be assessed after finalization of a project


Since 2003, OAI has conducted 40 PPRRs (30 completed), including 4 limited PPRRs for various ADB projects.

Recently posted PPRRs:

Year No. of PPRR/PPRAs Country
2011 5 Bhutan, India, Kyrgyz Republic, Samoa, Viet Nam
2010 5 Bangladesh, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Nepal, People's Republic of China
2009 9 Armenia, Cambodia, India, Mongolia (3 limited PPRRs), Papua New Guinea, Philippines, and Sri Lanka
2008 4 Afghanistan, Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, and Viet Nam
2007 5 Indonesia, Lao PDR, Pakistan, Nepal, and Peoples Republic of China
2006 5 Cambodia, Fiji Islands, Philippines, and Uzbekistan, Viet Nam (limited PPRR)
2005 4 Bangladesh, Indonesia, Mongolia, and Papua New Guinea
2004 2 India and Viet Nam
2003 1 Sri Lanka

Impact of PPRRs

The desired impact of PPRRs is to reduce the risk of corrupt and fraudulent practices in ADB-financed projects which significantly contributes to the burden of poverty in Asia. Fraudulent and corrupt activities divert project funds for ineligible and unauthorized purposes. The consequence is that project objectives are not met, often manifested by unfair and/or uncompetitive procurement process, premature deterioration of construction works, higher maintenance costs, substandard quality of goods and works, and low staff morale. In every instance, intended beneficiaries - the poor- are deprived of improvements in the quality of their life.

PPRRs add to the momentum of increasing developing member countries' (DMCs) awareness of and compliance with ADB's Anticorruption Policy which ADB has gained over the last few years. Findings of the PPRR Team often include "red flags"; these are observations made during the PPRR which indicate that ADB's Anticorruption Policy may have been violated. Subsequent to the PPRR, OAI conducts further investigation of red flags in accordance with ADB's Integrity Principles and Guidelines, and seeks the cooperation of the executing agency and its Project staff at all levels in this effort.

ADB's operations departments and resident missions have called upon the OAI PPRR team to assist and guide them in their efforts to prevent integrity violations in their loan projects. In 2010, such assistance was provided to ADB's Nepal Resident Mission and East Asia Department. Results of PPRRs were shared with operations departments and lessons learned were discussed in their Country Program Review Missions.