Ghanaian architects fight government over David Adjaye contracts

•The architects said government flouted its own rules in awarding the contract to Sir David Adjaye

• They said government handpicked Adjaye Associates for the job

•Deputy Finance Minister, John Kumah insists that due process for followed

The Ghana Institute of Architects has accused government of sidestepping procurement procedures in the awarding of design

Read full articlecontract for the 111 health facilities to the architectural firm owned by Sir David Adjaye.

According to the group, government did not follow its own rules with its decision to give Adjaye Associates the contract on sole source basis.

In a Joy News interview, the honorary secretary of the Ghana Institute of Architects, Augustus Richardson said that government did not give Ghanaian architects the opportunity to apply for the contract.

He said that government acted in contravention of its rules by choosing David Adjaye.

“You handpick a person under the pretext of sole-sourcing, yet when you read the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) Act on sole-sourcing, the terms there do not apply or make these things worthwhile? Why are we doing this? We decry this as an Institute,” he said.

“The point is not about him being a Ghanaian architect, we are in a global world where everything is about competition. Ghanaians compete with their counterparts abroad and the reverse is also true,” he said.

But John Kumah, the Deputy Minister of Finance insisted that due process was followed by government.

“I cannot tell you on this table which of the procedure was adopted. We are interested in the financing. We have the technical side. However, I can assure you all the necessary legal procedures were followed,” he said.

Adjaye Associates, according to the honorary vice president of IMANI Africa, Bright Simons enjoyed $6million as the designer of all the hospitals.

“Following the protest by some Ghanaian architects about the hiring of David Adjaye to design 111 clinics for Ghana Govt, I took a quick look. The $6 million for the designs came from COVID funds. I also learnt that masks; sanitisers for students 2 stay in sch cost the Govt $100m,” he said in an August 26, 2021 tweet.