JAMAICA | No procurement documents found for $521 million in contracts awarded by UHWI - Auditor General report

KINGSTON, Jamaica, January 13, 2026 - Auditor General Pamela Monroe Ellis has reported that of the $671 billion allocated to public health from 2019-20 to 2024-25, less than half was directed towards urgent needs such as hospital equipment, supply chain management, and facilities.

The finding is contained in a performance audit of the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI), which was tabled in Parliament on Tuesday afternoon.

The audit said the assessment forms part of a wider series of audits under the theme “Ensuring Value for Money in Public Health Procurement”.

The University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI) awarded 51 contracts totalling $521 million for which the Auditor General found no procurement documentation.

The Auditor General also discovered that the UHWI used its tax-exempt status to import goods for a private company, and later purchased those same goods from the entity.

These are two of the major findings in a report tabled by the Auditor General Department in Parliament on Tuesday.

The assessment, which formed part of a wider series of audits under the theme “Ensuring Value for Money”, revealed several deficiencies in the hospital's governance, procurement, and contract management processes.

“It highlights significant weaknesses in UHWI’s procurement practices which, if not addressed promptly, could heighten the risk of corrupt activities and hinder the hospital’s capacity to deliver high-quality healthcare services.

Given the serious nature of these issues, there is a need for further investigation to determine the extent of revenue losses,” auditor general Pamela Monroe Ellis said.

Here are the findings of the report.

Absence of Procurement Documentation

UHWI could not provide procurement documentation for 51 contracts valuing $521 million.

The lack of these documents prevented a thorough review of whether the transactions adhered to procurement regulations and met the standards of transparency, accountability, and value for money.

Key materials, including requisitions, tender documents, bid submissions, evaluation reports, and procurement records, were not available for examination.

Misuse of Tax-Exempt Status

UHWI inappropriately utilised its tax-exempt status to import goods for private companies, resulting in losses totalling $23.1 million.

Customs records showed that items such as office furniture, laundry, and medical equipment were declared as hospital imports, but inventory records confirmed these were not acquired by the hospital and were instead obtained by private entities.

This misrepresentation breached the Customs Act, resulting in over $20 million in unpaid import duties. Section 209(1) of the Act prohibits false declarations on customs documents, with violations subject to fines or prosecution.

In its initial management response in August 2025, UHWI confirmed that it had ceased facilitating imports for private entities using its tax-exempt status. UHWI acknowledged that this practice violated public trust and procurement law.

In October 2025, UHWI reiterated its acceptance of the findings, pending further investigations, and stated it was seeking the most suitable measures to prevent a recurrence of such activities.

UHWI’s procurement management was undermined by the absence of critical strategic documents.

UHWI failed to fulfil its obligation to prepare the required annual procurement plans, providing only two out of the seven mandated plans between 2018-19 and 2024-25.

The Board of Directors did not approve the plans, and the two plans omitted essential information such as item counts, procurement timelines, suppliers, procurement methods, and performance indicators, despite the requirements set out in the Government of Jamaica’s Public Procurement Handbook.

Additionally, UHWI failed to provide any approved strategic plans for this period, even though US$186,600 was paid to two consultants for strategic and operational reviews in 2022 and 2024.

Furthermore, UHWI had not submitted annual reports and audited financial statements for 2019-20 to 2024-25 detailing how approximately $65 billion in subventions were used.

The lack of these key documents may have contributed to operational deficiencies and negatively affected governance standards in public procurement.

Non-Compliance with GOJEP Portal Requirements

All public entities were required to conduct and publish procurement proceedings through the Government of Jamaica Electronic Procurement (GOJEP) portal from 1 August 2023. However, UHWI did not faithfully comply with the circular.

We noted that of the 800 procurement activities valued at over $1.6 billion reported to the Integrity Commission in UHWI’s 2024 quarterly reports, only 20 were published on the GOJEP platform.

After-the-Fact Procurement Activities

UHWI frequently initiated the procurement process after goods or services had already been delivered for works completed. This was the case for the purchase of 41 laptops and renovations to several facilities, including the staff clinic, occupational building, doctors’ quarters, daycare nursery, wards 17 to 20, and the Wi-Fi building.

The total estimated value of these projects amounted to $69.2 million, and none adhered to the required procurement guidelines. UHWI only began inviting suppliers to bid after the goods or services had been provided, a breach of the procurement act, related regulations, and the public sector procurement procedures handbook.

Use of the Private Wing for Procurement

UHWI conducted two purchases through its Private Wing, thereby bypassing standard procurement procedures. In June 2019 and March 2023, UHWI entered into two loan agreements valued at $91.66 million and US$354,334, respectively with UHWI Private Wing for the acquisition of a Phillips Digital Diagnost C50 Dual Panel machine and mobile C-Arm equipment for use at UHWI.

According to the agreements, the Private Wing was responsible for the procurements, with costs to be recovered from future payments owed to UHWI.

Despite concerns from the Board and advice from the Ministry of Finance and Public Service (MoFPS), UHWI did not seek alternative funding or request additional budget support to facilitate purchases through established procurement channels.

Furthermore, the required written approval was not obtained from the Minister of Finance, nor was there assurance that the Private Wing complied with the requirements of the Public Procurement Act.

Other Procurement Irregularities

UHWI did not follow required procurement procedures for hiring consultants and other service providers. UHWI engaged multiple consultants and service providers for redevelopment and operational activities without adhering to established procurement procedures.

The total payments made by UHWI across these cases amounted to approximately $681 million for consultancy, design review services and other services and US$186,600, for two consulting contracts related to strategic and operational reviews.

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