| Work Detail |
The National Water and Sanitation Works Authority was warned of irregularities on at least 11 occasions between 2017 and 2024; Minister Caputo announced that it will be closed on
October 8, 2024
The headquarters of the National Water and Sanitation Works Agency (Enohsa)
The headquarters of the National Water and Sanitation Works Agency (Enohsa)
This is not the first time that a public official has denounced irregularities surrounding the National Water and Sanitation Works Agency (Enohsa), as the Minister of Economy, Luis Caputo, did recently. A recent audit mentioned at least 10 other previous reports in which serious problems were found in the execution of works by the agency, according to a report by the General Comptrollers Office of the Nation (Sigen) to which LA NACION had access. Caputo referred to this entity as a "den of corruption" and announced that it will be closed.
Last year, this agency managed a budget of $87,472,626,465 and made 87% of its purchases through direct contracting, which always implies greater discretion than private or public tenders. The Sigen audit, last February, noted delays in the completion of works and highlighted as an aggravating factor that these were projects for the provision of drinking water and sanitation. It noted delays of almost two years in the submission of financial advances.
Enohsa operated in parallel with the Undersecretariat of Water Resources (SSRH), something that, for the current government, generated duplication of tasks. Sources from the Ministry of Economy said that while the SSRH maintained 184 works in its portfolio by the end of 2023, of which 29 will now be prioritized, Enohsa managed 1,485 projects, of which 122 will remain in execution after the restructuring. All will pass to the orbit of the undersecretariat, sources from the ministry told this newspaper.
Caputo, on the closure of Enohsa
With a staff of between 365 and 358 employees at the beginning of Javier Mileis administration, Enohsa outnumbered the staff of the undersecretariat, which had only 145 workers. For now, the number of employees has been reduced to 234, and it is expected that 50% of them will be dismissed, while the rest will be relocated to other areas of the administration where human resources are needed.
The entity had returned to the orbit of the Economy in December 2023 (after passing through several departments over the years) and in March it appointed Bernardo Bartolomé Heredia as its official administrator, who had been an official of Juan Schiaretti in Córdoba.
Among the entitys most important programs are the Assistance Program in Areas with Sanitary Risk (Proarsa) and the "Plan Argentina Hace", two key initiatives to bring drinking water and sanitation to the most vulnerable areas of the country. However, the reports of the Internal Audit Unit (UAI) between 2017 and 2021 revealed a series of irregularities that raised suspicions of a lack of control and transparency in the execution of these projects.
In the case of Proarsa, the lack of supervision over the execution of the works was noted, with breaches of contract and modifications not notified to the entity. In addition, in many cases, the transferred funds were not invested in the planned works, which generated significant delays and, in some cases, left works out of service. The UAI reports, such as No. 4/2017 and No. 10/2019, reflected the administrative disorder and the lack of follow-up by the entity.
Protest at Enohsa
Unfinished works
On the other hand, the “Plan Argentina Hace” showed similar deficiencies, with unfinished works, lack of presentation of certificates and financial advances paid without any progress in the projects. The inconsistencies in the award procedures, as detailed in UAI Report No. 12/2021, demonstrated the lack of a rigorous internal control system in the entity.
The Drinking Water and Sanitation Program (PAyS) was also under the scrutiny of audits. A relevant example was the case of the project for the drinking water system in the city of Concordia, Entre Ríos, where the adjustments made to the project were not adequately documented, which made it difficult to verify compliance with contractual obligations (UAI Report No. 9/2020).
At the organizational level, Enohsa did not meet the standards of an adequate functional structure. The last update approved by the Cabinet of Ministers dates back to 1996 (the agency was created in 1995), and since then, the modifications that were implemented did not have the required formal approval, according to Sigen. This situation resulted in an inadequate segregation of functions and the existence of headless areas, which further complicated the agencys operations.
A 2021 audit revealed that $302,081,391.55 transferred in that period were not fully accounted for. “In this regard, there are no actions to summon and recover funds, as well as the late completion of the same by Enohsa,” noted the audit from last February.
One of the audit observations stated: “Delays were verified in the completion and enabling of works, with the aggravating factor that they involved the provision of drinking water and sanitation with a high impact on the improvement of the quality of life of the beneficiary population, which denotes a lack of follow-up of the same by Enohsa. In turn, significant delays were observed that exceeded the stipulated deadlines for the presentation of the documentation corresponding to the rendering of the Financial Advance, verifying in some cases a delay of almost 2 years, with no evidence of the corresponding claims by the Agency.”
Camila Dolabjian
Source: https://www.lanacion.com.ar/ |
