Poland’s Supreme Audit Office (NIK) has reported finding “numerous irregularities” in the distribution of grants by the National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR) in a fast-track call for digital innovation that was co-funded by the EU.
The call results, published in December 2022, showed that of 434 applications, 117 projects qualified for financing. Out of the winning bids, two companies stood out, as they were to receive more than 20% of the entire budget. After opposition politicians questioned the distribution of funds, Poland’s anti-corruption bureau (CBA) launched an investigation, and the Ministry of Funds and Regional Policy carried out an inspection, verifying all projects entitled for funding.
According to the audit, NCBR was obliged to remove four projects that were incorrectly reinstated for review after not passing the initial selection process; one project that did not meet all the evaluation criteria; and 12 projects deemed inconsistent with the call criteria by external experts. Additionally, two applicants withdrew from signing the co-financing agreement.