Oxford University Press fined £1.9m over bribery by African subsidiary firms

Oxford University Press, the global academic publishing department of the university, has been ordered to pay nearly £1.9m after two subsidiary companies bribed government officials for contracts to supply school textbooks in east Africa.

The two wholly owned subsidiaries, based in Kenya and Tanzania, made payments to obtain contracts on a number of projects, including two financed by the World Bank.

The corruption was uncovered after investigators from the World Bank approached the OUP last year. An internal inquiry found concerns relating to contracts entered into between 2007 and 2010.

Following a high court action brought by the director of the Serious Fraud Office, the publisher was ordered to pay £1.89m "in recognition of sums it received which were generated through unlawful conduct".

The SFO said in a statement that there was no evidence of board-level connivance in relation to the bribery, and the products supplied were of a "good standard" and provided at market values.

The statement read: "This means that the jurisdictions involved have not been victims as a result of overpaying for the goods or as a result of being supplied goods which were unsuitable or not required."

The two subsidiaries have been excluded from competing for World Bank contracts for three years.

In addition to the fine, OUP has offered to contribute £2m to not-for-profit organisations for teacher training and other educational purposes in sub-Saharan Africa. The SFO director, David Green, said: "This settlement demonstrates that there are, in appropriate cases, clear and sensible solutions available to those who self-report issues of this kind to the authorities.

"The company will be adopting new business practices to prevent a recurrence of these issues and these new procedures will be subject to an extensive and detailed review."

Nigel Portwood, the chief executive of OUP, which publishes academic and educational works in more than 40 languages, said: "OUP is committed to maintaining the highest ethical standards, and we have been deeply concerned to discover evidence of wrongdoing in two of our African subsidiaries.

"As soon as these matters came to light we acted immediately to investigate thoroughly and report to the relevant authorities. We have strengthened our management in the region and are taking appropriate disciplinary action in respect of those involved in this conduct."

The improper behaviour was confined to a "small part" of a global organisation, Portwood said.

The chief executive said the firm's £2m contribution was a recognition that the conduct of its east African subsidiaries "fell well below the standards we expect".

Leonard McCarthy, the World Bank's integrity vice-president, said: "OUP's acknowledgment of misconduct and the thoroughness of its investigation is evidence of how companies can address issues of fraud and corruption and change their corporate practices to foster integrity in the development business."

In 2010, the World Bank excluded the British publishers Macmillan from contracts it financed for six years after the company admitted bribery payments relating to an education project in Sudan.

Macmillan was ordered to pay more than £11m in the high court after a two-year investigation by the SFO.