Three years ago, the German company bribed an official working for the Lesotho Highlands Water project. In November 2006 Lahmeyer was blacklisted for a seven-year period by the World Bank, a punishment which could be reduced by four years if the company were to implement a corporate ethics programme, reports The Guardian.

The Financial Times points out that it is the first time that a multilateral development bank debars a company for bribery in a project funded by another bank.

The decision taken by the EBRD follows discussions among the multilateral banks on whether or not to accept ‘cross-debarment’.

The Financial Times reports that the news was hailed by anti-corruption campaigners around the world including Transparency International as a success for the drive towards cross-debarment.