From the International Desk
The International role of the Supreme Audit Institution of India extends to following areas:
- Association with INTOSAI
- Association with ASOSAI
- Participation in Global Audit Leadership Forum(GALF) & other international multilateral bodies
- Bilateral relations with other SAIs
- Audits of International Organizations
The CAG of India occupies several important positions in INTOSAI and ASOSAI. The prominent ones among these are Chair of INTOSAI Committee on Knowledge Sharing and Knowledge Services (KSC), Chair of the INTOSAI Working Group on IT Audit (WGITA) and member of INTOSAI and ASOSAI Governing Board. The SAI India has recently also taken over the responsibility of Chairmanship of the INTOSAI Compliance Audit Subcommittee (CAS).
A Forum for INTOSAI’s Professional Pronouncements (FIPP) has been established by the INTOSAI Goal Chairs (i.e. PSC, CBC and KSC). The FIPP is chaired by Ms. K. Ganga, DAI (CRA) which has 15 other members from various SAIs.
CAG is a member of the UN Board of Auditors (Board) for the period July 2014 to June 2020. Germany and Tanzania are the other members of the Board. As per the work allocation among the three members of the Board, SAI India is the lead auditor in respect of following UN organisations:
- UN Secretariat (Volume I)
- UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund)
- UNOPS (United Nations Office for Project Services)
- UNJSPF (United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund)
- UNCC (United Nations Compensation Commission)
- Escrow Account
- ITC (International Trade Centre)
- UNPKO Missions (lead auditor Germany)
- CMP (Capital Master Plan)
- UMOJA (ERP system of UN)
- Information & Communication Technology Strategy
Besides, CAG is the external auditor of World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) for the period of six years from 2012.
INTOSAI NEWS
14th meeting of Compliance Audit Subcommittee (CAS), New Delhi, India 20-21 February 2017
INTOSAI Compliance Audit Subcommittee (CAS) is chaired by SAI India. SAI India hosted the 14th meeting of the CAS in New Delhi on 20-21 February, 2017. It was attended by nine SAI members, apart from one observer - AFROSAI (E) and IDI. The meeting discussed and adopted CAS Work Plan for 2017-2019 for submission to PSC/FIPP. The Work Plan includes following two projects:
Project I - Prepare Supplementary Compliance Audit Guidance to help SAIs implement the new ISSAI 4000.
Project II - Associating with other Committees as subject matter experts in projects of relevance to the CAS scheduled to be carried out as part of Priority 2 of the SDP of the FIPP.
Fourth meeting of the Forum for INTOSAI Professional Pronouncement (FIPP), Luxembourg City, Luxembourg, 20-23 February 2017
4th meeting of FIPP was held in Luxembourg at the European Court of Auditors from 20 to 23 February, 2017. Ms. K. Ganga, Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General, Chair FIPP attended the meeting. Thirteen out of fifteen members, along with the PSC observer from SAI Brazil attended the meeting.
Role of FIIP in the INTOSAI due process, Implementation of Strategic Development Plan (SDP) and FIPP’s action plan for priority Projects in SDP, Documentation of FIIP internal procedures- Communication Policy, Working Procedures, FIPP guidance like Drafting Conventions for GUIDS, and Frequently Asked Question were discussed at the meeting.
4th Global Audit Leadership Forum, Copenhagen, Denmark, 17-19 May 2017
The Global Audit Leadership Forum (GALF), a group of nineteen Auditors’ General (including the Comptroller and Auditor General of India), meets annually for organised yet informal discussions on current and emerging issues of concern to their Governments and officers and to explore opportunities to share information and work closely.
The 4th GALF meeting was held at Copenhagen, Denmark from 17 to 19 May 2017. The discussion were held on the topics “Strategy work in SAIs”and “Evaluation of the audit work”. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India was represented by Ms. Anita Pattanayak. ADAI (CR) in the meeting.
The next meeting of GALF would be held in Luxembourg.
26th Meeting of the INTOSAI Working Group on IT Audit, Seoul, Korea, 22-23 May 2017
The 26th meeting of the INTOSAI Working Group on IT Audit (WGITA) was hosted by BAI, Korea in Seoul on 22 and 23 May, 2017. The 7th International Seminar on "Audit Management System for Ensuring Audit Capabilities: Challenges, Opportunities, and Solutions” was also held in conjunction with the WGITA meeting on 24 May, 2017.
The meeting was inaugurated by Mr. Chan-hyun Hwang, Chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection, Korea and was presided over by Mr. Shashi Kant Sharma, Comptroller & Auditor General and Chair of WGITA.
55 delegates from the 30 member countries/observers attended the meeting. SAI-Hungary participated as a special invitee.
The meeting discussed various issues in connection with the Strategic Development Plan of IFPP and the quality assurance of non-IFPP documents. The five project teams presented the progress reports on their respective projects. Country papers on topical issues on IT Audit was also presented in the meeting. GAO USA who are leading the project on updating the IDI-IT Handbook presented their views on the topic.
The 27th meeting of the INTOSAI Working Group on IT Audit would be held in Australia.
ASOSAI NEWS
The 51st ASOSAI Governing Board Meeting, Bali, Indonesia, 13-14 February 2017
The 51st ASOSAI Governing Board Meeting (GBM) was held in Bali, Indonesia on 13-14 February, 2017. A total number of 69 delegates (Governing Board and Audit Committee member SAIs, and Observers) participated in the meeting and discussed key agendas for the ASOSAI.
A delegation headed by the CAG of India participated in 51st GBM, other members of the delegation were Mr. Anadi Misra, Secretary to CAG and Ms. Atoorva Sinha, Director (IR).
The 51st GBM adopted the reports on regular agendas, which include: the ASOSAI financial statement for FY 2016, formulation of the multi-year budget plan for 2018-2020, revised budget plan for 2017, the Evaluation for 2016 Annual Operational Plan, the 2017 Annual Operational Plan, ASOSAI e-Journal, and capacity development activities.
Bilateral and Multilateral Relations
Visit of Chairperson of Philippines Commission on Audit, 30-31 March 2017
A delegation headed by Mr. Michael G. Aguinaldo, Chairperson of Philippines Commission on Audit visited India from 30 March to 31 March 2017. During the visit Chairperson met the CAG of India at Headquarters and also visited our international training centers, International Center for Information Systems and Audit (iCISA) at NOIDA and International Center for Environment Audit and Sustainable Development (iCED) at Jaipur. The purpose of the visit was to learn from SAI India’s experience on the establishment and management of training centers.
XXIII Commonwealth Auditors General Conference, New Delhi 21 – 23 March 2017
The XXIII Conference of Commonwealth Auditors General was hosted by Comptroller and Auditor General of India in New Delhi from 21 to 23 March 2017. The three day Conference was attended by 74 delegates from 36 countries including 25 heads of SAIs. The Conference held discussions under the main theme “Fostering Partnerships for Capacity Development in Public Audit”, in the context of the two sub-themes, namely, “Leveraging technology in public audit” and “Environment audit: A Commonwealth perspective”.
The sub-theme discussions were chaired by Prof. Mussa Juma Assad, Controller & Auditor General of Tanzania and Mr. Michael Ferguson, Auditor General of Canada respectively. Keynote addresses on the two sub-themes were delivered by SAI South Africa and SAI Australia respectively. SAIs of Cayman Islands, Kenya, Malaysia, Pakistan and United Kingdom presented country paper on their experiences in use of Information technology in audits whereas SAIs of Bangladesh, Cameroon, Malaysia, Pakistan and Zambia shared their experiences in environment audit. SAI India made video presentations on the Data analytics in SAI India and SAI India’s perspective on Environment Audit.
Given that most of the Commonwealth countries follow similar governance structures and share a common working language, the discussions on the two sub-themes reinforced the need for building partnerships among Commonwealth Supreme Audit Institutions for collective benefit.
The Conference observed that most Commonwealth countries have developed basic capacities to undertake audits of information systems. The Conference recognised the opportunity for the Commonwealth Supreme Audit Institutions to share experiences and expertise in all aspects of auditing technology in general, and in the application of data analytics in performance and attest audits in particular.
The Conference noted that all Commonwealth countries were environmentally vulnerable. Since the preparedness of some of these countries to address and mitigate these effects were low, it was noted that the Supreme Audit Institutions in these countries should focus their attention to highlight the risks of ineffective approaches to mitigation to their respective Governments.
Conference also recognised that the adoption of Sustainable Development Goals by the United Nations required mainstreaming of environmental issues in all types of audit. The main concern noted in the audit of environmental matters was the difficulty in evaluating impact of long term Governmental interventions and programmes particularly where there was lack of performance measures. Lack of experienced and trained staff was perceived as another challenge which many Supreme Audit Institutions were faced with.
The Conference also observed that there was appetite within the Commonwealth SAI community for cooperative audits. The Conference recognised the value of cooperative audits, especially between SAIs of contiguous countries, in areas which were of high concern for that region. The Conference encouraged the Commonwealth SAIs to equip their staff with the knowledge and skills required for carrying out effective environment audits.
Considering the important role played by the Commonwealth Auditors General Group in fostering partnerships among Commonwealth SAIs, the Conference agreed that it would be beneficial to:
- Establish a mechanism to communicate the outcomes of the Commonwealth Auditors General Conferences to INTOSAI and regional organizations, especially the relevant working groups on IT, Big Data and Environmental audit.
- Continue working with the Commonwealth Secretariat to foster cooperation with key Commonwealth organisations which may include engagement with the Commonwealth Association of Public Accounts Committee (CAPAC) and other parliamentary groups.
On the concluding day, the heads of delegations also called on the President of India. Besides the discussions in the plenary, many bilateral meetings were also held among member SAIs on the side-lines.
The XXIV Commonwealth Auditors General Conference will be hosted by the Supreme Audit Institution of Fiji in the year 2020.
Meeting of Controller and Auditor General of Tanzania with Comptroller & Auditor General of India, 24 January 2017
Prof. Mussa Juma Assad, Controller and Auditor General of Tanzania met the CAG on 24th January 2017 at Headquarters. The purpose of this meeting was to explore areas of bilateral cooperation in the field of public audit.
Visit of delegation from SAI Zambia, 16-20 January 2017
A four member delegation headed by Mr. George Chiti Mumba, Head of Procurement and Supplies Division, SAI Zambia visited India for a study tour from 16-20 January 2017.
The purpose of the visit was to learn from SAI India’s experience on the development of training modules and management of training institutions. The delegation visited our international institutes iCISA, NOIDA and iCED, Jaipur to have an insight of management of training institutes. The delegation also met Dr. P. Mukherjee, Dy. CAG at Headquarters.
Working Level Technical Seminar among BRICS SAIs, 28-29 June 2017
2017 Working level technical seminar among BRICS SAIs was held from 28-29 June 2017 in Johannesburg South Africa. The theme of the seminar was “Audit of Large Infrastructure Projects”. The seminar was attend by thirteen participants from all the BRICS SAIs. SAI India was represented by a two member delegation headed by Ms. Mala Sinha, Additional Deputy Comptroller & Auditor General.
All the SAIs made presentations and shared their experiences on the Audit of Infrastructure Projects which was followed by discussions and question/answer sessions to know more about the how the audit of Infrastructure Projects is being conducted and what all difficulties are faced by the audit teams and what are the focus areas which need immediate attention and improvement.
Apart from presentations, an open discussion was also held on how to maximize the value of the cooperation among BRICS SAIs, as well as a road map and milestones in the future.
UN Audit
CAG met the UN secretary General Mr. Antonio Guterres at UN HQs, 26 January 2017
Mr. Shashi Kant Sharma, Comptroller and Auditor General of India, in his capacity as Chair of United Nations Board of Auditors, met the new UN Secretary General Mr. Antonio Guterres on 26th January 2017 in the UN Headquarters at New York. During the meeting, CAG assured the Secretary General of continued support of Board of Auditors’ in maintaining and enhancing transparency and accountability in the UN.
CAG briefed the Secretary General on the major audit focus areas identified for the current year and few important issues that emanated from previous audit reports of the Board of Auditors. Mr. Shashi Kant Sharma informed Mr. Guterres that the Board of Auditors will focus on implementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in various UN organizations as a cross-cutting theme. Mr. Guterres appreciated the work done by the Board in enhancing accountability and transparency in the UN and also assured his fullest cooperation to the Board of Auditors. During his visit, Mr. Sharma also met Ms. Inga Rhonda King, Chair of Administrative and Budgetary Committee of General Assembly (popularly known as fifth committee) and Mr. Carlos G. Ruiz Massieu, Chair of Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions. These two committees are important oversight bodies of UN system which deliberate on the work of Board of Auditors and recommend action to the General Assembly.
CAG met the Management Committee of UN at New York, 28 June 2017
Mr. Shashi Kant Sharma, Comptroller & Auditor General of India and the Chairman, UN Board of Auditors (BOA) addressed the Management Committee of the UN at New York on 28th June 2017. The Committee is headed by the Chef De Cabinet of the Secretary General and consists of the heads of all the wings of the UN worldwide. The heads of the UN agencies stationed outside the New York joined the meeting via video conference.
The CAG stressed upon the need for improved efficiency and cost effectiveness required in operations of the UN. He highlighted the main audit issues noticed by the BOA during 2016, relating to ICT strategy, ERP Implementation, Actuarial valuation, Pension fund management, Anti-Fraud framework and implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.
The CAG assured that the BOA will continue to provide independent oversight on the functioning of the UN and will support the initiatives and reforms being undertaken by the management.
The Chef de Cabinet and other members of the committee appreciated all the issues raised by the CAG and assured their full cooperation in addressing the concerns of audit.
This address comes as a follow up of the meeting CAG had with Mr. Antonio Guterres, the Secretary General of the UN in January this year. The SG had discussed his ideas for business transformation and improvement at the UN in that meeting.
The BOA will be taking up some of the important issues for audit examination in current year on the request of the General Assembly of the UN e.g. air operations and implementation of the anti-fraud framework besides the regular audit work.
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