Tag: OLACEFS

Under the Cooperative Audit of Climate Change Adaptation Actions (CCAA), the INTOSAI Development Initiative (IDI), in partnership with the INTOSAI Working Group on Environmental Auditing (WGEA), supported 54 Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) of seven INTOSAI regions –  ASOSAI, AFROSAI-E, ARABOSAI (ongoing), CAROSAI, EUROSAI, OLACEFS, and PASAI – to strengthen their capacity to audit government responses to climate change adaptation. The initiative combined ISSAI-based cooperative performance audits with structured capacity development, enabling the 287 auditors of the participating SAI audit teams to enhance professional competencies while delivering nationally relevant audit results.

Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) and the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) have increasingly positioned themselves as key actors in advancing sustainable development. Successive INTOSAI strategic plans (2017–2022 and 2023–2028) identify the contribution of SAIs to the implementation, follow-up, and review of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a strategic priority. This longstanding commitment has provided an enabling institutional framework that has stimulated numerous initiatives— often supported by the INTOSAI Development Initiative (IDI) — and yielded a growing set of tools, methodologies, and audit reports across diverse sectors and SDG targets.

Numerous INTOSAI bodies, regional organizations and other affiliated groups were represented at booth spaces throughout the INCOSAI.

During INCOSAI XXV, deliberations focused on the growing role of artificial intelligence (AI) in shaping the future of public sector auditing. Delegates from Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) around the world convened to examine the opportunities of a technological development that can have far-reaching implications for accountability, governance, and public trust.

The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) in the public sector has placed Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) at a new frontier of oversight. Amid promises of increased efficiency and significant risks to ethics, transparency, and accountability, the role of SAIs demands technical discernment and institutional autonomy.

The independence of Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) is widely recognized as a cornerstone of effective public oversight. The Lima Declaration¹ (INTOSAI P-1) emphasized that SAIs “can only accomplish their tasks objectively and effectively if they are independent of the audited entity and protected against outside influence.” Building on this principle, the Tribunal de Contas do Estado de Goiás (TCE-GO), Brazil’s state-level Court of Accounts, has invested in transforming the fundamental principles of ISSAIs into concrete operational routines. This effort has aimed not only at raising methodological quality but also at safeguarding independence in practice, ensuring that oversight activities remain resistant to political, economic, and institutional pressures.

In the ever-evolving landscape of financial auditing, the integration of technology has become not just advantageous but essential. This article explores how the use of drones in financial audits, particularly by the São Paulo Municipality Court of Accounts (TCMSP), can enhance accountability and improve the integrity of public resources. The focus will be on the assertion of integrity as cited in International Standards on Auditing (ISA) 315 (Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement), specifically regarding the accounting cycle of real estate assets. The case study illustrates a pragmatic approach to auditing that not only adheres to established norms but also introduces innovative methodologies to address significant issues in public financial management.

The Canadian Audit and Accountability Foundation (CAAF) is proud to be collaborating with the Ecuador Office of the Controller General (“SAI Ecuador”) to strengthen their capacity to conduct performance audits. The goal is to bring performance audit practices in alignment with the International Standards of Supreme Audit Institutions (ISSAIs), in order to improve transparency, efficiency, and accountability in the administration of resources and public policies in Ecuador. The project is being delivered through the Technical Assistance Partnership – Expert Deployment Mechanism (TAP-EDM) with funding from Global Affairs Canada, in partnership with Alinea International. The CAAF team is fluent in Spanish and highly experienced in capacity building in Latin American Supreme Audit Institutions.

Undoubtedly, evidence is the cornerstone that auditors rely on to substantiate their findings during financial audits. A critical question for auditors is whether the quantity and quality of the evidence gathered during testing unequivocally support their conclusions. 

The Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) play an essential role in assessing the effectiveness of government policies. In an era marked by rapid technological shifts, policies governing cybersecurity and data protection are under immense pressure to meet high standards of resilience and compliance. This article aims to broaden our understanding by examining new insights that can complement the existing guidelines provided by the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), mainly described in the:

According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Global Centre for Public Service Excellence, foresight explores possible and probable futures, generating insights that enable transformative actions in the present, which are compatible with the unfolding future. 

Some Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) have been implementing the Concurrent Control, a process created by the SAI of Peru, as it is a valuable tool for control of large projects. However, it is appropriate to raise innovative proposals aimed at improving the process of concurrent control in order to improve adverse situations identified by government auditors. Based on the lessons learned to date, it is important to improve the levels of effectiveness and efficiency in their interventions, with the goal of replicating their effect on the control by other SAIs that have decided to implement similar controls.

Blockchain technology originated in 2008 when an author codenamed Satoshi Nakamoto published the paper titled “Bitcoin: A Peer-To-Peer Electronic Cash System.” The publication presented an innovative combination of computing-related concepts – peer-to-peer (P2P) networks, cryptography, digital signature, hash functions, and a new consensus algorithm for distributed networks.

Authors: Paula Hebling Dutra, Hugo Chudyson Araújo Freire, Carlos Eduardo Lustosa da Costa, Dashiell Velasque…

Institutions that begin to develop efforts on issues such as gender equality, diversity and inclusion, and prevention of harassment know that it is natural for resistance, discomfort, and questions to arise within the workforce. This is normal and legitimate, as in any organizational process involving innovation or change. 

In 2023, the Federal Court of Accounts (TCU), the SAI of Brazil, issued 137 decisions containing deliberations for its jurisdictional units. These decisions generated 1,110 items subject to monitoring, including determinations and recommendations. Monitoring the implementation and impact of these deliberations is a process as important as the audits themselves, demanding a considerable effort from the SAI’s resources.