China-India
Joint Seminar: A joint China- India Seminar on 'Public Finance Audit' was held
at Huairou and Beijing from May 4-14, 1993. The Indian delegation led by Mr.N. Sivasubramanian, Deputy Comptroller
and Auditor General of India, had four other officers of the SAI India.
At the Seminar, the Chinese side presented two papers covering Auditing of Final Accounts of Public Finance and Tax Audit. The Indian delegation presented papers on Federal Financial System and Budgeting; Accounting and Audit of Government Expenditure; Audit of Railway Accounts and Accountability for Government expenditure. The presentations were followed by discussions. The delegation also visited other places and discussed auditing of capital construction projects and foreign joint ventures with local auditors. The delegation also visited a project site. The seminar threw up many interesting points for consideration and adoption by both SAIs.
Study Tour: With the assistance provided by ASOSAI, a senior officer of SAI India visited SAI Israel
during June 1993 to study methods of audit of financial institutions
and banks and value for money audit methods and approaches
Participation in Japan-South Asia Youth Programme: Three officers of the SAI were among the thirty Civil servants who participated in the Japan-South Asia Youth Friendship Programme for Indian Youth held at Tokyo from October 14 to November 9,1993 under the Japanese technical cooperation scheme for India.
Senior officers Conference: Conferences of senior officers of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department, headed by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India are held periodically to discuss the reorientation of the accounting and auditing systems and procedures to suit the changing environment and to achieve enhanced efficiency and effectiveness of the department. The conference of the Accountants General (Audit) held during July 1993 focussed discussions on Audit Planning, follow up on Audit Reports, Training and quality improvement in Audit Reports and Administration.
Visit of the Norwegian Delegation: Adelegation from the office of the Auditor General of Norway headed by Mr.Orvald Johnsen, Deputy Director General, while on a trip to India, visited the office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India on 29 October 1993 and discussed matters of mutual interest. The discussions covered the audit practices of both SAIs with specific reference to SAI Norway's experience in the audit of NORAD (the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation) and the Indian practice of certification of World Bank aided projects.
Visit of Chinese Audit Delegation: A 7-member Audit delegation headed by Mr. Zhong Guangquan of the Audit Administration of the People's Republic of China visited the Supreme Audit Board of Indonesia from April 11-18, 1993. The purpose of the visit was
to understand the audit systems and practices of the SAI especially
in the area of audit of foreign aid. The delegation also held
discussions with the National Development Planning Board, Agency for the
Control of Finance and Development, the resident offices of the Asian Development
Bank, World Bank etc. The focus of the discussions was primarily on the aspects
of foreign aid audit methodologies. The delegation also visited the SAI's
representative office at Jogyakarta and discussed organisational and audit matters.
New Division: The President of the State Audit
Bureau of Kuwait has established a new division of investment with
three controllers to deal with real estate investment and control;
stocks and bonds investment and banking operations investments.
Training: Some of the personnel of the SAI participated in the training programmes on investment and its future chances, and developing the accounting system in the oil sectors organised by the Kuwaiti Accountants and Auditors Association and the Faculty of Commerce, Economic and Political Science, during April and May 1993.
Bilateral Contracts with the SAI Netherlands: At the
invitation of the Auditor General of Pakistan, Mr. HenkE. Koning, President,
Court of Audit, Netherlands along with Dr.Van der Zanden, Secretary General of his SAI visited Pakistan from April 12-18,1993. In
Lahore, they discussed matters of mutual interest between the SAIs of Netherlands and Pakistan. The discussions covered performance auditing, program evaluation, human resource management and training. They called on the Governor, Minister of Finance and
other top officials of national and local governments and also visited Islamabad where
they met the Accountant General, Pakistan Revenues.
A draft memorandum of understanding was prepared for further mutual cooperation between the two institutions on the same pattern as the one that Pakistan has with the SAIs of China and Turkey.
Issue of Manual: The President of the General
Auditing Bureau has brought out a manual of administrative
communications procedure to enhance the quality of performance of the
personnel of the SAI.
Inhouse Audit Training: As part of the strategy of the SAI in the field of Human Resource Development, the General Auditing Bureau has been conducting in house training courses for the personnel in various descriptions of Audit. This has helped in improving the efficiency of the performance of the staff.
Computer Audit: The assistance of SAI Canada
was obtained to provide the State Audit Institution with the know how
to effectively use computers in audit along with a plan to develop the
needed capabilities. The expert who visited the SAI during November
1993 has submitted a report to the President of the State Audit
Institution.
Eighth General Report: The eighth general report of the State Audit Institution for the year 1992 is being presented to the Federal National Council which is the legislature of the country. The report besides focusing on the results of study of the major areas of importance to the public financial administration, covers the role of the SAI in developing the public financial administration in the state, preserving the public funds and evaluating the results of performance in ministries, public corporations and subsidized department.
Tenth Working Plan: The various departments of the State Audit Institution are preparing their annual work plans for submission to the Plan Committee for scrutiny and final approval by the President. This tenth working plan covers the period from 1.5.1994 to 30.4.1995.
| Contrary to the popular perception, auditors are not merely
critics. They have a positive and crucial role to play in administration. They
should be fully aware of and alive to the concerns and problems of the
executive, both at the policy formulation and implementation levels. Their
assessment should be based, not merely on the books of accounts at the field
level, but also on the perceptions of the policy formulators at the Government
level. Interaction between the auditor and the auditee assumes special
significance in this context. The audit findings and their reporting should be
substantive and significant so as to provide meaningful feedback to the
Administrators and Managers and spur them to positive action to bring about
the desired improvements in the administration and implementation of various
schemes and programmes intended for the less fortunate members of the
community. C.G. SOMIAH |