National And International Representation
International Representation
The ANAO contributes to the development of international Auditing Standards and professional practices through the exchange of experiences and information with the following bodies:
- International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI);
- Asian Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (ASOSAI);
- Commonwealth Auditors-General Conferences;
- Auditors-General Global Working Group (GWG); and
- International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB).
In meeting our responsibilities to these organisations, the Auditor-General and selected staff typically attend international conferences and workshops, participate in short-term placements and prepare research papers.
The ANAO is a member of the INTOSAI Professional Standards Committee and the INTOSAI Working Group on Privatisation. We contribute to this Working Group by sharing information on our own experiences and commenting on draft documents. A representative from the ANAO attended a Working Group meeting in Brazil in September 2005.
A Performance Audit Sub-committee of the Professional Standards Committee was established after approval by the INTOSAI Governing Board in November 2005. The mandate for the subcommittee includes developing standards and guidelines for performance auditing and monitoring developments and reforms in regard to performance audit. We accepted a nomination to represent ASOSAI on the Performance Audit Sub-committee in February 2006. We provided feedback on the development of the formation process, draft terms of reference and work plan.
In January 2006 INTOSAI invited the ANAO to participate as a member of the newly established Task Force on the Accountability and Audit of Disaster and Related Aid. The first full meeting of the Task Force took place in Geneva in March 2006, which was attended by the Deputy Auditor-General. The discussion covered a range of issues including: goals; the use of Development Assistance Databases for the tracking of aid flows (supported by the United Nations Development Program); the added value of geographical information systems for auditing aid flows; and the Financial Tracking Service of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Alan Thompson (far left), Paul Nicoll (second from the left) and Steve Chapman (third from the right), with three senior members of the Indonesian Board of Audit.
We also accepted an invitation to be a member of the Indonesian Audit Office’s (BPK) advisory board. The Advisory Board will assist the BPK in enhancing its capacity and capability to audit the management of international donor funding. In April 2006, the Auditor-General attended the inaugural meeting of the Advisory Board to BPK on its Tsunami-funds audit strategy. As part of our continuing dialogue with Indonesia, a delegation of three senior members of the Indonesian Board of Audit visited the ANAO in February 2006. Shortly after, two senior ANAO officers visited the Board of Audit to identify priorities for capacity building.
The Auditor-General is the only Australian representative on the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), which functions as an independent standard setting body under the auspices of the International Federation of Accountants. The mission of the IAASB is to establish high quality auditing, assurance, quality control and related services standards. It also aims to improve the uniformity of practice by professional accountants throughout the world, thereby strengthening public confidence in the global auditing profession and serving the public interest. The Auditor-General attended meetings of the Board during the year.
The ANAO contributes to the development of other audit offices by hosting a number of international visitors throughout the year. During this year, we hosted 34 short-term visits for 319 delegates, from a number of countries including Thailand, Brazil, South Africa, Korea, China, Vietnam, United Kingdom, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Overall, delegates provided very positive feedback on their visit.
In addition, we have a senior officer seconded to the Paper New Guinea (PNG) Audit Office as our contribution to the PNG Enhanced Co-operation Program.
Our international staff exchange program with the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor-General of Ireland and the Office of the Auditor-General of Canada continued this year. More information on these exchanges may be found under ‘Management of Human Resources’ in the ‘Management and Accountability’ section of this report.
National Representation
At the national level, the ANAO is a member of the Australasian Council of Auditors-General (ACAG). ACAG comprises the Auditor-General of each Australian State and Territory, Fiji, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. ACAG’s objective is to promote public sector auditing in the Australasian region through an exchange of experiences, ideas, training initiatives and cooperation. We contribute to ACAG’s work by attending business meetings, preparing papers, participating in information exchanges, peer reviews and training. We also hosted an ACAG meeting in Canberra in May 2006.
As a member of the Australian Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, the Auditor-General attended Board meetings during 2005–2006.
Cost
The national and international representation output cost $0.317 million in 2005–2006 ($0.587 million in 2004–2005).