On Wednesday, September 11, the INTOSAI Development Initiative (IDI) and the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to formalise the principles and context for supporting and enhancing Supreme Audit Institution (SAI)—Parliament collaboration.
“IPU is a strong advocate for close working relationships between audit institutions and parliaments. With the increasing pushback to democracy over the past decade, this partnership is needed now more than ever,” said IPU Secretary General Martin Chungong. “It is my sincere belief that with this agreement, we can help Parliaments and audit offices work better together and in holding the executive branch to account.”
Mr. Martin Chungong and Mr. Einar Gørrissen, Director General of IDI, signed the MoU with plans to enhance relations between national SAIs and Parliaments. This will, in practice, occur through improved mutual understanding of how the two institutions work, increased engagement, and advocating on one another’s behalf within the realm of their respective mandates.
A series of webinars will be launched this autumn on the theme of Enabling impact of public oversight through better understanding and use of audit results in parliament. Better use of audit results can lead to improved oversight and will enable Parliaments to take a more active role in following up on audit results. The webinar series is one of the first activities to be launched with the signed MOU and will be open to all IPU members.
“When Members of Parliament understand the impact and applications of audit reports, it will not only strengthen the demand for SAI reports, but will lead to support for SAIs,” said Mr. Gørrissen. “This is particularly important in instances where there is a threat of interference and to SAI Independence. During this time of shrinking civic space, audit reports could therefore be considered tools to help enhance transparency.”
The role of effective oversight is more important than ever, as it holds governments accountable both to SAIs and Parliament, and more importantly to the citizens who elected the sitting governments. The IPU-IDI partnership aligns and strengthens IDI’s Strategic Priority to build public trust in SAIs.
The MoU brings new opportunities to improve the operational cooperation between SAIs and Parliaments through support on national and regional levels. The first event for this level of cooperation will be a workshop in Saint Lucia in October. It will be an opportunity for the IDI and the IPU to bring together members of Parliament and SAI leadership from the Caribbean SAIs (CAROSAI) to discuss and tackle shared challenges related to oversight and accountability.
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Mr. Einar Gørrissen, IDI Director General, holds the signed Memorandum of Understanding |
Mr. Martin Chungong, IPU Secretary, holds the signed Memorandum of Understanding |
