A Court of Audit or Court of Accounts is a supreme audit institution, i.e. a government institution performing financial and/or legal audit (i.e. statutory audit or external audit) on the executive branch of power. [1]
The Auditor General of Canada is a Supreme audit institution which acts as an officer to the Parliament of Canada tasked with highlighting accountability and oversight by conducting independent financial audits of federal government's operations. These performance audits, known as the Auditor-General's Report provide members of parliament with objective evidence to help them examine the government's activities and hold it to account and improve good governance among public officers included.
Government performance auditing focuses on improving how governments provide programs and services. While there is no one universally agreed upon definition, there are key definitions which capture the scope of government performance auditing. According to the US Government Auditing Standards, "Performance audits are defined as audits that provide findings or conclusions based on an evaluation of sufficient, appropriate evidence against criteria." Additionally, the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions defines performance auditing as "an independent examination of the efficiency and effectiveness of government undertakings, programs or organizations, with due regard to economy, and the aim of leading to improvements.
The Supreme Audit Office is the supreme audit institution and also one of the oldest state institutions in Poland, created under the Second Republic on February 7, 1919, barely 3 months after the restoration of Poland's independence.
The Bundesrechnungshof is the supreme federal authority for audit matters in the Federal Republic of Germany. There are equivalent bodies at state level. The status of the Bundesrechnungshof, its members and its essential functions are guaranteed by the German Constitution, and regulated by other legislation. It is an independent judicial body, with around 600 employees. Its current President is Kay Scheller.
Performance audit refers to an independent examination of a program, function, operation or the management systems and procedures of a governmental or non-profit entity to assess whether the entity is achieving economy, efficiency and effectiveness in the employment of available resources. The examination is objective and systematic, generally using structured and professionally adopted methodologies.
International Standards on Auditing (ISA) are professional standards for the auditing of financial information. These standards are issued by the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB). According to Olung M, ISA guides the auditor to add value to the assignment hence building confidence of investors.
The Brazilian Federal Court of Accounts is Brazil's federal audit office. It provides assistance to the Congress of Brazil in its Constitutional duty to exercise external audit over the Executive Branch. Its members, known as Ministers, are appointed by the National Congress and the President of Brazil. The TCU employs a highly qualified body of civil servants to prevent, investigate and sanction corruption and malpractice of public funds, with national jurisdiction.
The Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards (GAGAS), commonly referred to as the "Yellow Book", are produced in the United States by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
The International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) is an intergovernmental organization whose members are supreme audit institutions. Nearly every supreme audit institution in the world is a member of INTOSAI. Depending on the type of system used in their home country, the members of INTOSAI may be variously titled the Chief Financial Controller, the Office of the Comptroller General, the Office of the Auditor General, the Court of Accounts, or the Board of Audit.
European Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (EUROSAI) is a European intergovernmental organization whose members are supreme audit institutions in their respective countries. It is one of the seven regional working groups of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI).
The International Journal of Government Auditing is published quarterly in Arabic, English, French, German and Spanish. As the official publication of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), the Journal supports cooperation, collaboration and knowledge sharing among Supreme Audit Institutions (SAI) and the broader accountability community.
A supreme audit institution is an independent national-level institution which conducts audits of government activities. Most supreme audit institutions are established in their country's constitution, and their mandate is further refined in national legislation. Supreme audit institutions play an important role in providing oversight and accountability in a country by monitoring the use of public funds and reviewing the quality and accuracy of government financial reporting. They also contribute to anti-corruption efforts. Depending on the country, a supreme audit institution may be called a court of audit, auditor-general or the board of audit. Nearly every supreme audit institution in the world is a member of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions, which works to establish and disseminate international standards and good practices.
The Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of Bangladesh (CAG) is the supreme audit institution of the country. Like the SAIs in many other countries across the world, the institution is established by the Constitution of Bangladesh. This institute is responsible for maintaining accounts of the republic and auditing all receipts and expenditure of the Government of Bangladesh, including those of bodies and authorities substantially financed by the government. The reports of the CAG are discussed by the Public Accounts Committee, which is a standing committee in the Parliament of Bangladesh.
Vijayendra Nath Kaul was the tenth Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) from 2002 to 2008. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2014.
The Organization of Latin American and Caribbean Supreme Audit Institutions (OLACEFS) is an international, autonomous, independent, apolitical and permanent organization. Its origins can be traced back to the First Congress of Latin American Supreme Audit Institutions - CLADEFS - held in 1963 in Caracas, Venezuela, in response to the need for a forum for exchanging ideas and experiences relating to government control, and for promoting cooperation and development between supreme audit institutions. At the Congress it was recommended that a Latin American Institute of Fiscal Control be created to carry out specialized research and serve as a center for information, education, coordination and mutual assistance between audit institutions.
Hussam bin Abdulmohsen Alangari was appointed as the President of the General Court of Audit (GCA) by Royal Decree in May 2016.
Ahmed El Midaoui was President of the Moroccan Court of Audit until his replacement and Minister of the Interior between 10 November 1999 and 7 November 2002, being in the office during the Perejil Island crisis in 2002.
The INTOSAI Development Initiative is a body of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) which supports capacity development of supreme audit institutions (SAIs) in developing countries. Founded in 1986, the organization was headquartered in Canada until 2001, when it moved to Norway. It is currently hosted by the Office of the Auditor General of Norway.
The Ghana Audit Service is an independent government agency in Ghana that is responsible for carrying out the audits on the accounts of the Government, Regions as well as the activities of the Ministries, Departments, Agencies and Companies under the Government of Ghana. Both the Office of the Auditor-General of Ghana and the Ghana Audit Service were established by the 1992 Constitution of Ghana. Internationally, the equivalent of the Ghana Audit Service is referred to as the Supreme Audit Institution (SAI). The International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) is the international board that oversees and creates benchmark for auditing public entities for all Supreme Audit Institutions including Ghana who are also members.
The General Court of Audit (GCA) is the supreme audit institution of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It is an independent body that reports directly to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.