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INTOSAI International Journal Of Government Auditing: 

January 2006: 
Volume 33, No. 1: 

Board of Editors: 
Josef Moser, President, Rechnungshof, Austria: 
Sheila Fraser, Auditor General, Canada: 
Faiza Kefi, First President, Cour des Comptes, Tunisia: 
David M. Walker, Comptroller General, United States of America: 
Clodosbaldo Russian Uzcategui, Comptroller General, Venezuela: 

President: Helen H. Hsing (U.S.A.): 

Editor: Donald R. Drach (U.S.A.): 

Assistant Editors: 
Linda J. Sellevaag (U.S.A.): 
Christopher Lyons (U.S.A.): 

Associate Editors: 
Office of the Auditor General (Canada): 
Sudha Krishnan (ASOSAI-India): 
Luseane Sikalu (PASAI-Tonga): 
CAROSAI Secretariat (St. Lucia): 
EUROSAI General Secretariat (Spain): 
Khemais Hosni (Tunisia): 
Yadira Espinoza Moreno (Venezuela): 
INTOSAI General Secretariat (Austria): 
U.S. Government Accountability Office (U.S.A.): 

Administration: 
Sebrina Chase (U.S.A.): 

Members of the Governing Board of INTOSAI: 
Arpád Kovács, President, Allami Számvevöszék, Hungary, Chairman: 
Arturo González de Aragón, Auditor General, Auditoría Superior de la 
Federación, Mexico, First Vice-Chairman: 
Osama Jaffer Faquih, President, General Auditing Bureau, Saudi Arabia, 
Second Vice-Chairman: 
Josef Moser, President, Rechnungshof, Austria, Secretary General: 
Henri Bruno Bessin, Inspector General, Inspecteur Général d’Etat, 
Burkina Faso: 
Paul R.S. Allsworth, Director of Audit, Cook Islands Audit Office: 
Vijayendra Nath Kaul, Comptroller and Auditor General, India: 
Muneharu Otsuka, President, Board of Audit, Japan: 
Yun-Churl Jeon, Chairman, Board of Audit and Inspection, Korea: 
Guillermo Argüello Poessy, President, Consejo Superior de la 
Contraloría General, Nicaragua: 
Juergen Kosmo, Auditor General, Riksrevisjonen, Norway: 
Guilherme D’Oliveira Martins, President, Tribunal de Contas, Portugal: 
Albert Edwards, Director of Audit, National Audit Office, St. Kitts 
and Nevis: 
Faiza Kefi, First President, Cour des Comptes, Tunisia: 
Sir John Bourn, Comptroller and Auditor General, National Audit 
Office, United Kingdom: 
David M. Walker, Comptroller General, Government Accountability 
Office, United States of America: 
Guillermo Ramírez, President, Tribunal de Cuentas de la República, 
Uruguay: 
Clodosbaldo Russián Uzcátegui, Comptroller General, Venezuela: 

The International Journal of Government Auditing is published 
quarterly (January, April, July, October) in Arabic, English, French, 
German, and Spanish on behalf of INTOSAI (International Organization 
of Supreme Audit Institutions). The Journal, which is the official 
organ of INTOSAI, is dedicated to the advancement of government 
auditing procedures and techniques. Opinions and beliefs expressed are 
those of editors or individual contributors and do not necessarily 
reflect the views or policies of the organization. 

The editors invite submissions of articles, special reports, and news 
items, which should be sent to the editorial offices at: 

U.S. Government Accountability Office: 
Room 7814, 441 G Street, NW: 
Washington, D.C. 20548: 
U.S.A. 
(phone: 202-512-4707; 
fax: 202-512-4021; 
e-mail: intosaijournal@gao.gov) 

Given the Journal's use as a teaching tool, articles most likely to be 
accepted are those that deal with pragmatic aspects of public sector 
auditing. These include case studies, ideas on new audit 
methodologies, or details on audit training programs. Articles that 
deal primarily with theory would not be appropriate. 

The Journal is distributed to INTOSAI members and other interested 
parties at no cost. It is also available electronically at 
http://www.intosaijournal.org or http://wwwintosa.org and by 
contacting the Journal at spel@gao.gov. 

Articles in the Journal are indexed in the Accountants' Index 
published by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants 
and included in Management Contents. Selected articles are included in 
abstracts published by Anbar Management Services, Wembley, England, 
and University Microfilms International, Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S.A. 

Contents: 

New Journal Web Site: 

Editorial: 

INTOSAI Strategic Plan: Focus: 

News in Brief: 

Mongolia: A Case Study in International Cooperation: 
Audit Profile: New Zealand: 

Reports in Print: 

Inside INTOSAI: 

IDI Update: 

INTOSAI 2006 Events: 

[End of section] 

Editorial: 

Reflections on INTOSAI's Past and Perspectives on Its Future: 

Bjarne Mork-Eidem, Auditor General of Norway: 

[Photograph: Bjarne Mork-Eidem] 

I feel privileged and very honored to have been asked to write this 
editorial on the eve of my retirement. Retirement is a step I take 
with mixed emotions. Since 1990, I have served as Auditor General of 
Norway; I have also been a member of the INTOSAI Governing Board and 
Chairman of the Board of the INTOSAI Development Initiative (IDI). 
Serving in these roles has been very rewarding, both personally and 
professionally. I would, therefore, like to share with you some of the 
highlights from my experience as part of the INTOSAI community and my 
perspectives about the future of the organization.
	
It gives me great pleasure to reflect on how INTOSAI has evolved 
during the last 15 years. I have witnessed its growth from what was 
primarily a network for sharing experiences into a stronger and more 
dynamic organization. While this development has not been automatic 
and has required great effort on the part of many colleagues, it has 
consistently moved the organization in the right direction.
I remember attending my first INCOSAI in Washington in 1992— an 
experience that certainly made an impression on me! Three new 
committees—on environmental auditing, privatization, and program 
evaluation—were established, and the Governing Board was enlarged to 
make it more representative of various auditing systems and
of INTOSAI's seven regional working groups. This was a big step toward 
focusing INTOSAI's efforts and incorporating the wide range of 
diversity found in the organization for the common good. 

At the XV INCOSAI in Cairo in 1995, environmental audit emerged for 
the first time as a major congress theme, thus providing an overall 
framework for this work and incorporating sustainable development into 
the governmental policies and programs subject to audit. Today, 
environmental audit is carried out in many SAIs, and sustainable 
development is on the agenda of many international organizations. 

At the XVI INCOSAI in Montevideo in 1998, one of the themes was the 
SAI's role in the prevention and detection of fraud and corruption—a 
theme that is unfortunately more relevant today than ever, bearing in 
mind that corruption is the single largest obstacle to development. 
SAIs need to play a key role in this important area. 

The 2001 INCOSAI in Seoul marked an important development for IDI as 
INTOSAI revised its statutes to ensure that the SAI hosting IDI would 
have a permanent seat on the INTOSAI Governing Board. This was the 
first step in formally integrating IDI into INTOSAI. Another important 
milestone reached in Seoul was establishing a task force to develop a 
strategic planning framework for INTOSAI to guide it into the 21st 
century. 

At the 2004 Budapest congress, INTOSAI's first strategic plan was 
adopted, and thus began a new era in INTOSAI's development. The 
strategic plan is an important vehicle for achieving INTOSAI's goals—
it provides the organization a strategic focus shared by 186 SAIs. I 
am very grateful to have had the opportunity to take part in the task 
force as it drew up the plan. It was an inspiring and rewarding task, 
and I strongly believe that the plan points the organization in the 
right direction. INTOSAI has already taken important steps in 
implementing the plan and should now use it to bring additional 
vitality to the organization. Guided by a spirit of consensus and 
united by a common purpose, INTOSAI members must now mobilize the will 
and the resources to continue this implementation. 

It is my firm opinion, however, that INTOSAI must set far-reaching 
goals and have high ambitions if it is to be an efficient and high-
quality model international organization. I would like to make two key 
points in this regard. 

First, in order to operate as a model international institution, 
INTOSAI has to strengthen its coordination and support capabilities. 
Priority should be given to developing an international secretariat 
for INTOSAI that would (1) take charge of implementing and marketing 
the standards, guidelines, and best practices developed by INTOSAI 
committees and working groups; (2) assist committees and working 
groups in translating working products; (3) have sufficient research 
and evaluation capacity; and, last but not least, (4) incorporate the 
training activities that IDI presently carries out. Establishing such 
a secretariat presupposes financial funding for INTOSAI that is more 
sustainable and independent of the financial goodwill of a few member 
SAIs, as is the situation today. 

Second, INTOSAI's statutes state that INTOSAI shall maintain its 
present links with the United Nations (UN). I think it is important 
that INTOSAI go further and aim to be more closely connected to the 
UN, either by becoming a UN institution or by having strong formal 
ties with the UN. This would place INTOSAI in a framework that 
consolidates its goals, secures a financially sound basis for its 
work, and gives it the recognition and the legitimacy needed to 
facilitate closer cooperation with international donors such as the 
World Bank. 

The SAI of Norway has had the opportunity and privilege of hosting IDI 
since 2001. One of my driving motivations as chairman of the IDI Board 
has been the vision of shared responsibility—helping SAIs to help 
themselves. In the years to come, INTOSAI must focus on investing in 
knowledge so that opportunities become available to everyone, not just 
a few. Bridging the gaps between nations is our common responsibility 
and a task to which I urge SAIs to attach even greater importance in 
the future. 

Finally, let me share a personal reflection. Achieving cooperation 
between sovereign nations is a demanding task. INTOSAI gives us the 
opportunity to interact with colleagues from around the world, and it 
gives auditors a broader understanding of the international context of 
governmental auditing. My experience in working with INTOSAI 
illustrates the importance of personal relations in international 
cooperation. A wide variety of benefits flows from the trust, 
reciprocity, information sharing, and cooperation that accompany 
social networks and help to lay the groundwork for establishing 
mutually beneficial relations at both the personal and institutional 
levels. 

It has been a privilege to work together with so many colleagues in 
INTOSAI, to get to know many of you personally, and even to develop 
friendships. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the 
INTOSAI members for their cooperation and goodwill throughout the 
years, and I wish INTOSAI and all member SAIs much success in their 
important work in the future. 

[End of section] 

INTOSAI Strategic Plan: Focus: Building On The Past, Creating The 
Future: 

INTOSAI continues to make significant and timely progress in 
implementing its strategic plan. Events and activities that have 
occurred since the October 2005 issue of this Journal are summarized 
below. In addition, INTOSAI's new organization chart (see p. 6) 
illustrates how the strategic plan is shaping INTOSAI's structure and 
operations. 

The strategic plan was prominently featured at the annual meeting of 
the INTOSAI Governing Board in Vienna on November 10-11, 2005 (see 
"Inside INTOSAI," p. 23, for additional information on the meeting). 
The board's agenda was structured to reflect the plan's four goals. 
The board discussed and acted on issues the Finance and Administration 
Committee identified at its July 2005 meeting, including the following: 

Selection of Director(s) of Strategic Planning: Selecting a person to 
fill the newly created position of director of strategic planning, 
which was established under the strategic plan, was a major agenda 
item at the November Governing Board meeting. The director of 
strategic planning will be responsible for supporting the board as it 
provides continued leadership and organizational focus on strategic 
plan implementation. Specifically, the director of strategic planning 
will help to ensure that the elements of the strategic plan are 
integrated by coordinating with the chairman of the Governing Board, 
the General Secretariat, chairs of the goal committees, goal liaisons, 
regional secretariats, IDI, and this Journal. 

As a result of the Secretary General's call for candidates from member 
SAIs worldwide and in consultation with the Finance and Administration 
Committee, the names of two candidates were presented to the board for 
review and selection. After much discussion, the board decided to 
select both candidates to serve sequential terms: Dr. Klaus-Henning 
Busse of Germany will serve as director of strategic planning through 
the 2007 INTOSAI Congress in Mexico, and Ms. Kirsten Astrup of Norway 
will succeed Dr. Busse and serve in that role following the 2007 
Congress. 

[Photograph: Klaus-Henning Busse] 

Dr. Busse is a member of the German SAI (Bundesrechnungshof), holds a 
doctorate in law, and is qualified to hold judicial office in Germany. 
He has worked for the German SAI since 1980 and has participated in 
many international professional events. Dr. Busse is known to the 
INTOSAI community through papers he has given at international 
conferences (e.g., the 8th Tokyo International Audit Forum 2004 and 
the World Ethics and Transparency Forum, Kuala Lumpur 2005) and 
through his work as an auditor of development aid projects around the 
world. Furthermore, Dr. Busse has been actively involved in training 
events in Europe, Africa, and Asia. He is the author of numerous 
publications on Germany's system of government auditing and has
also written a manual on the audit of public works for China's 
National Audit Office. 

[Photograph: Kirsten Astrup] 

Ms. Astrup has worked in the Office of the Auditor General 
(Riksrevisjonen) of Norway since 1986, and the Norwegian Parliament 
appointed her Director General in 1995. She served on the NATO Board 
of Auditors in Brussels from 2002 through January 2006. Ms. Astrup has 
extensive experience in the field of international audit cooperation 
and attended the 2001 and 2004 INTOSAI congresses in Seoul and 
Budapest, respectively. She represented the Norwegian SAI on INTOSAI's 
Working Group on the Audit of Privatization for several years and has 
been a member of the international board of the INTOSAI Development 
Initiative (IDI) since 2000. Ms. Astrup received her education at the 
University of Oslo, where she graduated with a degree in law. 

By unanimously approving both candidates, the board provided for 
continuity in this important position and expressed the hope that Ms. 
Astrup would be able to "support Dr. Busse occasionally during his 
term and thus make available to INTOSAI her broad international 
experience."	 

Figure 1: INTOSAI’s New Organizational Chart: 

[Refer to PDF for image: organizational chart] 

INCOSAI: 

Top level: 
Governing Board (18 voting members). 

Second level, reporting to Governing Board: 
* Secretary General; 
- Director of Strategic Planning; 
* Regional Working Groups. 

Third level: 
Goal 1: Professional Standards: 
Professional Standards Committee - Denmark: 
* Financial Audit; 
* Compliance Audit; 
* Performance Audit; 
* Internal Control; 
* Accounting and Reporting; 
* SAI Independence. 

Goal 1 Liaison: Portugal. 

Goal 2: Capacity Building: 
Capacity Building Committee - Morocco: 
* Peer Review; 
* Institutional strengthening and staff development; 
* Partnership with international development organizations; 
* Advisory/Consultant services. 

Goal 2 Liaison: United States. 

Goal 3: Knowledge Sharing: 
International Journal of Government Auditing - U.S. 
Working Groups: 
* Public Debt; 
* Information Technology; 
* Environment; 
* Privatization; 
* Program Evaluation; 
* International Institutions; 
* Anti-Money Laundering; 
* Tsunami. 

Goal 3 Liaison: India. 

Goal 4: Model International Organization: 
Finance and Administration Committee: Saudi Arabia: 
5 voting members: 
* Saudi Arabia; 
* United States: 
* India; 
* Norway; 
* Venezuela. 
Ex-officio members: 
* Secretary General; 
* Korea. 

Vice-Chair: United States. 

Source: INTOSAI. 

[End of figure] 

Goal 1, Professional Standards Committee: The Governing Board adopted 
the committee's terms of reference. Chaired by Denmark and with 
Portugal serving as goal liaison, the committee held its inaugural 
meeting in Oslo in September 2005 (see October 2005 Journal) and is 
well on its way to implementing its work plan. Chairman Henrik Otbo, 
Auditor General of Denmark, expressed his vision for the committee in 
the October 2005 editorial of this Journal. 

For more information, including a copy of the terms of reference, 
contact: SAI/Denmark at yvan.pedersen@rigsrevisionen.dk and 
SAI/Portugal at geral@tcontas.pt. 

Goal 2, Capacity Building Committee: The Governing Board adopted the 
committee's terms of reference. Committee chair Dr. Ahmed El-Midaoui, 
President of the Court of Audit of Morocco and goal liaison David 
Walker, Comptroller General of the United States, held extensive top-
level consultations with major international and bilateral donors in 
Washington, D.C., in October 2005. The committee's first meeting will 
be held in London March 13-14, 2006. 

For more information, including a copy of the terms of reference, 
contact: SAI/Morocco at ccomptes@courdescomptes.ma. 

Goal 3, Knowledge Sharing: Goal 3 is a collection of a variety of 
knowledge-sharing vehicles, including task forces, working groups, and 
this Journal. The SAI of India serves as the board's goal liaison and 
has been actively developing concept papers for an INTOSAI-wide 
communication policy and a web-based collaboration tool. In addition, 
the goal liaison is surveying relevant bodies to assess needs and 
determine how best to share knowledge and best practices globally. 

For more information, contact: SAI/India at cag@cag.gov.in. 

Goal 4, Finance and Administration Committee: With this committee's 
fourth meeting to be held February 21-22, 2006, committee members are 
busy drafting a variety of documents for review and deliberation. 
Under the chairmanship of Osama Faqeeh, President of the General 
Auditing Bureau of Saudi Arabia, and the vice-chairmanship of David 
Walker, Comptroller General of the United States, the committee's 
agenda in Riyadh will include the issue of potential associate INTOSAI 
members, strategies for approaching donors to support INTOSAI 
programs, and further analysis of INTOSAI's financial condition with a 
special emphasis on revenue enhancements. 

For more information, contact SAI/Saudi Arabia at ajlan33@yahoo.com 
and SAI/USA at spel@gao.gov. 

[End of section] 

News in Brief: 

Afghanistan: 

Development of the Control and Audit Office: 

Afghanistan's Control and Audit Office (CAO) audits the financial and 
accounting affairs of ministries, departments, and organizations at 
the national level and has a 60-year history. The CAO is an 
independent entity under the direct supervision of the State 
President. Since the establishment of the Afghanistan Interim 
Administration, the CAO has audited World Bank grants, the Afghanistan 
Reconstruction Trust Fund, national executive projects of United 
Nations Development Programme, and many more entities. The CAO has 
carried out this work with the technical cooperation of foreign 
experts from PKF London and Delloite India based on agreements between 
the government of Afghanistan and the World Bank. 

Professor Muhammad Sharif Sharifi was appointed Auditor General in 
March 2002. Since his appointment, significant changes have been made 
in the CAO. 

The CAO has expanded its relations with international organizations 
such as ASOSAI, INTOSAI, and COSA! and with the SAIs of such countries 
as Iran, Pakistan, India, the United States, England, Bangladesh, 
Canada, Russia, Latvia, Turkey, Bulgaria, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia. 

Building the capacity of CAO employees is a core function and 
priority. Foreign trainers have instructed CAO employees in 
professional audit skills, such as planning and implementing the 
audit, reporting, and new audit methods. Some CAO employees have 
participated in international seminars and programs in countries such 
as India, Russia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Sri Lanka, Latvia, and Pakistan.
CAO activities are being computerized. Plans have been made to extend 
Internet access so that it can be used by all CAO employees. The CAO 
also plans to 

* establish offices in Afghanistan's provinces, an environmental audit 
branch, and a committee in Parliament to monitor the audit results in 
government ministries and departments; 

* assess strategic plan execution at other departments; and; 

* establish an audit and accounting institute to promote the economy, 
effectiveness, and efficiency of projects and prevent deficiencies and 
shortcomings in all departments. 

For additional information, contact CAO: 

Fax: ++93 0 20 210 2285: 
E-mail: auditoffice_afghanistan@yahoo.com: 

Australia: 

ANAO's Role in the Implementation of Australian Equivalents to 
International Financial Reporting Standards: 

In 2004, Australian Equivalents to International Financial Reporting 
Standards (AEIFRS) became law and were released by the Australian 
Accounting Standards Board (AASB). AEIFRS were introduced to increase 
the transparency and comparability of financial statements on a global 
basis by fully adopting International Financial Reporting Standards. 
AEIFRS apply to all reporting entities in Australia for reporting 
periods beginning on or after January 1, 2005. The Australian
government sector must report both its 2004-05 and 2005-06 financial 
information in accordance with AEIFRS. 

To date, Australian government entities have made progress with the 
transition in the following areas: 

* inclusion of a note in the 2004-05 financial statements to explain 
how the transition to AEIFRS is being managed, the key differences in 
accounting policies arising from the transition, and any known or 
reliably estimable information about the impact on the financial 
report had it been prepared using AEIFRS (the ANAO has audited this 
disclosure as part of its 200405 financial statement audit) and; 

* preparation of audited AEIFRS opening balance sheets and 2004-05 
transitional year financial statements. 

In addition to being the external auditor of the AEIFRS financial 
statements of Australian government entities, the ANAO's roles and 
responsibilities in the transition to AEIFRS include providing 
relevant training, audit work programs, and technical support for its 
financial statement audit workforce; responding to requests to comment 
on proposed AEIFRS standards by the AASB; and working through a series 
of implementation and interpretation issues with government entities. 

While all Australian government reporting entities will be affected by 
the introduction of AEIFRS, the impact will vary depending on the 
nature of an entity's operations and the obligations it enters into. 
Nevertheless, it is generally accepted, from a financial reporting 
perspective, that AEIFRS will introduce more volatility into the 
results reported on an accrual basis, particularly by recognizing more 
rights and obligations in financial statements and by requiring that 
the present value of long-term liabilities be measured. 

For additional information, contact ANAO: 

Fax: ++61 (2) 6203 7519:
E-mail: agl@anao.gov.au: 
Web site: www.anao.gov.au: 

Barbados: 

Auditor General's Office Celebrates 150th Anniversary: 

In December 2005, the Barbados Auditor General's Office celebrated its 
150th anniversary. 

In 1855, when Barbados was a colony of Great Britain, the office was 
established under the Act of Better Auditing and Inspection of Public 
Accounts. 

In the office's early years, its role entailed checking payment 
vouchers before any money was paid, certifying retirement benefits, 
and undertaking a quarterly review of the records of the Treasury. 

When Barbados became an independent nation in 1966, the Auditor 
General's Office was embodied in the Constitution. The office has 
responsibilities for the annual audit of ministries, departments, and 
statutory bodies that receive funding from the Crown. In addition, the 
office can examine the economical, efficient, and effective use of 
resources of any ministry or department that it is required to audit. 

[Photograph: Staff of the Barbados SAI] 

Mr. Hallam Phillips, Auditor General, has indicated that the office is 
reviewing its operations with a view to strengthening its 
independence, especially as it relates to staff recruitment and the 
provision of training for its officers. 

For additional information, contact Auditor General's Office: 

Fax: ++1 (246) 228 - 2731: 
E-mail: audit@boa.gov.bb: 

Colombia: 

Auditor General Calls for Cost-Benefit Analysis of Antidrug Policy
In October 2005, the SAI of Colombia and a private Colombian 
foundation cosponsored an international seminar on drug trafficking. 
In his address to the seminar, the Comptroller General of Colombia, 
Antonio Hernandez, said it was legitimate for Colombians to demand 
that the war on drugs be viewed from a different perspective. 

He said that it is worth questioning whether the current policy of 
repressing production is more effective than prevention and whether it 
is not time to treat the consumption of drugs as a public health 
problem. The Comptroller General stated that it would be worthwhile to 
evaluate the costs and benefits of national antidrug programs, which 
have almost exclusively focused on the problem as a criminal affair. 
In his address, the Comptroller General also referred to the effects 
of drug trafficking on Colombia's economic, social, environmental, and 
political spheres. 

For further information, contact Office of the Comptroller General: 

Fax: ++57 (1) 353-7616: 
E-mail: ooljuela@contraloriagen.gov.co: 
Web site: www.contraloriagen.gov.co: 

Indonesia: 

Investigative Audit to Combat Fraud and Corruption: 

In recent years, an increasing number of significant fraud and 
corruption cases have come to light in Indonesia. The Indonesian 
government has made the fight against corruption a key agenda item. In 
line with this, the Audit Board of Indonesia (BPK) plays an active 
role in promoting good, clean, and transparent governance by focusing 
its audit work on areas prone to corruption, collusion, and nepotism. 
BPK is also responsive to its stakeholders' concerns, particularly 
when it can substantively contribute to the national anticorruption 
program. The BPK believes that close cooperation with its stakeholders 
is a key element in carrying out its role. 

Recently, the BPK conducted an investigative audit of the Development 
of Community Health Program, a project financed by the World Bank 
under the Ministry of Health and implemented in 2003 and 2004. This 
audit was undertaken at the request of the World Bank and the Minister 
of Health to follow up on an anonymous complaint. Four auditors 
carried out the investigative work over 1-1/2 months. They used 
rigorous methods including data analysis, document and physical 
examination, observation, and interview techniques. In its report, the
BPK concluded that false and fictitious documentation and transactions 
had been used to claim money for several budgeted activities that, in 
fact, had never been carried out. The fictitious activities included 
workshops, consulting services, procurement of goods, and business 
travel. From the samples examined, the BPK reported that US$420,000, 
or approximately 20 percent of total expenditures, was fraudulent. The 
investigative audit report was sent to the Parliament and the Office 
of the Attorney General in September 2005 for legal action. 

This case shows the value of solid collaboration among agencies in 
combating fraud and corruption. 

For additional information, contact BPK: 

Fax: ++62 (21) 572 - 0944: 
E-mail: sekjen@bpk.go.id: 
Web site: www.bpk.go.id: 

Japan: 

Board of Audit Issues Updated Informational Brochure: 

In November 2005, the Board of Audit of Japan (BOA) issued its latest 
informational brochure, entitled Board of Audit of Japan-An 
Organization That Reviews Public Finance. The brochure outlines the 
BOA's organization and gives the full text of the Board of Audit Law. 

In addition, it summarizes special reports on audit implementation and 
outlines emerging BOA fields and information Japan's citizens want to 
know about their country, their government, and where and how their 
money has been spent. The final section of the brochure summarizes the 
audit findings from the formal audit report for fiscal 2003. 

For additional information, contact Board of Audit: 

Fax: ++81 (3) 32 92-6915: 

E-mail: liaison@jbaudit.go.jp: 
Web site: www.jbauditgajp/engl: 

Philippines: 

Commission on Audit Develops Risk-Based Audit Approach: 

The Philippines' Commission on Audit (COA) has developed and 
introduced a risk-based audit approach (RBAA) that emphasizes the need 
for the auditors to focus on high-risk areas that are potential 
breeding grounds for graft and corruption. 

The COA embarked on a project to improve its audit services by 
institutionalizing the RBAA after receiving unsolicited financial 
assistance from Austalian Aid and the United Nations Development 
Programme (UNDP). Working with a UNDP consultant, a technical working 
group of COA officials developed the Risk-Based Financial Audit Manual 
which includes templates tailor-made for e-auditing. This partnership 
ensured that the Manual would be customized and adopted for use by 
national, local, and corporate audit sectors. As an initial step 
toward nationwide implementation, a trainers' training for 39 audit 
supervisors and audit team leaders was conducted October 17- November 
9, 2005. These participants will be deployed to selected government 
agencies, where pilot audits will be conducted. The results of these 
audits will serve as input to the review and finalization of the 
Manual. 

For additional information, contact COA: 

Fax: ++63 (2) 931 92 23: 
E-mail: gemcarague@coa.gov.ph: 
Web site: www.coa.gov.ph: 

South Korea: 

Book on BAI's 2004 Activities Is Published: 

The Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) of Korea has published a book 
on its activities for fiscal year 2004 to promote a better 
understanding of the BAI and share its audit experiences with other 
SAIs. The publication, entitled Fair Audit, Fair Society (Board of 
Audit and Inspection), covers the BAI's history, organization, duties, 
and functions and summarizes selected major audit reports released in 
2004. 

In fiscal year 2004, the BAI carried out 119 audits on 1,100 entities. 
As a result of its audit and inspection activities, it made 1,528 
resolutions, including 144 requests for disciplinary actions against 
348 public officials who had been negligent in performing their
duties. The BAI's works led directly to US$351 million of financial 
benefits, such as additional revenue collection. In addition, budget 
savings from improving unreasonable practices were expected to save 
about US$22.7 million. 

The publication also briefly introduces system-based auditing, the 
BAI's new audit approach characterized by three guiding principles: 
strategic, performance-oriented, and proactive auditing. A detailed 
article about system-based auditing was published in the October 2005 
issue of this Journal. 

The publication is available online at: 
http://english.bai.go.kr/HPBEKnowBoardAction.do?method=listData&HP_TYPE=
BEN&TASK_TYPE=BE6. 

To obtain a hard copy, contact BAI: 

E-mail: koreasai@koreasai.go.kr: Or: bai_kor@hotmail.com. 

United Arab Emirates: 

Visit by a Delegation from the SAI of Iraq: 

A six-member delegation from the Board of Supreme Audit of Iraq, led 
by Dr. Mohmoud Rasheed Ibrahim, Deputy Auditor General, visited the 
State Audit Institution in the United Arab Emirates. The objective of 
the visit was to exchange ideas and experiences related to auditing 
and human resource development programs. During the visit, Majid Mohd 
El-sheikh, President of the U.A.E. SAI, briefed the delegates on his 
institution's roles and responsibilities, followed by an open 
discussion between the delegation and the host SAI. The topics 
included the SAI's organizational structure, standards and guidelines 
for preparing and executing yearly work plans, roles and 
responsibilities of different departments, and guidelines for 
performance audits (the latter were derived from ASOSAI performance 
audit guidelines). The visit concluded in Dubai, where the delegates 
were briefed about audits of local government departments. 

For additional information, contact State Audit Institution of the 
U.A.E.: 

Fax: ++97 (2) 644 86 88: 

E-mail: saivae@emirates.net.ae: 
Web site: www.saivae.gov.ae: 

The World Bank: 

Fiduciary Forum Highlights SAIs' Anticorruption Role: 

The World Bank's biannual Fiduciary Forum, held in Washington, D.C.,
November 28-30, 2005, brought together almost 500 of the bank's field-
based financial management and procurement specialists and other staff 
and guests for a series of presentations and discussions on how to 
fight corruption and promote governance and accountability. 
Participants heard from experts in the field of public financial 
management and engaged in active discussion with them. The role of 
supreme audit institutions (SAI) was a recurring theme in many 
presentations, with all agreeing that stronger, more independent SAIs 
play an essential role in any country's sound financial management 
system. Mr. David Walker, Comptroller General of the United States, 
highlighted this role in his presentation, "Different Cultures, Common 
Values, Shared Challenges: The Role of Supreme Audit Institutions in 
Promoting Accountability and Combating Corruption." 

For more information on the forum, including a video of the 
presentations, see: 

http://info.worldbank.org/etools/BSPAN/EventView.asp?ElD=802, 

or The World Bank's INTOSAI liaison officer Ms. Rafika Chaouali: 

E-mail: rchaouali@worldbank.org. 

[End of section] 

The Development of the National Audit Office of Mongolia: A Case Study 
in International Cooperation: 

By Batbayar Badamdorj, Deputy Auditor General of Mongolia, and Jens 
Harms, President of the Audit Court of Berlin, Germany: 

[Editor's note: This article summarizes a successful case study in 
international cooperation: the 7-year collaborative project to 
establish a modern SAI that Mongolia undertook with Germany. While
the details of Mongolia's experience are unique, INTOSAI members will 
find principles applicable to modernizing audit institutions in times
of significant national change] 

As part of Mongolia's transformation from a socialist dictatorship to 
a parliamentary democracy, the Law on State Control of March 1995 
established the State Audit and Inspection Committee (SAIC) as the SAI 
as well as financial control organizations for the capital city of 
Ulaanbaatar and the 21 provinces (called Aimags). The following year, 
the SAIC became a member of INTOSAI and committed itself to the 
principles expressed in the Lima Declaration of Guidelines on Auditing 
Precepts: independence guaranteed under constitutional law, reporting 
to Parliament and the general public, comprehensive authority to carry 
out investigations, qualified auditors, and competent methods. 

To establish modern financial control in accordance with the Lima 
principles, the Mongolian government and the SAIC sought the help of a 
consultant. On March 30, 1998, the governments of Mongolia and Germany 
signed an agreement of cooperation. The task of carrying out this 
consultancy project was assigned to the German Society for Technical 
Cooperation, and German state audit courts handled the implementation—-
the Hessian audit court from 1998 to 2001 and the Berlin audit court 
from 2001 to 2004. 

Setting Up the Project: 

Work on the project began in April 1998 with a review of the status of 
financial control in Mongolia, a definition of the modules required 
for the consultancy work, and the organization of a project office. 

Review of the Status of Mongolian Financial Control: 

The review of financial control in Mongolia revealed that the new 
audit authority was still characterized by many aspects of the old 
system. Deficiencies were noted in the following areas: 

* independence guaranteed under constitutional law; 

* a clearly defined division of tasks between external and internal 
auditing; 

* modern auditing methods; 

* the professional competence and number of employees; 

* a clearly defined operational and organizational structure, 
particularly the structural division of authority according to 
expertise and mandatory examination regulations; and; 

* technical equipment, in particular information technology (IT). 

In addition, the transformation of the basic structure of the 
Mongolian administrative system was incomplete, and additional changes 
were expected in both the administration and the SAI At the end of 
1997—and as a result of consultation with the Asian Development Bank—
the draft Public Sector Management and Finance Act (PSMFA) was 
introduced into the parliamentary advisory process. This bill proposed 
a reorganization of the Mongolian administration based on the 
principles of new public management (such as accrual accounting and 
contract management) and changes to the activities of the SAIC. The 
bill proposed that a Mongolian audit office be responsible for the 
annual audit of the financial statements of government agencies. At 
the beginning of the project, Mongolian officials asked the German 
consultants to take into account the changes and new responsibilities 
for the SAIC that would result from the eventual passage of this bill 
(the law itself was not finally passed until June 2002). 

Project Objectives: 

The project's primary strategic objective was to improve the auditing 
of the national budget and property by the state audit and inspection 
organizations. To accomplish this objective, the following project 
tasks were to be completed: 

* the presentation of the content and methods of modern financial 
control in the areas of truth and fairness, cost-effectiveness, and 
certification; 

* consultation on creating a legal basis for unified and independent 
financial control; 

* consultation on establishing an effective operational and 
organizational structure; and; 

* a survey of the IT needed for auditing and training (knowledge 
management). 

Mongolia's goal was to set up a financial control authority in 
accordance with INTOSAI standards, but the SAIC was far from this 
stage at the beginning of the project. 

The Project Office: 

A project office was set up to be a point of contact between the 
Mongolian and German associates and to ensure coordination in the 
areas of content and culture. The office manager was a German Mongolia 
expert who had already provided invaluable assistance on other 
projects in country; the other employees were an SAIC official and a 
translator. The office proved to be of great value throughout the 
project, primarily because it effectively coordinated the ideas of the 
German consultants and their Mongolian associates and promoted trust 
and cooperation between the leadership of both parties. 

First Project Phase: Knowledge Transfer: 

This phase of the project consisted mainly of imparting the basic 
knowledge, capabilities, and methods needed to carry out modern 
financial control. Training courses, each lasting 1 to 2 weeks, were 
offered in the following areas: 

* procurement, 

* prevention of corruption, 

* cost-effectiveness and the organizational efficiency of state 
actions, 

* grants and subsidies to bodies outside the administration, 

* audits of state companies, and, 

* audits of revenue administration (customs, taxes, and fees). 

The knowledge transfer also covered reporting and advisory activities 
related to Parliament and the government as well as reporting to the 
public. By the end of the first project phase, auditing regulations 
had been transformed and passed by the SAIC. 

The Mongolian and German associates agreed that the project should 
encompass financial control activities of the new public management 
system described in the proposed PSMFA legislation. It was therefore 
necessary to consider the basic principles of the new system and their 
effect on financial control activities. In addition, SAIC employees 
needed to be trained to carry out the attestations required in the 
bill. Therefore, in 1999 and 2000, seminars were held on double-entry 
bookkeeping and reporting according to International Accounting 
Standards (IAS). Since Germany did not have IAS experience in a state 
context, the accounting firm KPMG was commissioned to hold two 
seminars on reporting. 

To learn more about reforming the legal basis of Mongolian financial 
control and setting up the Mongolian financial control organization, 
delegations visited the German cities of Bonn in 1999 and Berlin in 
2001. The delegations primarily included executives from the Mongolian 
audit offices and members of the Mongolian Parliament (called the 
State Great Hural). During the course of these visits, various 
discussions were held with members of German state and federal 
parliaments. 

In addition, many consultations and two primarily political events 
were held regarding the principles of the Lima Declaration. The first 
took place in September 1998 at the beginning of the consultation 
process with the former president of the German Federal Court of 
Audit, and was directed mainly to executives of Mongolian authorities 
and parliamentarians. The Management Academy of Mongolia organized a 
second event in 1999, chiefly to inform its own professors on the 
tasks of financial control in a democratic system. Since the Academy 
has an important function in training executive staff of the Mongolian 
administration, it was an important cooperation partner. 

The first phase ended with a project progress check, which confirmed 
that although the project was proceeding well, considerable deficits 
remained. To consolidate achievements and successfully conclude the 
project, a second phase was recommended. 

Second Project Phase: Consolidation of Gains: 

The second project phase began in autumn 2002 and ended in autumn 
2004. This phase was designed to consolidate gains, build on the 
knowledge already transferred, and work on the further implementation 
of the project objectives. 

The focus of the knowledge transfer changed from transferring basic 
knowledge to strengthening its practical application. During work 
placements of several weeks duration in Germany, Mongolian auditors 
participated in selected audits in the following areas: audits of 
public companies, checking on cost-effectiveness, auditing 
organizations, IT tests, procurement, and prevention of corruption. 
The German-Mongolian auditing teams communicated with each other over 
a long period of time and developed a relationship of trust, which was 
a good basis for knowledge transfer. In this way, the gap between 
transferring theoretical knowledge and its practical implementation 
began to narrow. 

In January 2003, the Law of Mongolia on State Audit (LMSA) was 
enacted. It provided the legal basis for the Mongolian National Audit 
Office (MNAO) as well as the audit offices of the Aimags and the 
capital city. Essentially, this law regularized: 

* the external government auditing authority's responsibility for 
auditing state revenue, expenditures, and corporate activities; 

* the institutional independence of the MNAO according to the 
Westminster model; 

* the specifications of the audit mandate (to include certification 
and cost-effectiveness); 

* reporting to Parliament and the general public; and; 

* the recruitment and continuing professional education of auditors. 

The LMSA thus adopted the principles of the Lima Declaration and was 
an important step forward. However, to date, the existence and main 
tasks of government auditing have not yet been incorporated into 
Mongolia's Constitution. An additional deficiency in Mongolia's 
current financial control structure is the considerable overlapping of 
authority with the old mandatory financial control that is now 
incorporated into the State Professional Control Agency in the 
executive branch of the Mongolian government. 

At the beginning of 2002, changes were made in the organizational 
structure of the former SAIC. After the MNAO was established in 2003, 
it was divided into four departments: two concerned with content, one 
with basic principles, and another primarily responsible for 
administration. Thus, the MNAO has effectively divided work according 
to auditing activities as well as the specialization and 
qualifications of staff. 

During the second project phase, the number of central office 
employees rose by 50 percent. This increase in human resources was 
necessary after the Public Sector Management and Finance Law, enacted 
in June 2002, transferred certification audits to the MNAO. Due to the 
large number of agencies involved in these audits, the MNAO can also 
commission accounting firms to carry them out. 

Finally, the second project phase included the introduction of more IT 
equipment and an intranet and the establishment of a systematic 
training program to use these technical capabilities. The increase in 
IT resources was based on an inventory and needs analysis as well as 
the requirements of the audit office. The establishment of a central 
database and intranet made it possible to provide up-to-date work 
materials, exchange information on current audits, and organize an IT-
supported work flow among the employees involved in the audits. Use of 
the intranet has remained limited mainly to the MNAO, since the 
necessary technical facilities are not yet available at the Aimag 
audit offices. 

Project Evaluation and Final Comments: 

Much was achieved during the 7 years of the consultancy project. The 
Mongolian financial control authorities, both the MNAO and the 
regional and capital city audit offices, have changed. External 
financial control has undergone a remarkable transformation—from 
financial inspections responsible primarily for tests of truth and 
fairness to tests of efficiency, effectiveness, and economy according 
to international standards based on the Lima Declaration. 

At the end of the second project phase in October 2004, an evaluation 
compared the original project objectives with the actual results. Many 
tasks that the Mongolian and German associates had undertaken had been 
implemented, although much was still incomplete. The MNAO is dealing 
with these issues during a 2-year postprocessing phase to bring the 
project to a successful conclusion. 

The success of such a consulting project within a relatively short 
period should not be taken for granted. Considering the frequent lack 
of willingness to learn new systems and the cultural dissonances that 
often occur in international cooperation projects, the original 
ambitious objectives might well have been curtailed considerably. 
However, this did not occur. The commitment of many employees of the 
Mongolian and German auditing organizations, the cooperation between 
the executives on both sides, and the mediation of the exchange 
processes by the project office were keys to the project's success. If 
the first phase was defined by a general knowledge transfer, the 
second phase served above all to consolidate and practically apply the 
knowledge and implement structural and legislative measures. While the 
process had not been planned this way initially, it later became 
obvious that it could scarcely have been organized more sensibly. 

The project was based on the cooperation of two financial control 
authorities in countries at differing stages of economic development. 
The goal was not to introduce German financial control in Mongolia. 
Rather, it was to offer Mongolian associates the opportunity to learn 
from German governance experiences. The Mongolian associates were 
tasked with constructing a system for financial control that suited 
their needs: to both meet international standards and account for 
requirements specific to Mongolia. This was the case, and the result 
was optimal. 

For additional information, contact the authors: 

E-mail: batbayarb@mnao.pmis.gov.mn and JHarms@rhvb.verwalt-berlin.de: 

See also the April and October 2003 issues of the Journal for more 
information about the recent developments in the Mongolian National 
Audit Office. 

[End of section] 

Audit Profile: The Controller and Auditor-General, New Zealand: 

By Kevin Brady, Auditor-General: 

The Controller and Auditor-General (Auditor-General) is a statutory 
office of the New Zealand Parliament and is independent of the 
executive government.[Footnote 1] The Auditor-General's mandate and 
responsibilities are set out in Public Audit Act 2001. 

Role and Functions: 

The Auditor-General's role is to provide assurance to Parliament and 
the public that public sector organizations are operating and 
accounting for their performance as required by Parliament. This 
involves annual audits of all public sector organizations as well as 
more detailed performance audits and inquiries into specific issues. 

The Auditor-General also provides independent assurance about local 
government, as local authorities are accountable to the public for the 
activities they fund through rates levied on landowners within their 
districts. 

To help carry out its role, the Auditor-General employs staff in two 
business units—the Office of the Auditor-General and Audit New Zealand—
and appoints private sector auditing firms (audit service providers) 
to conduct audits on the Auditor-General's behalf. 

The Office of the Auditor-General (OAG) undertakes strategic audit 
planning, sets standards, oversees auditor performance, carries out 
performance audits and special studies, and advises and reports to 
Parliament. 

Audit New Zealand is the operating arm and carries out annual audits 
allocated by the Auditor-General. It also provides other assurance 
services to public entities within the Auditor-General's mandate and 
in accordance with rules about the independence of auditors. It is the 
largest provider of audit and assurance services to the public sector 
in New Zealand and covers the full spectrum of public sector 
operations, including central government, local government, Crown 
research institutes, producer boards, state-owned enterprises, 
education, energy, airports, ports, licensing trusts, and Maori trust 
boards. 

The Auditor-General's "Controller" function under the Public Finance 
Act 1989 involves monitoring departmental and Crown financial 
reporting systems to ensure that the release of funds is supported by 
parliamentary appropriations and that all Crown and government 
department expenditures are for lawful purposes. The Public Finance 
Amendment Act 2004 made a number of significant changes to the 
controller function. These changes took effect from July 1, 2005 (see 
our report, Central Government: Results of the 2003-04 Audits, on the 
OAG's Web site, www.oag.govt.nz). 

Strategic Direction: 

The OAG's 5-year strategic plan, first published in 2004 (and 
available on the OAG Web site under Corporate Documents), sets out our 
operating vision and strategy. Overall, we want to be acknowledged as 
an innovator in designing independent public-sector assurance services 
and as a high-quality deliverer of such services. We refer to this 
internally as being "product leaders." 

Key Auditing Criteria: 

Under the Public Audit Act 2001, we apply the following criteria when 
auditing the activities of public entities: 

* Performance: Have the activities of those entities been carried out 
in accordance with Parliament's intentions and in an effective and 
efficient manner? 

* Authority: Have those activities, as well as resourcing and 
accountability requirements, been undertaken within the authority 
granted by Parliament? 

* Waste: Have the resources of those entities been obtained and 
applied in an economical manner (that is, without wasting taxpayers' 
dollars)? 

* Probity and financial prudence: Are the entities meeting 
parliamentary and public expectations of an appropriate standard of 
behavior in the public sector? 

* Accountability: Have the entities given full and accurate accounts 
of their activities and compliance with Parliament's requirements 
through the annual reporting cycle? Are governance and management 
arrangements suitable to address the concerns identified above? 

Who We Audit and How We Report: 

Under the Public Audit Act 2001, the Auditor-General is the auditor of 
every public entity and other entities that a public entity controls. 
The Auditor-General has a statutory duty to audit the financial 
reports of about 4,000 public entities. 

Based on our strategic plan, we received funding to increase the 
number of performance audits and other studies that we do each year 
from 10 to 21 by June 30, 2006. We also respond to about 250 inquiries 
each year from taxpayers, ratepayers, and Members of Parliament. 

We provide reports and advice to parliamentary select committees and 
portfolio ministers. About 140 reports are prepared for financial 
reviews of entities and estimates evaluations (the reviews of 
estimates for appropriations for the government's budget); about 120 
reports are prepared on the results of annual financial report audits. 

We also administer the provisions of the Local Authorities (Members' 
Interests) Act 1968. This legislation concerns pecuniary interests of 
members of local authorities. There are 80-100 inquiries each year 
related to this act. 

Our annual planning, particularly our strategic audit planning, 
identifies our work program for the coming year. Our annual plan sets 
out our proposed performance audits, special studies, and program for 
research and development. While we consult with Parliament to finalize 
our work program, the final decision on what to do is ours. 

Also, section 20 of the Public Audit Act 2001 requires the Auditor-
General to report annually on matters arising from exercising his 
functions, duties, and powers. Under section 20, we produce separate 
reports on the results of financial audits for central government and 
local government. Copies of the Auditor-General's latest reports are 
available on the OAG Web site. 

Current Capability: 

As of June 30, 2005, 244 staff were employed in the OAG and Audit NZ; 
the staff were based in nine locations throughout New Zealand. We also 
engaged 61 external audit service providers, in addition to the Audit 
NZ staff, to carry out annual audits of public entities. 

For the financial year ending June 30, 2005, we received revenue of 
$NZ 43.5 million—$NZ 8.2 million from Crown revenue and $NZ 35.3 
million from audited entities. 

Key Objectives: 

For the financial year ending June 30, 2006, we aim to achieve the 
following objectives: 

* strengthen our organizational capability, especially in leadership 
and professional areas; 

* adjust to our increased capability, particularly in terms of 
managing our people and accessing additional resources more flexibly; 

* further improve our timeliness to report the results of our major 
inquiries; 

* deliver an effective product mix with an increased focus on 
nonfinancial reporting and on waste, probity, governance, and 
accountability; 

* continue to look for efficiencies in our operational and corporate 
processes; and; 

* make real gains in creating a mindset for innovation and 
collaborative working. 

For additional information, contact OAG: 

Fax: ++64 (4) 917 15 49: 
E-mail: oag@oag.govt.nz: 
Web site: www.oag.govt.nz: 

Footnote: 

[1] The term Auditor-General also refers to the individual officer of 
Parliament who heads the SAI. 

[End of section] 

Reports in Print: 

Journal readers may be interested in obtaining a copy of the report on 
the 18th United Nations/INTOSAI Seminar on Government Auditing, 
"Symposium on the Application of Information and Communications 
Technologies (ICT) in the Audit of e-Government." The seminar was held 
in Vienna, Austria, during April 2005. Sixty delegates attended the 
event, which featured speakers from the United Nations; the World 
Bank; and the SAIs of Argentina, Canada, India, Oman, South Africa, 
and Austria. A number of topics were discussed, including (1) legal 
provisions and audit mandates, (2) the status and future aspects of e-
government, (3) the risks of e-government, (4) auditing e-government 
online, (5) the challenges of auditing e-government, and (6) e-
procurement issues. 

Participants agreed that SAIs must play a proactive role in promoting 
e-government, as it can lead to more transparency and better services 
to citizens. However, there are some challenges because not all SAIs 
are fully independent and their budgets may be approved and managed by 
their individual governments. In addition, because countries are at 
different points in using e-government, SAIs face different styles of 
implementation and differing maturity of solutions. Along with other 
government agencies and departments, SAIs should consider themselves 
part of e-government initiatives, as they also provide services and 
information to citizens. A copy of this informative summary is 
available online at the INTOSAI Web site. 

For additional information, contact INTOSAI General Secretariat: 

Fax: ++43-1-712-9425: 
E-mail: intosai@rechnungshof.gv.at: 
Web site: www.intosa.org: 

Detecting fraud and abuse in government programs continues to be a 
major concern for Journal readers. The CPA's Handbook of Fraud & 
Commercial Crime Prevention is a unique and comprehensive publication 
that gives auditors tools and guidance on many areas of fraud 
prevention and detection, including the following: managing the risk 
of fraud, promoting an ethical environment, risk financing and 
fidelity insurance, computer security and system recovery, internal 
fraud, external fraud for personal gain, commercial crime, computer 
crime and computer criminals, dealing with known or suspected fraud, 
and fraud sector by sector. Published by the American Institute of 
Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), the handbook is a key tool for 
controllers responsible for preventing fraud as well as for 
practitioners who are auditing clients and are exposed to lawsuits if 
they fail to detect fraud. 

For a copy of the handbook, contact the AICPA: 

Web site: www.cpa2biz.com: 
Telephone: 1-888-777-7077 (within the USA) or ++201-938-3000 (outside 
the USA). 

For additional information, contact AICPA: 

1211 Avenue of the Americas New York, NY 10036, USA. 

According to a new report published by the Fraser Institute and the 
Oman based International Research Foundation, Lebanon and Oman are the 
most economically free nations in the Arab world. Economic Freedom of 
the Arab World is a report on a new initiative to measure economic 
freedom. It discusses how free enterprise throughout the Arab world is 
lifting individuals and families out of poverty. Economic freedom is 
key to increasing prosperity, particularly among emerging nations. 
Fact-based studies in top academic journals have shown that economic 
freedom promotes growth, prosperity, and other positive outcomes that 
allow businesses, individuals, and families to make economic decisions 
without government interference. Moreover, economic freedom has 
intrinsic value and is inextricably linked to other freedoms. The 
freedom of individuals or families to determine their own destiny 
liberates them from government dependence and opens the door to other 
freedoms. Moreover, investment is more productive in economically free 
nations. 

In this report, five variables are used to measure economic freedom: 
the size of government expenditures, taxes, and enterprises; the legal 
structure and security of property rights; access to sound money; the 
freedom to trade internationally; and the regulation of credit, labor, 
and business. In some respects, the Arab world as a region
is unusually homogeneous in its culture. Arabic is the main language 
in all countries, which share a rich historic heritage. However, the 
Arab world has considerable diversity in economic freedom, with some 
nations having high levels of economic freedom and others, relatively 
low levels. A copy of this thought-provoking study is available online 
in English and Arabic at www.freetheworld.com. 

For additional information, contact Suzanne Walters Director of 
Communications, The Fraser Institute, Vancouver, Canada: 

Telephone: ++(604) 714-4582: 
E-mail: suzannew@fraserinstitute.ca: 

Inside INTOSAI: 

Governing Board Meeting Advances Strategic Plan: 
	
The influence of INTOSAI's strategic plan was evident at the INTOSAI 
Governing Board's annual meeting in Vienna on November 10-11, 2005. 
The meeting agenda was structured to reflect the four goals in the 
strategic plan (see new INTOSAI organization chart on p. 6) and, under 
the able leadership of Dr. Arpad Kovacs, the board continued to make 
progress in implementing the plan's strategies and recommendations. 

[Photograph: SAI heads and staff from Hungary, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, 
and Austria at the head table during the Governing Board meeting in 
Vienna in November 2005] 

Board members were joined by observers representing committees, 
working groups, and task forces for 2 days of active discussion and 
deliberation on a range of critical issues. The terms of reference of 
the newly created Professional Standards (goal 1) and Capacity 
Building (goal 2) Committees were approved, and reports by their 
chairs were discussed and approved. In a departure from past 
practices, the Professional Standards Committee chair presented 
reports of its constituent subcommittees (e.g., the Accounting and 
Reporting and Financial Audit Subcommittees). In this way, the agenda 
was streamlined and subcommittee chairs did not necessarily need to 
travel to Vienna for the meeting. The annual reports of the General 
Secretariat, the INTOSAI Development Initiative, and this Journal were 
also presented and approved. 

The Finance and Administration Committee chairman reported on the 
committee's ongoing work to provide oversight of INTOSAI finances and 
to help implement goal 4 of the strategic plan (to be a model 
international organization). He emphasized the importance of 
maintaining the board's March 2005 agreement, as noted in INTOSAI's 
new strategic plan, to apply sanctions to those INTOSAI members who 
have significant arrearages in their dues. The committee noted that 
efforts to collect past due amounts have been successful (e.g., over 
US$20,000 in one case) and should continue and that the effective date 
for such sanctions would be determined at a future meeting. In 
addition, the board approved the committee's recommendation that the 
savings gained by reducing INTOSAI's annual allocation to the Journal 
(from 35 percent to 25 percent of the overall INTOSAI budget) should 
be reallocated equally to capacity-building/IDI and knowledge-
sharing/collaboration tool activities in support of the strategic 
plan. The committee believes that INTOSAI's enterprisewide relations 
with global donors should be coordinated centrally and in advance 
within INTOSAI's Governing Board and General Secretariat and with 
input from the Finance and Administration Committee. Regarding 
relations with external partners, the committee chairman stressed the 
importance of INTOSAI's presenting a clear and coherent plan for 
dealing with global donors; this issue will be discussed further at 
the committee's February 21-22, 2006, meeting in Riyadh. 

[Photograph: Governing Board members, observers, and staff pause 
during the meeting for an official photograph] 

The General Secretariat is finalizing the full proceedings of the 
board meeting and will make them available shortly. In the meantime, 
some of the board's major decisions are summarized below. 

* The board selected the two themes for the 2007 INTOSAI Congress in 
Mexico City: Audit of Public Debt: Promoting Best Practice Approaches 
and Fiscal Sustainability (theme 1, chaired by Germany) and 
Performance Evaluation System: Performance Indicators for the 
Evaluation of Public Policy (theme 2, chaired by the United States). 
Theme chairs, the congress host, and the General Secretariat will meet 
in Vienna on January 20, 2006, for a planning meeting. In the coming 
months, INTOSAI members can expect to hear more about the opportunity 
to write country papers on these themes. 

* The Task Force on Accountability and Audit of Disaster-Related Aid 
was established under the chairmanship of the SAI of the Netherlands. 
The goal of the task force is to promote the exchange of information 
to support meaningful and effective audit coordination (for example, 
tsunami-related audits in Southeast Asia); enhance transparency in the 
flow of funds from donors to recipients and identify the role of 
international and nongovernmental organizations (NGO); and, based on 
lessons learned, develop best practices for national governments, 
international institutions, and NGOs to enhance accountability for 
disaster-related aid. The task force chair convened a preparatory 
meeting in The Hague on December 20-21, 2005. (See the report on this 
meeting on p. 31). 

For more information on this new task force, contact: 

ejongsma@rekenkramera.nl. 

* The General Secretariat presented a proposed new Web site design for 
INTOSAI and asked members to provide comments before it is finalized. 

* Noting that Bjarne Mork-Eidem, Auditor General of Norway, would 
retire from office at the end of 2005, the Governing Board recognized 
Mr. Mork-Eidem's many important contributions to INTOSAI during his 15-
year term. He served as President of the INTOSAI Development 
Initiative (IDI), chair of various working groups and task forces, and 
member, from 2001-2004, of the strategic planning task force. As he 
received a plaque of appreciation from the chairman of the board and 
the Secretary General, the full board demonstrated its high regard, 
respect, and affection by giving him a standing ovation. In turn, he 
showed his appreciation by singing a traditional Norwegian fishing 
song, reminiscent of his early days in the north of Norway and his 
later role as Minister of Fisheries. 

* The next board meeting will be held in Mexico City on November 6-8, 
2006. 

* Looking to the future, the board accepted South Africa's offer to 
host the 2010 congress. 

[Photograph: Arpad Kovacs, Chairman of the Governing Board, and Joseph 
Moser, Secretary General of INTOSAI, present a plaque of appreciation 
to Bjarne Mork-Eidem, Auditor General of Norway, in recognition of his 
service to INTOSAI] 

For more information on the board meeting, contact the General 
Secretariat: 

E-mail: intosai@rechnungshofgv.at: 

or the Chairman of the Board: 
E-mail: kovacsa@asz.hu: 

Financial Audit Guidelines Subcommittee: 

In September 2005, the former Working Group on Financial Audit 
Guidelines became the Financial Audit Guidelines Subcommittee (FAS). 
The working group reported to the former Auditing Standards Committee 
(ASC); the subcommittee reports to the new Professional Standards 
Committee (PSC). Sweden chairs the subcommittee, as it did the working 
group, under the direction of Deputy Auditor General Gen Jonsson. 

The subcommittee's work continues without interruption. It provided 
INTOSAI experts to staff several International Auditing and Assurance 
Standards Board (IAASB) task forces and two practice note task forces 
in 2005. In November 2005, a call was sent out to all INTOSAI members 
asking for new nominations of experts to the FAS reference panel. The 
Project Secretariat is currently updating its registers in response to 
the referrals received from many SAIs, and the work of finding 
suitable experts for International Standards on Auditing (ISA) task 
forces and ISA practice note task forces is about to begin. By the end 
of 2006, more than 80 positions will have been filled within the 
project. This will be possible only because of the generous support of 
the SAIs that have nominated experts to the FAS reference panel. This 
collaboration makes the Project Secretariat's task easier to handle 
and speeds progress on the work of developing financial audit 
guidelines. 

Subcommittee Meetings: 

The FAS held its first meeting in conjunction with the joint final ASC 
and initial PSC meetings in Oslo in September 2005. At that time, 
participants decided that a new group was needed to focus on questions 
related to courts of account since the guidelines need to address 
specific aspects of the court system. A Court of Accounts Expert Group—
initially including the SAIs of Turkey, Tunisia, Brazil, and Greece—
was set up and will be chaired by the Greek reference panel expert, 
Mr. Aristides Alahouzos. At the meeting, the FAS also discussed audit 
scope, implementation of the guidelines, and the effect of the IAASB's 
Clarity Project (which is defining professional requirements) on the 
subcommittee's work. Since the Clarity Project is expected to 
influence the work of the FAS in many ways, the subcommittee decided 
to strengthen its focus group of reference panel experts to handle 
additional responsibilities related to providing comments on the 
project. 

In December 2005, the subcommittee held a telephone conference, and it 
will hold a meeting in Namibia March 13-14, 2006, hosted by the Office 
of the Auditor General of Namibia. 

Information about FAS: 

During the fall of 2005, the Project Secretariat created a new Web 
site for the FAS (http://psc.rigsrevisionen.dk/fas). Since its launch 
at the end of November, 2005, the site has offered all SAIs, 
subcommittee members, and the general public current information on 
the subcommitee's work on the guidelines, exposure drafts of practice 
notes for comment from all INTOSAI members, and approved agendas and 
minutes from subcommittee meetings. A new version of the FAS brochure 
was printed and distributed to all SAIs in November 2005. 

Exposure Drafts for Comment: 

The subcommittee recently released the first practice notes for 
comment from INTOSAI members, other INTOSAI committees, and other 
parties. The practice notes and related ISAs, as well as information 
on the format for comments, can be found on the subcommittee Web site. 
Comments on the two first practice notes to ISA 230 and ISA 240 are 
due on March 31, 2006. The subcommittee will continue to post exposure 
drafts of all newly developed guidance on the Web site. 

Ongoing Work on ISA Task Forces: 

In each issue of the Journal, the FAS Project Secretariat offers a 
brief update of the ongoing work with ISA task forces. The 
International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) Web site (www.ifac.org) 
provides updated information on the ISA task forces, exposure drafts 
of ISAs, and related matters. 

Work is in progress on the following ISAs where INTOSAI experts are 
involved: 

ISA 230 — Documentation: 
Expert: Ms. Kelly Anerud, Norway; 
Back-office experts: Ms. Gail Vallieres, United States; Mr. Inge 
Danielsson, Sweden. 

Final version expected in September 2005 and final practice note 
expected in June 2006 (an exposure draft of the practice note has been 
posted for comments). 

ISA 705 — Modifications To The Opinion In The Independent Auditor's 
Report And ISA 706 — Emphasis Of Matter Paragraphs And Other Matters 
Paragraphs In The Independent Auditor's Report: 
Expert: Ms. Mary Radford, United Kingdom: 
Back-office experts: Ms. Marcia Buchanan, United States; Ms. Birgit 
Bach-Nielsen, Denmark. 

Final version expected in March 2006 and practice note expected in 
December 2006. 

ISA 260 — Communications With Those Charged With Governance: 
Expert: Ms. Tove Myklebust, Norway; 
Back-office experts: Mr. Filip Cassel, Sweden; Ms. Gail Vallieres, 
United States. 

Final version expected in March 2006 and practice note expected in 
December 2006. 

ISA 800 — The Independent Auditor's Report On Special Purpose Audit 
Engagements: 
Expert: Mr. Jonas Hillstrom, Sweden; 
Back-office experts: Mr. Demsash Betemariam, Ethiopia; Mr. Martin 
Dees, the Netherlands; Mr. Robert Cox, New Zealand. 

Final version expected in March 2006 and practice note expected in 
December 2006. 

ISA 550 — Related Parties: 
Expert: Mr. John Thorpe, United Kingdom; 
Back-office experts: Ms. Zainun Taib, Malaysia; Mr. Uwe Schreiner, 
Germany; Ms. Goranka Kiralj, Slovenia. 

Final version expected in June 2006 and practice note expected in 
March 2007. 

ISA 580 — Management Representation: 
Expert: Ms. Vijaya Moorthy, India; 
Back-office experts: Mr. Martin Garrido, Chile; Mr. Ennio Colasanti, 
Italy. 

Final version expected in September 2006 and practice note expected in 
June 2007. 

ISA 620 — Using The Work Of An Expert: 
Expert: Mr. Claudio Branco, Brazil; 
Back-office experts: Mr. Andras Morvay, Hungary; Ms. Monica Besetsa, 
Lesotho. 

Final version expected in December 2006 and practice note expected in 
September 2007. 

The subcommittee is also charged with developing a practice note for 
each ISA to provide additional guidance that auditors in the public 
sector may need to apply to the ISA. The practice notes will be based 
on the contributions of the audit experts from the reference panel.
Practice notes will also be developed for ISAs already revised and 
approved by the IAASB where no experts participated in the IAASB task 
force. The Project Secretariat has started to form task forces with 
experts and back-office experts from the reference panel to develop 
practice notes for these ISAs. 

The first practice note task forces will develop practice notes to the 
following ISAs: 

* Practice Note Task Force 1: International Standard on Quality 
Control 1 and ISA 220. 

* Practice Note Task Force 2: ISAs 300, 315, and 330. 

These task forces were set up in December 2005 and will have two 
experts and two or three back-office experts. The timetable for 
developing practice notes to these ISAs will be 13 months, including 
the exposure period. 

Four additional task forces will be formed during 2006 to develop 
practice notes to 11 other ISAs. 

New Sources for Financing of the Project: 

The project entirely relies on the contributions of the experts and 
their respective SAIs, which have agreed to cover the costs. The 
Project Secretariat is continuously approaching external parties to 
seek funding. The project has so far been granted funding from the 
World Bank, and we are now very satisfied to have reached an 
understanding with the Asian Development Bank to fund parts of the 
project. These funds will, among other things, cover the costs for 
reference panel meetings, certain subcommittee meeting expenses, the 
operation of the Project Secretariat, translations of standards and 
guidelines to the official INTOSAI languages, and printing and 
distribution of approved guidelines. 

The IAASB has decided that as of January 1, 2006, it will cover the 
expenses related to all participation of INTOSAI experts in its task 
forces. This financial commitment shows that the IAASB recognizes the 
important role of INTOSAI experts in developing the ISAs. While the 
IAASB's action will not influence the need for external funding of the 
project, we hope it will allow more SAIs to nominate their best and 
most experienced experts. 

For additional information about this project, contact the Project 
Secretariat in Stockholm, Sweden: 

E-mail: projectsecretariat@riksrevisionen.se: 
Fax: +46-8-5171 4111: 

First Annual Report of OLACEFS: 

The Organization of Latin American and Caribbean Supreme Audit 
Institutions (OLACEFS) issued its first annual report for the year 
2004. 

The President of OLACEFS, Mr. Gustavo Sciolla, presented the report to 
the OLACEFS Board in March 2005. The report was approved and ratified 
at the OLACEFS Assembly, which took place in El Salvador in June 2005. 
The Office of the Comptroller General of Chile prepared the document. 

The report gives a brief history of OLACEFS and summarizes the main 
events the organization carried out during 2004. It also includes 
information about each member country. The heads of the OLACEFS SAIs 
wrote messages stressing the importance of unity and shared 
experiences, ethics and transparency in managing state enterprises, 
and the constant fight against corruption. Each member SAI shared 
information on its main reports, audit matters, and events for the 
year. These country reports demonstrate that financial and performance 
audits provided positive recommendations regarding government 
management, auditing of public works, and environmental audits to 
improve state administration. The reports also noted the importance of 
technological changes that occurred during the period and allowed for 
modernization and legal changes to enhance SAI performance. Some of 
the SAIs also reported on the importance of strategic planning in 
achieving their institutional aims. 

The experiences recorded by each SAI, along with the issues and 
matters being audited, constitute a genuine exchange of knowledge and 
information. The OLACEFS annual report increases the value of this 
knowledge by comparing it in terms of time, manner, and place. In this 
way, the report helps to achieve the knowledge-sharing purposes of the 
INTOSAI strategic plan. 

For additional information, contact OLACEFS General Secretariat: 

Fax: ++507 210 43 99: 
E-mail: omarl@contraloria.gob.pa: 
Web site: www.olac0.org.pa: 

Training Workshops in SPASAI: 

From November 28 to December 2, 2005, the Government of Samoa Audit 
Office hosted a workshop entitled "Dealing with Fraud and Corruption 
While Auditing" for staff of SPASAI member offices. The workshop, held 
in Apia, Samoa, and funded by the INTOSAI Development Initiative, was 
designed to familiarize participants with basic issues of fraud 
relevant to the auditor's role. 

In addition, the National Audit Office of the Peoples Republic of 
China hosted an audit training program for auditors general from SPASM 
member offices. The workshop was held November 20-30, 2005, in 
Guangzhou and Beijing, China. 

For additional information, contact SPASAI: 

Fax: ++64 (4) 917 15 49L: 
E-mail: oag@oag.govt.nz: 

First Meeting of the Task Force on Accountability and Audit of 
Disaster-Related Aid: 

The Task Force on Accountability and Audit of Disaster-Related Aid 
held its first meeting in The Hague on December 20-21, 2005. The 
INTOSAI Governing Board approved the establishment of this task force 
at its meeting in November 2005, naming the president of the 
Netherlands Court of Audit, Saskia Stuiveling, as the chair and 
Indonesia and Korea as vice chairs. As outlined in the proposal 
approved by the Governing Board, the task force consists of two 
branches. The first branch, chaired by Indonesia, will focus on 
developing a framework to enhance transparency in the flow and use of 
tsunami-related aid. The second branch, chaired by Korea, will
focus on formulating best practices and guidance on exercising 
accountability for and auditing disaster-related aid. 

Mrs. Stuiveling hosted the December meeting in The Hague, and 
participants included Anwar Nasution, chairman of the board of the BPK 
(the Indonesian SM), and delegates from the SAIs of the Netherlands, 
Indonesia, Korea, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Austria. 
During the meeting, the structure and future activities of the task 
force, as well as its relationship with the BPK Advisory Board, were 
discussed. In addition, presentations were made on the complexity of 
aid flows and on possibilities for a geographic approach to the task 
force's work. 

The delegates to the meeting agreed to expand the task force to ensure 
regional coverage and the participation of both donor countries and 
countries affected by the tsunami or other natural disasters. SAIs 
that positively responded to the INTOSAI Tsunami Initiative will be 
invited to join. The delegates also decided how to perform pilot 
studies of aid flows that would reflect both donor and recipient 
perspectives. 

Other issues discussed at the December meeting included funding for 
the initiative and establishing contacts with other relevant 
organizations, such as the United Nations, the Organisation for 
Economic Co-operation and Development, nongovernmental organizations, 
and worldwide accountancy firms. The delegates agreed to set up a Web 
site to inform all INTOSAI members and other interested parties about 
task force activities. The Web site is to be operational by February 
2006. 

The first meeting of the complete task force is to be held in March 
2006, probably in Geneva. The core members will meet again
in April 2006 in Jakarta during a meeting of the BPK Advisory
Board. In June 20006, the Austrian SAI will host a conference in its 
Parliament on disaster-related aid, where the results of the pilot 
studies of aid flows will be presented. 

[Photograph: Members of the Task Force on Accountability and Audit of 
Disaster-Related Aid at their December 2005 meeting in The Hague] 

For additional information, contact Egbert Jongsma, tsunami project 
leader, Netherlands Court of Audit: 

E-mail: ejongsma@rekenkamer.nl: 
Telephone: ++0031-703427887: 

[End of section] 

IDI Update: 
IDI Update keeps you informed of developments in the work and programs 
of the INTOSAI Development Initiative. To find out more about IDI and 
to keep up to date between editions of the Journal, look at the IDI 
website: www.idi.no. 

IDI/OLACEFS Regional Workshop on the Audit of Public Services: 

The second phase of the Long Term Regional Training Program in OLACEFS 
was successfully completed with a 2-week Regional Workshop on the 
Audit of Public Services, which was held in Bogota, Colombia, in 
September 2005. Seven new OLACEFS training specialists delivered the 
course to 30 participants from the region. 

IDI/ASOSAI Capacity-building Needs Assessment Project: 

Two needs survey missions have recently taken place in connection with 
the capacity-building program for newly established SAIs sponsored by 
IDI and the Asian Development Bank. The first needs survey was carried 
out in the Mekong region during October 2005. The purpose of this 
mission was to interview selected executives of the SAIs of Cambodia, 
Vietnam, and Myanmar on their broader capacity-building needs. 

In November 2005, IDI, in cooperation with ASOSAI, arranged a focus 
group workshop with 12 senior members of four SAIs in Central Asia, 
namely Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Mongolia. The aim of 
this 3-day event, held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, was to identify the 
training needs of these SAIs and to create a strategy for 
institutional strengthening. 

Global Survey on the Draft IDI Strategic Plan for 2007-2012: 

During November 2005, IDI distributed a survey regarding its new 
strategic plan to all the SAIs of developing and emerging countries. 
The respondents were asked to give feedback on the draft plan and also 
to rate its proposed goals, objectives, and indicators of success. 

IDI/OLACEFS E-learning Pilot: 

The e-learning pilot project run in OLACEFS, in cooperation with IDI 
and the Organization of American States, concluded at the beginning of 
December 2005. Sixty-two participants from the region attended the 10-
week Workshop on Performance Auditing. The success of the course can 
be attributed in large part to the hard work and strong commitment of 
the seven online tutors (from the SAIs of Costa Rica, Chile, 
Argentina, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, and Panama) and 
the academic coordinator and the subject matter expert, both from the 
SAI of Venezuela. 

IDI/ARABOSAI Capacity-building Program in IT Auditing: 

A 3-week IT Audit and Instructional Techniques Workshop was held in 
Oman in December 2005. The workshop had 23 participants from seven 
countries in the region. The subject matter experts came from the SAIs 
of Oman and Qatar. This event is a part of the Champions Program in IT 
Auditing, which will conclude in 2006. 

Global E-learning Laboratory in Malaysia: 

In December 2005, a 2-week e-learning laboratory was held in Kuala 
Lumpur, Malaysia. The 19 participants from 18 countries were mainly 
IDI training specialists but also included others from developing SAIs 
of INTOSAI's English-speaking regions who have an interest in 
training. The idea was to build on participants' e-learning capacities 
and create a community of e-designers for the regions and SAIs. The 
participants received both theoretical and practical knowledge on the 
use of Lectora and Macromedia Captivate software. The workshop was 
delivered by an expert from the NIIT Company of India. 

IDI/ASOSAI Workshop on Dealing with Fraud and Corruption: 

In December 2005, a 1-week Workshop on Dealing with Fraud and 
Corruption was delivered in Lahore, Pakistan, to participants from 15 
selected member SAIs of ASOSAI. The 30 auditors were trained in best 
practices and techniques for detecting and preventing fraud while 
auditing. 

Contacting IDI: 

To discuss any of the issues raised in this edition of IDI Update, 
contact IDI: 

Telephone: ++47 21 54 08 10: 
E-mail: idi@idi.no. 

[End of section] 
	
INTOSAI Events: 
	
February 9-10: 
Internal Control Committee Meeting, Brussels, Belgium. 

February 21-22: 
Finance and Administration Committee Meeting, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. 

March 13-14: 
Capacity Building Committee, London, England. 
		
April 3-7: 
SPASAI Congress, Northern Mariana Islands. 

May 4-5: 
Professional Standards Committee Meeting, Washington, D.C., United 
States. 

May 17-19: 
INTOSAI Committee on IT Audit, Brasilia, Brazil. 

June 20: 
International Tsunami/Disaster Relief Conference, Vienna, Austria. 

June 26: 
Environmental Audit Steering Committee, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. 

September 11-15: 
ASOSAI Assembly, Shanghai, China. 

October	16-19: 
CAROSAI Congress, Freeport, Bahamas. 

November 1-4: 
55th INTOSAI Governing Board Meeting, Mexico City, Mexico. 
	
Editor's Note: This calendar is published in support of INTOSAI's 
communications strategy and as a way of helping INTOSAI members plan 
and coordinate schedules. Included in this regular Journal feature 
will be INTOSAI-wide events and region wide events such as congresses, 
general assemblies, and board meetings. Because of limited space, the 
many training courses and other professional meetings offered by the 
regions cannot be included. For additional information, contact the 
Secretary General of each regional working group. 

[End of section] 

[End of January 2006 Journal]