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On March 23, 2011, III Meeting of the EUROSAI Task Force on the Audit of Funds Allocated to Disasters and Catastrophes was closed in Moscow, the Russian Federation. The Meeting aim was to summarize and report on performance during 2009−2011, as well as results of conducted cooperative and national audits on the funds put by governments to prevention and consequences elimination of disasters and catastrophes.
Within the Meeting agenda 5 cooperative audits' findings of great concern for the whole European community were presented by auditors from national SAIs of Belarus, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Poland, the Russian Federation and Ukraine.
The issues of consequences elimination at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, findings of the International Coordinated Audit of the Chernobyl Shelter Fund, as well its follow-up were discussed in more detail at the Meeting.
It was reported that in October 2010 status of the projects at the Chernobyl site was positively assessed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development at the CSF Donor Assembly, though the projects' costs increased almost 2.5 times as compared to 1997 estimates.
Slow construction progress and putting into operation of key infrastructure facilities required for NPP decommissioning and transformation of destroyed 4 Unit into an environmentally safe system keep the risks on further work postponement and cost growth. Bearing all this in mind the auditors advised on the follow-up of the CSF International Coordinated Audit until complete execution of the works.
The Meeting participants dwelled inter alia on such phenomenon as "capitalization of disasters and catastrophes" when utilization of state funds allocated to consequences elimination turns out to be an extremely profitable undertaking with above 200 per cent profit earned and collateral property or land-related problems solved.
In addition, the Common Position on Cooperation for Coordinated Parallel Audit of State Funds Allocated to Prevention and Consequences Elimination of Disasters and Catastrophes with suggestions and remarks by participating SAIs was negotiated and accepted.
The Meeting agenda also included the presentation of Methodological Recommendations for Auditing Prevention and Consequences Elimination of Disasters and Catastrophes Based on Best Audit Practice elaborated by the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine. These Recommendations rely on analysis and summary of the audit materials received from the Task Force members. The updated Glossary of Audit Terms was presented as well.
The participants also supported the proposal by the SAI of Ukraine on the Task Force mandate extension for another 3 years to be approved at VIII EUROSAI Congress this June in Lisbon, Portugal. They accepted a respective draft Resolution and authorized the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine in its capacity of the Task Force Chair to present the Resolution along with the Progress Report at the Congress.