SAIs of Ukraine, Austria and the Czech Republic discussed cooperation on exchange of experience and cooperative audits

25.06.2024 13:36

Cooperative audits, exchange of experience and professional development of auditors of the Accounting Chamber of Ukraine were in the focus of attention during a tripartite working meeting with the participation of the Chairwoman of the Accounting Chamber Olha Pishchanska, President of the Austrian Court of Audit Dr. Margit Kraker and the President of the Supreme Audit Office of the Czech Republic Miloslav Kala.

The meeting took place on 24 June during the Annual meeting of the Heads of Supreme Audit Institutions “Visegrad Group (V4 + 2)” ongoing in Graz (Austria).

During the meeting, the Chairwoman of the Accounting Chamber, Olga Pishchanska, emphasized that Ukraine in this difficult time extremely appreciates the financial and military assistance of its partners. For the Accounting Chamber, considering the beginning of the reform of the Supreme Audit Institution of Ukraine, the support of foreign colleagues aimed at its institutional development is especially valuable.

“The Accounting Chamber is carrying out a step-by-step reform of its activities taking into account Article 347 of the Association Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine and pays special attention to the exchange of experience and best practices, in particular, in the implementation of INTOSAI standards and methods. Since the beginning of the year, we have been carrying out audits in accordance with the requirements of ISSAIs, strengthening cooperation with foreign SAIs, including for the purpose of conducting cooperative audits, focusing on monitoring the use of macroeconomic assistance. We already have successful experience in this direction with our colleagues from Germany and the USA”, Olha Pishchanska emphasized and invited partners to join this form of cooperation.

The Chairwoman of the Accounting Chamber noted that the issue of improving the quality of audits is an urgent issue for the institution: this is the systematic training of auditors and the exchange of experience regarding the use of the latest technologies, principles and approaches such as data analytics, digitization and automation of audit processes.

For her part, Margit Kraker assured Ukraine of her institution’s constant support, noting that this process can take place both within the framework of cooperation within INTOSAI and EUROSAI, and during bilateral relations. In particular, the possibility of involving experts of the Accounting Chamber to undergo a two-week internship on the basis of the SAI of Austria is currently being analyzed.

In his turn, Miloslav Kala emphasized that based on the results of his last visit to Kyiv at the beginning of June of this year, recommendations are being prepared for Ukrainian lawmakers regarding the possible improvement of the legislation on the Accounting Chamber, and a mechanism for the continuous improvement of the qualifications of Ukrainian auditors is being developed on the basis of SAIs of EU member states.

As a result, the participants of the meeting agreed with the voiced proposals and agreed to discuss them in more detail, in particular, to work out mechanisms for their implementation in the near future.