The second symposium of the National Audit Office (NAO) “Audit and Partnership” kicked off on Tuesday morning in the presence of about 300 participants from most of the entities covered by the NAO’s audit mandate.
H.E. Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, Auditor General of the NAO, said, "The symposium aims to raise awareness of the importance of the role of Supreme Audit Institutions, and to raise the level of cooperation, coordination and partnership between the NAO and the relevant entities to achieve the desired integration into the audit work."
The two-day symposium will discuss the importance and role of the Supreme Audit Institutions, the audit types carried out by the NAO in the Kingdom of Bahrain, the latest developments in the NAO’s work and the best ways to deal with its reports, observations and recommendations. In addition, the symposium will discuss digital transformation and modern technology, the importance of electronic auditing in light of this transformation, ways and aspects of enhancing cooperation and partnership between the NAO and the entities subject to its audit, technical developments in the field of auditing and the need to deal with them, as well as other topics.
H.E. Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed stressed that "the NAO seeks to strengthen auditing systems to perform tasks efficiently and competently by supporting the development of the technical knowledge, skills and capabilities of the concerned employees, in addition to informing them of recent developments in the field of auditing."
The symposium targets undersecretaries, assistant undersecretaries, managers and CEOs, department directors, consultants, auditors, accountants, legal experts, and audit work coordinators, while specialists from the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), international auditing firms, local companies and entities, and the NAO will lecture.
H.E. Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa stated that "all these efforts are based on the principle of partnership with various entities to achieve control over the soundness and legality of the use of public funds and their proper management."
He thanked the participants in the symposium, appreciating the response and cooperation of the entities they represent, and he urged them to benefit from the important lectures and working papers that will be presented during the symposium, and take advantage of the presence of experts and practitioners in the field of auditing to exchange experiences and learn about the latest practices.
Furthermore, he praised the excellent coordination and fruitful and constructive cooperation between the NAO and the ministries and government entities covered by its audit, which reflected positively on the NAO’s audit work, the quality of audit reports issued, and the percentage of recommendations implemented by various entities.
"The organization of the second symposium of the NAO came after the success of its first symposium held in early 2020, the positive outcomes that resulted from it, and the benefits achieved by the participants, in the hope that this time we will achieve additional benefits for the participants, the entities they represent, and the NAO alike, " he said.
The “Audit and Partnership” symposium comes as the NAO celebrates its 20th anniversary. It was established in 2002 as one of the outcomes of the reform project of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and supported and followed up by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, and began its mission in 2003.
In addition, H.E. Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa stressed that achieving control over the soundness and legality of the use of public funds and its proper management was accomplished in partnership with the entities covered by its audit as they worked as one team with the aim to protect public funds and pointed to the positive approach followed by the NAO when preparing its reports.
He indicated that the NAO applied international auditing standards especially those issued by the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), when carrying out its work.
INTOSAI is an international, independent, non-political organization established in 1953 to develop the capacities of Supreme Audit Institutions, enhance cooperation among them, help improve their performance, exchange views, knowledge, experience and expertise, as well as develop international professional standards for public sector auditing. It has 195 members which includes the Kingdom of Bahrain.
