EUROSAI. Magazine N21 - 2015

EUROPEAN ORGANISATION OF SUPREME AUDIT INSTITUTIONS REPORTS AND STUDIES 114 www.eurosai.org · N.º 21 - 2015 Promoting good governance and achieving sustainable development are a goal which all countries in the world assiduously strive for. National audit arose from the objective necessity of national governance. In the course of promoting good governance, national audit plays a significant role in accelerating the institutional reform and modernization of governance through sound monitoring of its process, real-time tracking of its performance and unveiling of its problems in a timely manner. Providing governance with true and reliable information and basis, national audit is the bedrock promoting the modernization of governance. The International Standards of Supreme Audit Institutions (ISSAIs) pointed out that “Independent, highly effective and credible SAIs are important components of democratic systems”. In the governance system, first of all, as an institutional arrangement of checking and overseeing the exercise of power, supreme audit institutions (SAIs) have independent status and mandatory functions. Free from the constraint of interests, it carries out audit and supervision of public funds, state-owned assets and the distribution, use and management of state-owned resources, thus serving as defender of national interests and guardian of public funds. Secondly, as full-time specialized supervision, national audit acts objectively and fairly with expertise and authority. With a macro view and a forward-looking vision, the National Audit Office of China (CNAO) carries out audit and supervision of the flows of capital, business, materials and information, reflects true situations, unveils hidden risks, identifies outstanding problems and sets forth recommendations to give the right prescription for problems, thus providing governance modernization with important information and basis for decision-making. Thirdly, the audit results provide a foundation to the general public for supervising and holding the public sector to account. The disclosure of audit information can promote the public access to information including policy decisions, budgets and performances of the public sector. This will energetically push forward the integrity, transparency, responsibility and efficiency of the public sector, bring value and benefits to the people’s livelihood to the greatest extent, thus promoting good governance. Through consistent supervision of the implementation of governance policy measures, national audit provides important safeguard for the sustainable development of economy and society. To promote good governance, the core lies in ensuring the sound operation and sustainable development of a country’s economy and society so as to better look after and enhance public interests. Centering on this objective, SAIs of all countries should adapt to the developments and GIVING FULL PLAY TO THE ROLE OF NATIONAL AUDIT AS BEDROCK AND SIGNIFICANT SAFEGUARD IN NATIONAL GOVERNANCE LIU Jiayi Auditor General of the SAI of China Chairman of INTOSAI’s Governing Board The disclosure of audit information can promote the public access to information including policy decisions, budgets and performances of the public sector. This will energetically push forward the integrity, transparency, responsibility and efficiency of the public sector, bring value and benefits to the people’s livelihood to the greatest extent, thus promoting good governance