Reputation promise/mission

Different types of audits – discretionary audits of the AGSA (cont.)

• Investigations
• Permitted in terms of section 5 of the Public Audit Act
• Factual findings relating to financial misconduct, maladministration and impropriety
• Based on allegations or matters of public interest

Different types of audits – discretionary audits of the AGSA (cont.)

• Special audits
• Permitted in terms of section 5 of the Public Audit Act
• Agreed-upon procedures (required reviews relating to, for example, donor funding, certificates to ensure legislative compliance, etc.)

Independence equals credibility

• External audits must be independent and objective in order to provide assurance and comfort that is credible
• All types of audits are post facto (after the fact/decisions made); this does not mean that discretionary audits cannot take place in phases, once management decisions have been taken
• As such, section 5 of the Public Audit Act prevents the AGSA from performing any work that may subsequently need to be audited

• Difference between AoPI and performance auditing

• SPECIALISTS (NATIONAL TREASURY, STATS SA, PSC)

• CABINET AND LEGISLATURE

• EXECUTIVE AUTHORITY

• Reporting framework

• National indicators/ norms/practices/standards

• Policy development, strategic planning, budget and oversight

• Implementation, monitoring, corrective action and reporting on performance information

• EXTERNAL AUDIT

• AoPI - mandatory

• Performance audit -discretionary

• Review and confirm validity, accuracy and completeness of performance information

• Evaluate efficiency, effectiveness and economy at a project/programme level

• Report at entity level & to legislature as part of regularity audit report

• Report at entity level/transversally (by segment/cluster & across tiers of government and related public entities)

• Compliance (has this happened), as part of regularity audit process

• Expert analysis (qualitative), often done by subject matter experts