The Court of Accounts hosts an international symposium on the independence of Supreme Audit Institutions

On June 3 and 4 in Rabat, the Court of Accounts is hosting a symposium on the theme of the Independence of Supreme Audit Institutions, organized by the INTOSAI Development Initiative (IDI), with the participation of 14 member countries of the Arab Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (ARABOSAI), as well as parliamentarians from the participating countries.

The aim of the symposium is to highlight the importance of institutional coordination, particularly with the legislative branch, in monitoring the implementation of recommendations issued by Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs). The aim is also to develop international cooperation and exchange experiences between SAIs and partners, with a view to strengthening their missions in promoting transparency, accountability and efficiency, with a view to adopting the universal independence project launched by the IDI in partnership with the OECD and the IMF.

On this occasion, Mrs. Zineb EL ADAOUI, First President of the Court of Accounts, highlighted the importance of this theme, taking into account the major evolution of the international normative framework with regard to the independence of SAIs. At the same time, she highlighted some of the challenges and risks that stand in the way, encouraging the adoption of new, proactive and more effective approaches to addressing the issue of independence, and taking the necessary and timely action in this area. The First President also affirmed the commitment of the Court of Accounts of the Kingdom of Morocco to this vision, with the aim of reinforcing the achievements of Supreme Audit in terms of independence.

For his part, Mr Abdelhakim Ben Lazerq, representative of the IDI, welcomed the choice of theme for the seminar, stressing that it followed on from the discussion begun last year in Doha on working with stakeholders, including parliament, to support the independence of SAIs in the Arab world. Likewise, he asserted that this independence is one of the pillars for strengthening public confidence in the results of SAIs’ work.

For his part, Mr. M. Hatem Al-Selini, Acting Secretary General of ARABOSAI, emphasized that INTOSAI gives strategic priority to the independence of Supreme Audit Institutions. He also asserted that the seminar provides an opportunity to strengthen interaction between SAIs and parliament in the Arab region, and contributes to the creation of effective mechanisms for monitoring the implementation of recommendations, thus guaranteeing the added value of the work of these institutions.

It should be noted that the independence of SAIs is subject to international standards in this field, notably those set out in the principles of the Mexico and Lima Declarations.