The call for the 2004 audit of nationally executed projects emphasized the requirements for the audit.

The amount of 1,657,900 covers the estimated requirements for external audit ( 462,400) as requested by the Board of Auditors, and for internal audit ( 1,195,500) as requested by the Office of Internal Oversight Services.

The Audit Services Branch also developed a checklist of standard requirements to assist country offices in monitoring compliance with the requirements and communicated it to country offices on 10 March 2005.

The remaining balances amounted, respectively, to 60.3 million and 70.3 million, for which implementing partners had not yet complied with UNHCR audit requirements.

Compliance by country offices with national execution and non governmental organization audit requirements is reflected in the annual performance evaluation of UNFPA Representatives.

The Office proposes to include those audits in the comprehensive management audit and to utilize the foreseen resources in the support account budget towards the resource requirements for the comprehensive management audit of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations.

For example, audit, entry and annual fees, tax on business profit, prudential requirements such as minimum capital, bank guarantee and minimum managerial experience as required in some States.

Compliance by country offices with nationally executed expenditure and the audit requirements of non governmental organizations has also been reflected in the annual performance evaluation of UNFPA representatives.

Disclosures should cover the selection and approval process for the external auditor, any prescriptive requirements for audit partner rotation, the duration of the current auditor (e.g. whether the same auditor has been engaged for more than five years and whether there is a rotation of audit partners), who governs the relationship with the auditor, whether auditors do any non audit work and what percentage of the total fees paid to the auditor involves non audit work.

Most of the increase is due to additional requirements relating to the transfer of the Resident Auditor posts and the new posts in the Internal Audit Division and the investigative units.

The increase also relates to higher than estimated external audit costs ( 75,300) partially offset by decreased requirements under other contractual services ( 37,500), including Internet services, medical consultants and contractual security services.

Audit opinion

Audit process

Audit opinion

External audit

Internal audit

Audit costs

Audit Division

Internal audit is conducted by a dedicated UNHCR Audit Service, which forms part of Internal Audit Division II that is headquartered at Geneva.

The UNHCR Audit Service, in close cooperation with the UNHCR Audit Coordinator in the Controller's Office, vigorously follows up on outstanding audit recommendations.

We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for the audit opinion.

The Audit Services Branch will update the checklist for the 2005 audit exercise.

Following a review of the requirements and the preliminary assessment of the scope of work for the execution of the comprehensive management audit of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, the Office of Internal Oversight Services plans to include the audits of the supply chain management and construction engineering projects within the requested comprehensive management audit.

Internal audit ratings

So we audit.

Audit the Fed?

Internal audit function

Scope of audit

OIOS Audit Service

UNHCR Audit Service

At the present time, audit assignments are shared among the audit staff provided from the audit services of the members of the Board on an equal basis.

The Office of Audit and Performance Review has incorporated procedures in its country office audit guide to ensure that audit clauses are included in all project agreements.

One D 1 post would be redeployed from Internal Audit in New York to Internal Audit in Geneva to strengthen audit operations handled from the Geneva office.

Consequently, the resources proposed in the support account budget for those two audits will be reprioritized into the total resource requirements for the comprehensive management audit, thereby reducing the additional resources requested in the present statement.

The working group fully supported the resources requested for external audit ( 479,900) and internal audit ( 1,240,700).

Annual report and audit

Audit recommendation tracking dashboard

Independent Audit Advisory Committee

(c) Audit and Inspection

Subprogramme 1 Internal audit

OIOS, UNHCR Audit Service

The regularity audit will be taken forward through a pre final audit in the last quarter of 2005 and a final audit after the closure of the financial period.

These include the implementation of a web based audit recommendation tracking dashboard (http audit dashboard.undp.org) to manage corporate audit issues, and the establishment of a quality assurance function within the Bureau of Management (BOM) to analyze systemic issues arising from audit observations.

To ensure an effective internal audit mechanism, the Coordination Council has adopted a Charter for Internal Audit.

OIOS Audit of UNHCR Procurement (Audit report 03 03) of 6 February 2003, paragraphs 25 and 26.