Joint EUROSAI-European Confederation of Institutes of Internal Auditors (ECIIA)
Background and objectives
An effective internal audit (IA) function is a vital component of good governance, providing governing bodies (in particular senior management and audit committees) with independent assurance about the efficiency and effectiveness of governance activities at the Government level and within other public sector entities, as well as through suggestions for improvement in all areas of control, risk management and governance.
EUROSAI members may use the results of the internal auditors’ work which contributes to the overall system of governance in the public sector. As the internal audit function is an integral part of governance activities of the Government and other public entities, EUROSAI members can benefit from being in a position of improving awareness of what and how best to make use of the work of internal auditors.
ECIIA has 34 affiliates across Europe and the Mediterranean basin, assists, represents and promotes the internal audit profession throughout Europe, advocating good corporate governance and appropriate recognition of IA in European regulations and Corporate Governance codes.
Joint work between EUROSA and ECIIA has been on-going since July 2014 by establishing mutual support of each other’s goals and objectives and looking for opportunities to create specific avenues to exchange information for the improvement of the practical implementation of the best practices and tools applied by their members.
Most recent initiatives have been in cooperation with SAI Belgium from 2014-2017 and with SAI Netherlands from 2017-2020. The cooperation during this period has included joint working initiatives, mutual consultation and exchange of information. More specifically as follows:
- Common publications on the coordination and cooperation between SAIs and internal auditors in the public sector (2015), comparison of SAI organizations and internal auditor organizations (2016), on audit committees in the public sector (2017) and on integrated reporting.
- Meetings (in 2015, 2016, 2017); webinars (September 2020, January and June 2021);
position paper 2021. - EUROSAI representative participation in ECIIA Congress 2019.
This Project Group will continue the good cooperation and combine forces to help EUROSAI and ECIIA members to increase their knowledge and exchange of best practices.
Based upon previous cooperation, ECIIA suggested several topics to focus on at this stage. These were presented to EUROSAI Governing Board members in November 2021 and further defined by electronic means to select the issue of “Assurance coordination”. The initial work on this topic will build upon data collected through a survey conducted by ECIIA in 2016 Issues to discuss could include the following:
- Different approaches/forms of cooperation between IA and external audit (EA) (such as decentralized/centralized, mutual reliance, risk-based approach, specializations, etc.);
- Role of internal audit in providing assurance to audited entities over key areas of spend and how this may also form an evidence base for EA and vice-versa;
- Collaborative mechanisms in developing capacities of IA and EA (such as organizing seminars, providing guidance, sharing best practice, etc.)
- Use of different models/approaches for assurance collaboration: ex. The Internal Audit Capability Model (IA-CM) for the public sector, Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) certification.
The more specific framework would be determined via the survey results and analysis, as well as discussions among PG members on best practices and tools which are of mutual interest to elaborate by EUROSAI and ECIIA.
The overall objective of the PG is: To facilitate common language, understanding between EUROSAI and ECIIA and to promote common roles and appropriate use of standards, and share knowledge.
The specific objective for the initial period of this PG is to enhance knowledge on assurance coordination and its benefits to EUROSAI and ECIIA members. Any additional issues to be focused upon within this PG would be initiated after mutual discussion and agreement between ECIIA and EUROSAI.
Contact
zane.leitane@lrvk.gov.lv
+371 67017579Documentation
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ToR for the joint EUROSAI-European Confederation of Institutes of Internal Auditors (ECIIA) Project Group
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