On the occasion of the 9th anniversary of Office of the Auditor General (OAG) under the new Auditor General Act 2010, the OAG is pleased to announce that it has produced 20 reports to the National Assembly during 2017 and 2018, which is a record number of reports for any period of its long history, before and after 2010. These reports in the form of annual reports, activity reports, special audit reports and performance audit reports, have met the statutory requirements of Article 158 (3) and (7) of the Constitution of the Republic of Seychelles and various provisions in the Auditor General Act, 2010. During the same period, OAG has also issued a large number of management letters to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and certified hundreds of Financial Statements of various budget-dependent statutory bodies, funded projects and public enterprises under the provisions of various laws. These products have helped MDAs to make necessary improvements to their financial management, internal controls and overall performance while ensuring a higher level of good governance, transparency and accountability in the way they operate. The OAG has made its presence felt across Seychelles and beyond its borders by engaging its local, regional and international stakeholders through constructive dialogs, partnerships and professional associations. In our day-to-day operations, we strive to comply with the relevant laws, uphold the INTOSAI Code of Ethics, adhere to the International Auditing Standards, follow the best practice guides, safeguard the public interest and ensure continuous professional development. At the OAG, we go the extra mile willingly to serve our Nation to the best of our abilities.
OAG- The fourth pillar of our democracy
A lokazyon 9enm lanniverser Lofis Oditer Zeneral, anba son nouvo Lalwa Oditer Zeneral 2010, nou annan gran plezir pour anonse ki nou’n prodwir e prezant 20 rapor avek Lasanble Nasyonal pandan lannen 2017 a 2018. Sa i reprezant en gran lakonplisman e en rikord dan listwar nou Lofis, avan e apre 2010. Sa bann rapor in ganny prodwir an linny avek bann provizyon anba Lartik 158 (3) e (7) Konstitisyon Larepiblik Sesel e osi Lalwa Oditer Zeneral, 2010. Pandan sa menm peryod, Lofis Oditer Zeneral in osi fer sorti en kantite let korespondans pour bann Minister, Departman e Lazans Gouvernman swivan bann travay odit ki’n ganny fer. Lofis Oditer Zeneral in osi sertifye plis ki en santenn kont bann Lazans sekter piblik ki depan lo bidze Gouvernman osi byen bann lantrepriz piblik komersyel anliny avek bann provizyon nou lalwa. Nou bann rapor in ed plizyer Minister, Departman e Lazans Gouvernman pour fer bann amelyorasyon neseser lo fason ki zot zer zot bann resours finansyer, zot kontrol entern e zot performans an zeneral. An rezilta, sa in ede pour asir pli o nivo bonn gourvernans, latransparans e responsabilite dan lafason ki zot travay. Pandan sa bann dernyen lannen, prezans Lofis Oditer Zeneral in osi ganny rekonnet e apresye lo nivo nasyonal e osi enternasyonal. Nou Lofis in angaze avek bokou dimoun e lorganizasyon ki annan menm lentere e konsern avek nou travay. Sa in ganny fer atraver bann dyalog konstriktiv, partenarya e osi atraver nou langazman dan bann lasosyasyon profesyonnel. Dan nou travay toulezour, nou fer tou zefor pour swiv bann lalwa respektiv, nou mentenir bann Kod Etik e swiv bann standar enternasyonal odit bann lasosyasyon ki nou afliye avek tel ki Lorganizasyon Enternasyonal pour bann Lenstitisyon Odit Siprenm (INTOSAI). Nou adopte bann bon pratik, protez e defann lentere piblik e osi asir devlopman profesyonnel e kontinyel nou bann zofisye. Kot Lofis Oditer Zeneral, nou antouzyas pour fer sa pa ekstra pour deservi nou nasyon avek tou nou abilite e resours ki a nou dispozisyon.
Auditor General, Mr Gamini Herath, has submitted his annual report for the year 2018 to the Speaker of the National Assembly for tabling, as required under Article 158 (5) of the Constitution.
This is the third consecutive year the report has been submitted two months in advance of the statutory deadline, which normally falls in the month of December each year.
The main objective of submitting early reports to the National Assembly is to allow the members more time for reading, analysing and appreciating the information on the overall budget performance for 2018 and the mattes arising from the audit of individual public bodies.
Read more: Report of the Auditor General for 2018 submitted to National Assembly
The Auditor General, Gamini Herath, attended the AFROSAI-E 16th Governing Board meeting and strategic reviews under the themes “SAIs having a voice to influence Governments for greater accountability” and “SAIs having a voice to influence government for greater service delivery” during 6th to 10th May in Maputo, Mozambique.
At the official opening on the 6th, the opening remarks were made by his Excellency the President of Mozambique, Filipe Jacinto Nyusi. The meeting also saw the participation of other high ranking guest speakers on the above themes including Dr Luisa Diago, the former Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Mozambique and Mr Osten Chulu from the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) on the implementation of SDGs and African Aspiration for 2063. While attending the meetings, Auditor General also participated in a panel discussion on the theme ‘SAI having a voice to influence government for greater service delivery’ , audit of SDGs and tourism infrastructures, held following a key note address delivered by Mr Osten Chulu from African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) for SDGS/AGENDA 2063, who also moderated the discussion. Other panellists included the Auditors General from Mozambique and Uganda.
Read more: AFROSAI-E 2019 STRATEGIC REVIEW AND 16TH GOVERNING BOARD MEETING
This is my second annual report presented to the National Assembly two months earlier than the statutory ‘December’ deadline. This has been done in response to a request for timely reports from various stakeholders including the National Assembly and the government. More efforts are continuing to reduce the time taken to produce annual reports even further and, hopefully, to present them at the end of September each year. With this in mind, the twelve-month audit cycle has been realigned to run from September to August.
Read more: Auditor General’s overview on the report for 2017
The Office of the Auditor General was set up as body corporate as per the Auditor General Act, 2010. The OAG is an independent and autonomous body enjoying a high level of administrative and financial independence from the government. The OAG has recently adopted a new logo in keeping with its image, reputation and mission to the Seychellois nation.
Office of the Auditor General (OAG) of Seychelles has been admitted as a full member of the International Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), which is the global professional grouping of all Supreme Audit Institutions operating in some 146 countries. The INTOSAI provides professional and technical development assistance to its member countries in the field of government auditing. The INTOSAI has developed auditing standards (ISSAIs) and practice guidelines applicable to various audit methodologies; financial, compliance, performance, IT auditing, etc.
The National Assembly, Government and other key stakeholders have been demanding timely reports from the Auditor General. Hence, the presentation my first annual report in October rather than by the usual ‘December’ deadline. More efforts are continuing to reduce the time taken to produce annual reports even further and, hopefully, to present them at the end of September each year. With this in mind, the twelve-month audit cycle has been realigned to run from August to July.
This report sets out the results of my audit of the financial statements of the Government for 2016 and various other audits undertaken during the audit cycle ended in August 2017. The report excludes the matters raised in the performance audit report and the special audit report presented to the National Assembly in May and July, respectively. The matters included in this report are selective as they are the matters being brought to the attention of the National Assembly as per my reporting requirements. I am pleased to note that many matters raised in audit management letters issued to Accounting Officers throughout the audit cycle have been dealt with satisfactorily and some of the remaining are not considered significant enough to feature in this report.
Read more: Auditor General’s overview on the report for 2016
Press Release - Performance Audit report
Assessing the effectiveness of revenue collection by the Seychelles Ports Authority
The 7th performance audit report of Office of the Auditor General was tabled in the National Assembly on 23rd May 2017. The report assesses whether the Seychelles Ports Authority has been collecting revenue in an efficient and effective manner for the period January 2013 to December 2016.
The Seychelles Ports Authority (SPA), previously known as the Port and Marine Services Division (PMSD), was set up in 2004 and is regulated by the Seychelles Ports Authority Act, 2004, and the Harbour Act (Cap 90). The Authority falls under the portfolio of the Minister for Tourism, Aviation, Port and Marine and it is headed by Chief Executive Officer (CEO). The SPA’s vision is to continuously transform and sustain Port Victoria as a viable Maritime Hub, and their mission is to safeguard the maritime gateway to the Seychelles socio-economy by providing adequate and reliable port infrastructure and efficient services.
Read more: Performance Audit Report - Seychelles Port Authority
The newly appointed Auditor General, Mr. Gamini Herath, took office on Monday (3rd April) following a short religious ceremony conducted by Deacon Agathine, Mr. R.B. Ekanayake and Imam Ahmed Labiche representing the Catholic Church, the Buddhist Association and Islamic community respectively in Seychelles.
(From right: Mr. Herath, Deacon Agathine, Mr. Ekanayake and Imam Labiche)
The representatives of all three denominations blessed the Auditor General and his staff urging them to serve the nation as a unified audit force despite their differences in culture, religion and language. The strength of unity in diversity underscored their peace messages.
