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Office of the Chuuk State Public Auditor releases new strategic plan

Chuuk State, FSM: The Office of the Chuuk State Public Auditor (OCPA) released its Strategic Plan (FY 2024-2028). The comprehensive plan was completed with the assistance of the Pacific Association of Supreme Audit Institutions (PASAI), and will serve as a roadmap to strengthen and improve the office performance of the OCPA for the next five years.

The vision statement of the office is to become ‘an effective audit agency that promotes a high performing government.’ Guided by this vision; including its mission, and core values; the OCPA is aspiring to deliver performance that would impact the timeliness of government services and programs, identify areas of improvement within government agencies, integrate information technology in auditing, effectively communicate the results of the audits to the public and therefore, enhance government transparency and accountability.

The key focus areas of the strategic plan with key performance indicators include:

  1. Toughen Independence: Safeguarding organizational autonomy and advocating for a clearer mandate.

  2. Strengthen Internal Governance: Updating and implementing strategic and annual operation plans, fortifying internal control systems, and establishing robust management systems for support services.

  3. Delivering Quality and Timely Audit and Investigation: Ensuring adequate staffing to execute a sufficient number of audits, nurturing staff competencies, refining operational standards and tools, optimizing work planning and controls, and implementing an effective quality control system.

  4. Foster Engagement with External Stakeholders: Developing and updating strategies, policies, and procedures for stakeholder engagement, and nurturing professional relationships.

The OCPA also developed an operational plan that delineates the milestones for each fiscal year, as well as established the mechanism for monitoring and evaluating its performance. Furthermore, the OCPA conducted a risk assessment and identified the threats to the accomplishment of its strategic objectives.

These threats include potential challenges such as enactment of the proposed legislative amendments, insufficient budgetary support for manpower and operational needs, shortages of qualified personnel at Chuuk State, staff retention concerns, and limitations in the funds for IT resources. The OCPA would endeavor to address these potential challenges with the support from the political leadership and cooperation from departments within the government.

Strategic Plan 2024-2028; Monitoring and Evaluation Framework; Operational Plan 2024

PDF of OCPA press release 2024-01

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New self-paced communications courses open to all member SAI staff

Two new self-paced communications courses are now available on our online Learning Platform.

The courses, Fundamentals of report writing and Interpersonal communications, extensively build on material previously delivered to dozens of SAI staff through remote webinars during the height of pandemic travel restrictions. In their new formats, staff can self-enrol and interact with the courses at their own pace, at times suited to their schedules.

The ‘Fundamentals of report writing’ course takes about two hours to complete and covers the following principles:

  • Thinking and planning

  • Writing

  • Presentation

  • Editing and proofreading

The ‘Interpersonal communications’ course takes about two hours to complete and includes modules on:

  • Verbal communication

  • Non-verbal communication

  • Listening

  • Written communication

  • Inclusive language

  • Building rapport

  • What to avoid as a new auditor in a professional environment

Because the courses teach skills essential to all auditors, investigators and even support staff, we have re-designed them to be self-paced. That way, we do not have to wait for enough new recruits to run the courses.

With the rise of digital platforms and remote work, effective communication skills have become more crucial than ever. Some of the course content covers advanced communications skills tailored to the modern workplace where communicating via email and in videoconferences has become the norm, so even senior staff are likely to benefit from taking the courses as well.

Participants will have to demonstrate their comprehension of course content to progress through the modules and pass quizzes before being able to download certificates of completion.

We offer the courses to all staff in our member network as an integral component of our Competency Framework, part of our broader efforts to enhance the capabilities of government auditors in the Pacific region.

The courses provide a comprehensive understanding of the fundamentals of report writing and interpersonal communications, enabling auditors to effectively communicate their findings and recommendations to stakeholders.

Effective communication is a vital aspect of the audit process, and these courses will help auditors in the Pacific to perform better audit fieldwork, interact more professionally in the office and deliver high-quality reports.

Staff who already have a Learning Platform account can simply log in and access the courses from the Home page. Others will just have to follow the simple steps to create a new account after clicking on the padlock icon.

We encourage all audit office staff in the Pacific to take advantage of these courses and enhance their communication skills for the benefit of their respective jurisdictions.

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PASAI’s 37th Governing Board meeting

Auckland, New Zealand: The Pacific Association of Supreme Audit Institutions (PASAI) held its 37th Governing Board meeting online on 1 March 2024, chaired by Satrunino Tewid, Public Auditor of Palau.

John Ryan, Secretary-General PASAI and Auditor-General of New Zealand, attended along with all other board members, PASAI Secretariat staff and representatives from the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).

The board members from Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia provided updates from fellow member SAIs based in their respective sub-regions. This included positive feedback about two multi-day events held in February and well attended by member SAI representatives: a PASAI-led Women Symposium in Samoa and a Trilateral Dialogue on the Teieniwa Vision in Vanuatu.

The Governing Board received a presentation of the intended timeline to finalise the development and adoption of PASAI’s next 10-year Strategic Plan which will take effect from 1 July 2024. It also heard about assistance available from the Office of the Auditor-General of Zealand to enable SAIs to fully participate in global environmental auditing initiatives.

Esther Lameko-Poutoa, Chief Executive PASAI, provided members with a report and presentation on the PASAI Secretariat’s progress implementing its operational plan from November 2023 to January 2024. The Governing Board approved a revised budget for the remainder of the financial year ending 30 June 2024.

Members will next meet in person in the Cook Islands on 19 May 2024, immediately before the annual PASAI Congress.

The Secretariat expresses its gratitude to the Governing Board members for their ongoing assistance and acknowledges the support of its development partners, MFAT and DFAT.

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Contact information:

Esther Lameko-Poutoa, Chief Executive PASAI, Auckland, New Zealand
E: secretariat@pasai.org P: +64 9 304 1275

PDF version of this media release

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