Agenda for the Roundtable on Independence of Supreme Audit Institutions organized by SIGMA and the Bosnian State Audit Office in Sarajevo on 8 September 2016.

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Roundtable on Independence of
Supreme Audit Institutions
Network of SAIs of
EU Candidate and Potential Candidate Countries
and European Court of Auditors
8 September, 2016
Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Hosted by SAI of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Agenda

2. 2
Background
On the initiative of the Audit Office of the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina (SAIBiH), the Network
of Supreme Audit Institutions of Candidate and Potential Candidate Countries and European Court of
Auditors (the Network) agreed to revise their work plan for 2016 to include a roundtable on SAI
independence. The legal framework for SAIs of the Network protects the independence of the SAIs
although not all are constitutional institutions yet, which means that they have fewer possibilities to find
legal protection against undue interference from the Executive. In recent years, such interference has
sometimes taken place with regard to the financial and organisational independence of SAIs.
The SAIBiH proposed the inclusion of the roundtable as a result of concerns they had about challenges to
their statutory and financial independence, and the proposal for these issues to be further discussed was
supported by the members of the Network. As a result, the SAIBiH agreed to host the roundtable in
Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, to enable the Network SAIs to discuss how better to prevent and act
against such challenges.
Objective of the Roundtable
The objective of the roundtable is to create a platform for discussion amongst the Network SAIs about
the challenges they face with respect to their statutory, organisational and financial independence,
develop a comprehensive analysis of the key issues, and identify potential examples of good practice
from which the SAIs could build on their existing capacities and find potentially applicable solutions.
Independence is a fundamentally important issue for SAIs, and is recognised in the Lima and Mexico
declarations and in the UN General Assembly resolution 66/209 of March 2012 promoting the efficiency,
accountability, effectiveness and transparency of public administration by strengthening SAIs, which also
recognised that SAIs can only accomplish their tasks objectively and effectively if they are independent of
the audited entity and are protected against outside influence. This is further underlined by the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) contained in the United Nations Agenda 2030 adopted in
September 2015. It is an important component from the perspective of EU integration, and is a key
requirement in the Principles of Public Administration1
developed by SIGMA and the European
Commission.
However, independence is not an end in itself, but an important aspect of enabling a SAI to fulfil its
larger mission of delivering value. It needs to be considered in relation to the local context and
environment, and not purely in relation to the International Standards of Supreme Audit Institutions
(ISSAIs). The provisions of the ISSAIs have different meanings and are applicable in different ways in
different environments.
It is also important to consider that the Lima Declaration recognises that state institutions cannot be
absolutely independent as they are part of the state apparatus, but what is essential is that SAIs should
have the functional and organisational independence required to carry out their mandate.
INTOSAI recognises that one of the most effective ways SAIs can promote and protect their
independence is by clearly and consistently demonstrating the value and benefits of the SAI and its work.
Within this context, SAIs need to be accountable for what they do and able to demonstrate that they
deserve their independence.
1
SIGMA (2014), The Principles of Public Administration, OECD Publishing, Paris

3. 3
Thursday 8 September 2016
8.30 Welcoming coffee / registration
9.00 Opening of the Roundtable, welcome
Mr Dragan Vrankic - Auditor General SAI BiH
Ms Karen Hill – Head of Programme SIGMA
Ms Chloe Berger - EU Delegation to BiH
9.30 Presentation of the Survey Results - SAI BiH
An overview of the results from the survey on independence issues for SAIs
within the Network undertaken by SAI BiH
Questions & Answers
10.00 Requirements of Chapter 32 Acquis Communautaire - Mr Radek Majer,
European Court of Audit (15 mins)
The presentation will discuss the requirements for SAI independence of Chapter
32 of the Acquis Communautaire and what they mean for SAIs, governments
and parliaments
Questions & Answers
10.30 Coffee / tea break
11.00 Discussion Paper - SIGMA
Presentation of the key independence issues as developed in the SIGMA
discussion paper
11.15 Topic 1 – Statutory independence and the impact of other laws on the work
of the SAI introduced by SAI BiH (10-15 mins)
The discussion will focus on the adequacy of the statutory independence of the
SAI and in particular consider the impact of other laws or government actions
which potentially undermine SAI independence
12.30 Lunch
14.00 IDI – SAI Independence Programme – SIGMA
Presentation of the new IDI programme on SAI independence that will
commence in September 2016

4. 4
14.15 Topic 2 – Mandatory audits and the audit of political parties introduced by
SAI Montenegro (10-15 mins)
The discussion will focus on the question of whether the requirements for
mandatory audits impact on the SAI’s independence and its ability to apply
discretion in the determination of its audit programme. Discussion will in
particular focus on resource constraints that may arise due to the requirements
to audit all state level entities annually (SAIBiH) and to audit political parties
(SAI Montenegro). In discussing the audit of political parties’ broader
independence, questions around the appropriateness of auditing them will also
be considered.
15.30 Coffee / tea break
16.00 Topic 3 – Financial Independence Introduced by SAI Serbia (10-15 mins)
The discussion will focus on the challenges faced by SAIs in the setting of their
budget and in particular the problem of interference from the executive in the
process. Discussion will also look at practical challenges faced in the use of the
approved budget during the course of the financial year
17.00 Conclusion
Mr Dragan Vrankic - Auditor General SAI BiH
Karen Hill – Head of Programme SIGMA
20.00 Dinner