International cooperation

COOPERATION WITH THE EUROPEAN ORGANIZATION OF SUPREME AUDIT INSTITUTIONS (EUROSAI)

EURORAI maintains regular contacts with the European Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (EUROSAI).

Thus, in the years 2001 and 2003 the following joint Conferences were organized:

The I EUROSAI-EURORAI Conference, held in Funchal (Madeira) on 31 May and 1 June 2001, brought together 26 Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs), members of EUROSAI, and 16 Regional Audit Institutions (RAIs), members of EURORAI. Within the framework of the general theme “The relations between the different public sector audit structures”, the following topics were discussed during the four working sessions:

1. The different structures of the State (unitary, federal, regional) and their effect on public sector financial control;

2. Interrelation and cooperation in the matter of public sector financial control among the different external audit  bodies;

3. The interdependence of budgets (communitarian, national, regional, local) and its effect on external public sector audits;

4. The audit of regional and local government performed by the different external public sector audit bodies.

Conclusions of the I EUROSAI-EURORAI Conference

The II EUROSAI-EURORAI Conference took place in Copenhagen from 5 to 7 June 2003. 28 SAIs (members of EUROSAI) and 25 RAIs (members of EURORAI) participated in the event. The theme chosen for the conference was “Co-operation on the audit of health care” and the sub-themes addressed were as follows:

1. Co-operation between national and regional auditors on the audit of health care; and

2. Achieving change in the health sector.

Conclusions of the II EUROSAI-EURORAI Conference

Moreover, since October 2017, when a EURORAI delegation took part as observer in the 1st EUROSAI TFMA Seminar and the 1st annual meeting of EUROSAI TFMA members held in Riga, EURORAI has participated in the activities performed by the EUROSAI Task Force on Municipality Audit. The EURORAI Management Committee decided to contribute to the work of the EUROSAI TFMA not only for its purpose, which is to exchange best practices and to search to attain the highest added value from municipality audit, but especially also due to the fact that in many European countries regional public sector audit institutions are involved in the external audit of municipalities. Thus, EURORAI participated in the inquiry prepared by the EUROSAI TFMA concerning the existing systems of municipality audit throughout Europe and comprehensive reports on the systems in place in Austria, France, Germany, Spain and Switzerland were submitted to the Task Force.

Implementing one of its strategic goals (making the external municipal auditing system more efficient) the Coordination Group of the EUROSAI TFMA consisting of the SAIs of Lithuania (team leader), Estonia and Greece have now completed a comparative analysis of the existing systems of external municipality audit in Europe, which also mentions EURORAI’s contribution to the work. You can find the analysis under the following link: http://bit.do/fGiuu.

In 2018, the Task Force also published an overview over the existing systems of municipality audit in Europe as a result of the inquiry conducted among EUROSAI member institutions. This overview covers 26 countries, among them 9 member states of EURORAI. The study is available under the following link: https://www.vkontrole.lt/tf/files/files/TFMA_Overview_external_audit_systems_2018.pdf.

Finally, you can find the comprehensive reports EURORAI submitted to the EUROSAI TFMA here:

External audit system of municipalities at regional level in Austria

External audit system of municipalities at regional level in France

External audit system of municipalities at regional level in Germany

External audit system of municipalities at regional level in Spain

External audit system of municipalities at cantonal level in Switzerland

COOPERATION WITH OTHER EUROPEAN ORGANISATIONS AND INSTITUTIONS

Over the years EURORAI has collaborated with many European organisations and institutions.

Of particular note is the cooperation with the Council of Europe which began in 1998 with the participation of two Directorates-General (“Legal Affairs” and “Local and Regional Democracy”) in the third Congress of the Association held in Strasbourg. These initial contacts resulted in the granting in 2001 (until 2017) of a participatory status with the Council of Europe as an international non-governmental organisation. Within this framework EURORAI began to cooperate closely with the Council through the Steering Committee on Local and Regional Democracy and later also through the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities in the field of combating corruption at local and regional level.

Also worth mentioning here are the close contacts maintained in the early years with the Assembly of European Regions in connection with the financial support that EURORAI received as an interregional cooperation project at the beginning of its activities from the European Commission.

On several occasions EURORAI has also provided speakers for training activities organised by the European Centre for the Regions of the European Institute of Public Administration.

An exchange of experience with the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) was also sought and led to the organisation of a joint seminar in Brussels in October 2000 on the theme “Strategies for combating fraud in the area of Community expenditure subject to external control by regional audit institutions”.

Finally, EURORAI continues to maintain -directly and through its member institutions- a close cooperation with the European Court of Auditors.

COOPERATION WITH ASSOCIATIONS OF REGIONAL AUDIT INSTITUTIONS FROM OTHER CONTINENTS

EURORAI also maintains close relations with associations of regional public sector audit institutions from other continents.

Among all these relations special mention should be made to those relations EURORAI established almost since the year of its foundation with the courts of audit of the federative units of Brazil. These relations led a few years later to the joining, as associate members, of the courts of audit of the states of Minas Gerais, Paraná and Santa Catarina. It is also worth mentioning the excellent relations EURORAI has maintained for many years now with the courts of audit of the provinces of Argentina and, in particular, with the General Audit Office of the Province of Salta, which has observer status in the Association. In addition, all these contacts with South America led to the signing the year 2000 of a cooperation agreement with the Association of Official Public Sector Audit Institutions of the Southern Common Market (ASUR in its Spanish acronym).

The mutual exchange of experiences with the Canadian Council of Legislative Auditors (CCOLA), which also holds the status of observer in EURORAI, and the Australasian Council of Auditors-General (ACAG) should not be forgotten either. The cooperation has been fostered over the years through the participation in conferences and congresses, most notably the International Public Sector Audit Forum organised on several occasions by the ACAG.

 Finally, EURORAI also maintains close cooperation with the Association of Chambers of Control and Accounts from throughout the whole Russian Federation, with which EURORAI signed a memorandum of understanding in 2010.