Internal auditors decry lack of regulation
Isaac Pinielo | Friday November 13, 2015 15:42
Speaking on Wednesday at the organisation’s fifth annual conference in Gaborone, IIAB president, Boemo Maboane said the institution, which was established in 1996, had no law to regulate internal auditors, unlike accountants.
Maboane said the Botswana Institute of Chartered Accountants (BICA) has since indicated to them that all internal auditors working in government, parastatals and private sector shall not register with BICA.
He encouraged auditors to work harder for their organisation, noting that internal auditors were critical in decision-making. He said he appreciated the support from audit committees from the North West and Chobe districts as well as Good Hope sub-district council.
Permanent secretary to the President, Carter Morupisi said internal audit has proved to be critical in reversing negative trends, especially where corruption, mismanagement, fraud and poor service delivery became rampant and hampered progress.
“Note that by virtue, we have an obligation to continuously sensitise our people on the cons of corruption and maladministration,” he said. Morupisi requested the IIAB to partner with government in its efforts to educate all stakeholders against corruption and maladministration. He said although Botswana continued to be celebrated by international agencies as one of the few corrupt countries in Africa and around the world, there should not be complacency.
Instead, he said, they should join hands and work closer together in retaining or even improving the current ratings in that regard.
“As a country, we do rely on you as advisors on issues relating to enterprise risk-management, to continue guiding us to realise this goal,” he said. He advised internal auditors to look at three important elements in their approach, stating that they firstly needed to improve the way they shared knowledge on building institutions with greater integrity.
Secondly, he said, auditors needed to empower colleagues and fellow citizens with information and tools to be more effective and accountable, and thirdly they needed to join in the building of a global movement to prevail over all evils that affected the international economy, including that of Botswana.
Morupisi pledged government’s commitment to work closely with IIAB in ensuring they had the necessary support to execute their duties diligently without fear or favour.
“We do have our own internal auditors whom we rely on to guide us in our journey towards becoming a global benchmark in issues of good governance,” he said. “With you by our side, we will arrive at this destination.”
He added that government and IIAB could build a sustainable governance environment, with internal auditors playing important role of assurance and consulting.