On March 17, 2021 The Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation and the State Audit Office of Hungary held a seminar on experience exchange where discussed the most crucial issues of auditing corruption and strategic audit.

SAIs via their activities realize agreements with the United Nations and contribute to the fulfilment of the Memorandum of Understanding between INTOSAI and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Best practices and experience of SAIs Hungary and Russia, cooperation between countries, implementation of the Moscow Declaration – these topics were at the core during the first part of the bilateral seminar.

Tatiana Blinova, an auditor and the Member of the ACRF Board, in her speech stressed that according to the ACRF Development Strategy for 2018-2024 it is necessary to develop environment of integrity by improving anti-corruption measures, as well as legal and institutional conditions that prevent corruption. Moreover, the ACRF is legally empowered to fight corruption and acts as a partner for the government. She also pointed out the following instruments and activities that help being up-to-date in fighting corruption:

• Risk-oriented approach. It helps to find out corruption at the very beginning. Via special violations matrix the ACRF can monitor areas with corruption risks, regulatory framework, auditees and finally detect irregularities in order to prevent them.
• Anti-corruption as a priority. All ACRF audit divisions are involved in work on it, issues related to anti-corruption are included in the ACRF plans and programs.
• Cooperation with public bodies, law enforcement agencies, civil society institutions, citizens and business.
• Openness. Increase in the level of availability and transparency of information will help to decrease corruption risks.
• Teleworking. Access to the auditees’ databases helps to improve the efficiency of public expenditures’ auditing.

Anyway, there are high corruption risks in public procurement system as new schemes and ways of money laundering appear. SAIs have to find ways how to solve the problem of the vicious circle «compliance with laws vs circumventing laws».

The second part of the meeting was dedicated to the strategic audit and the ACRF first results in this field since the adoption of the Moscow Declaration at the INCOSAI 2019, where this approach to auditing was presented. SAIs are encouraged to develop a strategic approach to public auditing to support the achievement of national priorities and the SDGs, the Moscow Declaration says. At the end of 2020 the ACRF adopted a new Standard for the External Public Audit (Control) — Strategic Audit and this year will be the first results.

SAI Hungary also shared their best practices on both topics.

“Strategic audit was one of the most interesting initiations of the Moscow Declaration. It is clear that there are so many strategic issues and future risks, such as climate change or migration, that need a new and a more strategic approach from auditing”,

– stated Gyula Pulay, Director at the State Audit Office of Hungary, at the end of the meeting and made plans for further cooperation.