Independent Audit Advisory Committee Holds Thirty-Fifth Session at Headquarters, 25-27 July

The Independent Audit Advisory Committee (IAAC) of the United Nations held its thirty-fifth session from 25 to 27 July at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.  The session was presided over by the Chair, J. Christopher Mihm.  All the other members of the IAAC, namely Maria Gracia M. Pulido Tan (Vice-Chair), Patricia X. Arriagada Villouta, Natalia A. Bocharova and Richard Quartei Quartey, were in attendance.

The IAAC’s deliberations included the finalization of the Committee’s annual report for the period from 1 August 2015 to 31 July 2016.  In addition, the IAAC held meetings with:

1. The Secretary-General, to update him on the work of the IAAC and on matters of mutual interest.
2. Bettina Bartsiotas, Controller and Officer-in-Charge, Department of Management, regarding a wide range of matters, including:  (i) the enterprise risk concerning extrabudgetary funding and management; (ii) the implementation of anti-fraud policies in the Secretariat, especially as it pertains to strengthening the internal control system; (iii) the status of the implementation of recommendations of oversight bodies; and (iv) any impact Umoja may have had on the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) requirement for annual reporting.
3. Atul Khare, Under-Secretary-General for Field Support, on the rise in unsatisfactory audit reports in field missions, and the mitigating actions envisioned to address the weaknesses identified.
4. Heidi Mendoza, Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), on:  (i) any issue regarding the operational independence of OIOS pursuant to General Assembly resolution 70/111; (ii) the status of the central intake mechanism for investigation cases in the Secretariat; (iii) the status of peer reviews of the three Divisions of OIOS; (iv) the need to reconcile fraud reporting mechanisms; (v) the OIOS oversight strategy for the six enterprise risks identified by the Secretariat; and (vi) its plan to address/monitor the United Nations contributions in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
5. Achamkulangare Gopinathan, Chair, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU), on the JIU’s review of donor led accountability and oversight reviews in United Nations systems organizations.

The next (thirty-sixth) session of the IAAC is scheduled for 28-30 November at United Nations Headquarters in New York.

For further information on the work of the IAAC, please contact the Committee’s Executive Secretary, Moses Bamuwamye, at e-mail:  bamuwamye@un.org, tel.:  +1 212 963 0788 or fax:  +1 212 963 0600.