Independent Audit Advisory Committee Holds Fifty-Fifth Session Virtually, 21-23 July

The Independent Audit Advisory Committee of the United Nations (IAAC) held its fifty-fifth session from 21 to 23 July.  Due to the ongoing challenges associated with the pandemic, the meetings were held virtually.  The session was presided over by the Chair, Janet St. Laurent.  All other members of the Committee, namely Agus Pramono (Vice-Chair), Dorothy Bradley, Anton Kosyanenko and Imran Vanker, were in attendance.

The Independent Audit Advisory Committee’s deliberations included consideration of the Committee’s annual report for the period 1 August 2020 to 31 July 2021.

The Committee’s deliberations also included meetings with:

1. Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti, Chef de Cabinet, on behalf of the Secretary-General, on the activities of the Committee.
2. Fatoumata Ndiaye, Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight Services and with senior managers regarding a wide range of matters, including:  (i) status update on the external assessment of the Inspection and Evaluation Division; (ii) views of the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) on the “build back better” initiative and major lessons learned from the pandemic; (iii) OIOS position on the status, quality, and impact of management’s implementation of OIOS recommendations; (iv) progress in assessing organizational culture and implementation status of the recommendations; (v) status update on the timeliness of completing investigations; (vi) update on the evaluation of non-programmatic departments; (vii) OIOS role in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; and (viii) briefing on OIOS performance metrics.
3. Chandramouli Ramanathan, Assistant Secretary-General, Controller, on a range of issues including:  (i) status update on Umoja; (ii) implementation status of the statement of internal control; (iii) update on the operational implications of the issues and trends apparent in Volume I of the Organization’s financial statements; (iv) the current financial situation; and (v) an update on the status of After-Service Health Insurance liabilities.
4. Christophe Monier, Director of the Business Transformation and Accountability Division, on behalf of the Under-Secretary-General for Management Strategy, Policy, and Compliance, regarding:  (i) enterprise risk management (ERM), including the progress in embedding ERM and the emerging risks and role of Umoja in ERM; (ii) implementation status of recommendations of oversight bodies; and (iii) other issues of high risk that require the attention of the Committee.
5. The Board of Auditors, on efforts to increase cooperation among oversight bodies and on the state of the oversight function.
6. The United Nations Internal Control Advisory Group, on the implementation of the statement of internal control.

The next (fifty-sixth) session of the IAAC is scheduled for 7-10 December.  The venue and/or mode of the session will be determined at a later date.

For further information on the work of the IAAC, please see the Committee’s website at www.un.org/ga/iaac or contact the Committee’s Executive Secretary, Moses Bamuwamye, at email:  bamuwamye@un.org; tel.:  +1 212 963 0788.