Dorea T. Corea has been the acting Director of the Internal Audit Department following the transfer to the Ministry of Finance in November 2011 of Wendell M. Gaskin. The Internal Audit Department is another government agency that carries out audit of government projects and make recommendations for improvement.

The Internal Audit Department falls under the Ministry of Finance and has separate mandate from the Auditor General Department. They have complaint in their 2011 annual Department report that they lack the resources and expertise to do their jobs.

One of the major challenges listed in the report is that the Internal Audit Department continues to be challenged in the execution of its functions by the lack of cooperation by Government Departments in supplying pertinent information necessary for audit analysis and the implementations of the recommendations to resolve audit issues.

This has resulted, according to the report, where the Internal Audit Department (IAD) “is hampered in executing audits in the most efficient manner which affects the Department’s productivity”.

Another challenge for the IAD is the lack of the Audit Committee which is part of the Department’s operational authority. The report stated that the last Committee’s membership expired since 2002. The Internal Audit Act, 2011 makes provisions for the establishment of an Audit Committee, however, one year later the committee has yet to be constituted.

The 2011 report claimed that, “the Audit Committee is a very important element to the successful continuance of this Department, and is essential to its further growth and development.”

Another cry of the IAD is the lack of insufficient audit resources. The report stated that the scope of work performed by today’s practitioners is broad and varied, and that the Audit Unit has limited staff which makes it extremely difficult to cover all areas.

The report complains that the staff of the IAD does not possess all the necessary skills and expertise necessary to adequately provide the required audit services. As a result, the professional standards dictate that those competencies either be developed in-house through training or be secured through outsourcing, according to the report.

The reported further stated that unfortunately, although requests have been made, funding for this vital initiative has not been approved.

2011 Audit Activities DGO Audit deferred

In 2011, the House of Assembly-Assistance Grants Programme, the Department of Youth Affairs and Sports youth development programme, the Water and Sewerage Accounts, Billings and Stores, Human Resources Salary Administration/Determination and some selected petty Contracts were audited by the IAD.

However, an audit of the Deputy Governor’s Office Accommodation was deferred. The reason/s for the deferment and who made the request for it to be deferred was not included in the report.

The Internal Audit Department has as its mission, to support management in the effective discharge of their responsibilities by furnishing evaluations of departmental activities, recommendations for improvements in systems and procedures and other information designed to promote effective control at a reasonable cost.

In addition, their mission is to strengthen the control environment throughout departments by providing ongoing risk assessments, constructive recommendations, reliable opinions and timely assistance.