An investigation into factors which limit the effectiveness of the Office of the Auditor-General in meeting the statutory deadline for tabling of the Auditor-General’s annual audit report

Abstract

The Office of the Auditor-General has not been able to meet the statutory deadline of June 30 of each year for the tabling of the Auditor-General’s annual audit report since the year 2011 in contravention of the Audit Office Act (2009). The challenges faced were due to late submission of accounts and returns for audit, flight of skilled labour, shortage of resources and constrained legal framework. This dissertation was carried out with the aim of evaluating the factors which limit the effectiveness of the Office of the Auditor-General (OAG) and identify ways in which the OAG can be capacitated. The researcher recommended that parliament must consider enacting legislation which gives the Auditor-General (AG) legal power; to apply for a separate budget directly to parliament, table her reports directly in parliament, setting of stiff penalties on Accounting Officers who submit accounts late for audit, appointment of audit committees and a statutory instrument to enforce the AG’s orders. In addition, the AG must be allowed to retain 100% of the audit fees charged and set up a skills retention fund to attract and retain skilled personnel.