On May 30, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Audit Chamber of the Republic of Armenia signed a Memorandum of Understanding. The cooperation is aimed at strengthening the audit function of the Audit Chamber and supporting its reforms in accordance with the Republic of Armenia “Law on the Audit Chamber” that was adopted in January 2018.
The new law strengthens the independence of the Audit Chamber and requires that it implements a qualitatively new external state audit in line with the International Standards of Supreme Audit Institutions (ISSAI). The law also requires increased transparency, accountability and publicity of the Audit Chamber’s activities, emphasizing new quality control mechanisms and the need for professional development of the Chamber staff.
The head of USAID Armenia, Deborah Grieser noted during the signing ceremony that USAID was proud to support the current reforms of the Audit Chamber. “The U.S. Government believes that a strong and independent Audit Chamber can play a critical role in building Armenian citizens’ confidence in public institutions and ensuring that public resources are used in ways that reduce corruption risks, maximize value for money, and deliver results,” she said.
In support of these goals, USAID will work with the Audit Chamber to address its training and staff development needs. As well, USAID will explore opportunities to support the Audit Chamber in upgrading its IT infrastructure to meet the new demands of the Law. The parties will also explore the possibility of future financial audits of the Government to Government (G2G) activities, funded by USAID, to be conducted by the Audit Chamber.
USAID’s assistance to the Chamber will complement the efforts of the Public Financial Management in the South Caucasus project, which is funded by the European Union and implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
