Promoting Financial Accountability in Managing Funds Related to Tsunami, Conflict, and Other Disasters: International Conference
Post-course Statement
This conference was held in Jakarta from 25-27 April 2005. More than 100 senior government officials from 18 countries including Indonesia participated It was opened by Mr. Susilo Yudhoyono, the President of Indonesia, and chaired by Mr. Anwar Nasution, Chairman of BPK, the Supreme Audit Institution in Indonesia. The plenary and break-up sessions focused on financial accountability in utilizing foreign assistance funds in Indonesia aimed to rehabilitate and reconstruct the areas struck by the tsunami on 26 December 2004. Participants also made a field trip, organized by the Provincial Government, to Aceh Province to see the current situation. The conference revealed that most of the foreign-assisted funds have not been utilized due to inefficient disbursement mechanisms and a lack of a transparent audit system. It was decided that an advisory group consisting of foreign supreme audit institutions will be established to help BPK conduct proper external audits on a real-time basis. The conference stressed the importance of ensuring the financial accountability in Indonesia by strengthening the internal control mechanism and external audit capacity. Conference papers are available at the BPK web site. |
Background
The huge earthquake and tsunami that occurred in December 2004 destroyed large parts of Banda Aceh, Meulaboh, the coast of Aceh Besar, Aceh Jaya, Nagan Raya, Simeuleue, Aceh Utara, and Aceh Timor, along with 8 regions in the Province of North Sumatra including Nias Island. Data released by Bakornas, the agency established to provide immediate disaster relief, indicated that over 200,000 persons perished in the disaster, and close to 400,000 were made homeless.
Following the disaster, the Aceh and North Sumatra public administration, justice and security systems have been paralyzed since December 26, 2004. 14 out of 21 local governments in Aceh, and 3 out of 23 in North Sumatra, have been severely affected and are not yet operational.
In response to this historical tragedy, a number of pledges in grant and other support modalities have been made by the donor community and the public. However, the utilization of Tsunami-related funds has been slow. It is of primary importance to ensure that the aid reaches those in need. The efficient disbursement of aid funds and the transparent auditing process are key to convince the donor community.
Objectives
The main purpose of this conference is to enhance financial accountability and transparency in managing funds related to tsunami, conflict and other disasters. From an audit perspective this conference aims to: - Review related current operations in countries that were hit by the 26 Dec 2004 tsunami disaster
- Share related lessons learned
- Identify risks, including those associated with the flow of funds
- Identify control measures, including compensating controls, required to:
- Mitigate the risks;
- Ensure efficient and effective flow of funds for the intended purposes;
- Guard against possible waste, misuse, fraud and corruption;
- Identify best practices in planning, conducting and reporting on related audits.
This conference will also: - Explore the possibility of coordinating audit efforts among donor countries and the recipient SAI concerned to enhance audit effectiveness and minimize cost;
- Identify high risk areas or situations relating to procurement activities and explore controls and audit measures to address the risks; and
- Analyze training needs of Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) and explore cost effective facilities and resources to meet those needs in the short-term and the long-term
Outputs
- Action plan to improve flow of aid funds related to the tsunami
- Knowledge network among the participants to share experiences
- Summary of proceedings
Participants
Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) of countries hit by the 26 December 2004 tsunami, SAI from donor countries, other SAIs of countries with similar experiences, the United Nations, Multilateral Development Banks, International Committee of the Red Cross, Non-Governmental Organizations, and representatives of the people affected by the disaster.
Language
English
Cosponsors
This conference is organized by the Audit Board of the Republic of Indonesia in partnership with the Asian Development Bank (ADB). It is funded by ADB and coordinated by ADB and ADB's Indonesia Resident Mission.
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