Liberia’s General Auditing Commission (GAC) is gaining international recognition for its efforts to ensure that government institutions act on findings and recommendations contained in audit reports.
The Commission showcased its audit follow-up system at a recently concluded meeting of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) Working Group on Audit Follow-Up in Kolkata, India, where Liberia shared its experience with other Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs).
Representing the GAC, Anthony Henry, Manager of the Audit Follow-Up Unit, presented Liberia’s approach to tracking audit recommendations and monitoring whether public institutions take corrective action.
Henry said Liberia’s authority to conduct audit follow-up is grounded in INTOSAI Principles 10 and 12, as well as the General Auditing Commission Act of 2014.
Under the law, the Auditor General is required to ensure that audit reports benefit citizens and contribute to improved governance. In line with that mandate, Auditor General P. Garswa Jackson established the Audit Follow-Up Unit within the GAC.
The unit was created in response to the repeated appearance of similar problems in audit reports from government institutions. Jackson said the follow-up mechanism is intended to ensure that identified weaknesses are corrected rather than allowed to recur.
The process enables the GAC to monitor actions taken by audited institutions and determine whether recommendations have been implemented. It is designed to ensure that audits result in corrective action rather than simply identifying problems.
Liberia’s approach has attracted interest from other Supreme Audit Institutions, with the GAC now providing technical support and sharing its experience with counterparts seeking to strengthen their own audit follow-up systems.
The development highlights the GAC’s growing role in international audit discussions and its efforts to improve the impact of public-sector auditing in Liberia.
Henry attended the Kolkata meeting with Deami Stewart, a staff member of the Audit Follow-Up Unit.
