Barbados mortgage finance

Barbados

Change of Address

The Office of the Auditor General announces that effective July 15, 1996, its office has been relocated. The new address and telephone numbers are: Office of the Auditor General, Nicholas House, Broad Street, Bridgetown, Barbados. Telephone Number: 246-4262537; Facsimile Number: 2464362699. Canada

Appointment of Environmental Commissioner

Amendments to the Auditor General Act that came into force on December 15, 1995 established the position of Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development (see this Journal, January 1996). These amendments require federal departments and certain agencies to prepare sustainable development strategies and action plans, and require the Auditor General to receive petitions from the public on sustainable development matters and to forward them to the appropriate minister for response.

In that regard, Mr. Denis Desautels, Auditor General of Canada, has announced the appointment of Mr. Brian Emmett to the position of Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development. Mr. Emmett began his duties in late July 1996. Mr. Emmett, on behalf of the Auditor General, will monitor and report annually to Parliament in a new "green" report on the extent to which departments have met the objectives of their sustainable development strategies and implemented their action plans, and on the status of petitions received. His report may also include observations arising from the examination of environmental and sustainable development issues carried out as part of the overall mandate of the Auditor General, which now specifically requires consideration of these issues in performing the work of the Office.

"The appointment of Brian Emmett as Commissioner and the new green report will significantly increase the profile of the Office's work on environmental issues and, we hope, assist the Canadian government in its progress toward environmental sustainability," Mr. Desautels said. For further information, please contact Mr. John Zegers of the Office of the Auditor General of Canada, 240 Sparks Street, Ottawa, Ontario KIA OG6, Canada.

Costa Rica New Auditor Gen"

The Legislative Assembly of Costa Rica has appointed Luis Fernando Vargas Benavides as Comptroller General. The appointment is for eight years, and became effective on June 17,1996. Mr. Vargas succeeds Samuel Hidalgo Solano who had served in that position and in that capacity had also served as host of the OLACEFS Congress in 1993.

Mr. Vargas is a lawyer by profession, with a distinguished public service career. Among the many senior government posts he has held are: Vice-minister for Labor; Vice-president of the Building and Mortgage Bank; and Governor of Oscar Arias. Earlier in his career he was Executive Director of the National Childhood Foundation, and professor of family law at the Independent University of Central America. Under the current government Mr. Vargas has been a member of the Board of the Popular and Community Development Bank. At the time of his appointment as Comptroller General, Mr. Vargas was an advisor to the President of Costa Rica and Vice-president of the Social Security Agency.

For more information, contact: Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic, 1179-1000, San Jose, Costa Rica.

Ireland

SAI Plays Role in Government Ethics

The government of Ireland has given greater prominence to ethics through its Ethics in Public Office Act of 1995 which provides for the disclosure of interests by public office holders, elected representatives, senior civil servants, special advisers and directors and senior managers in State companies. The Act also deals with gifts to holders of public offices and with personal appointments by them. It requires ad hoc declarations where a material interest arises in the performance of a function and ad hoc statements when speaking or voting in Parliament where a material interest arises in relation to a matter not already publicly disclosed under the Act. It also established an independent Public Offices Commission whose tasks include: the issue of guidelines to those covered by the Act, the receipt and custody of statements of interests,

the receipt of complaints concerning possible breaches of the Act, investigating possible breaches on the basis of complaints received or on its own initiative, conducting quasi-judicial hearings, and

preparing annual and special reports on its findings.

The Commission comprises five members: The Comptroller and Auditor General, The Ombudsman,

The Chairman (Speaker) of the Lower House of Parliament,

The Clerk of the Lower House, and The Clerk of the Upper House. For more information, contact: Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General, Dublin Castle, IRL Dublin 2, Dublin, Ireland.

Mauritius

Annual Report

The Annual Audit Report for 199495 was tabled before the National Assembly in March 1996. The Report is in two volumes: Volume I deals mainly with "Financial Audits" and volume II with "Special Reviews."

A special review of rental of office accommodation disclosed that the government was paying large sums of money to rent office buildings that remained unoccupied. In some other cases landlords were charging government high yearly increases in rent.

In the Environmental Investment Program attention was drawn to the fact that although 30 percent of the budget had been spent, only one of the seven components of the project had been satisfactorily completed. The objectives of three other components were not attained.

Many projects were not adequately prepared and were not ready for implementation at the time loan agreements are signed. This resulted in the payment of large commitments charges. Recommendations were made to improve project management.

A new feature in this year's Report is that color photographs were used to support audit findings. In the construction of one primary school, although expenditure incurred had reached 250 percent of budgeted cost, the building was only 50 percent completed. This was illustrated with a color photograph.

The Report also recommended that a proper cost and management accounting system be introduced in government so that ministries and departments would know how much it costs to produce one unit of good or service.

For more information, contact: Office of the Auditor General, Came House, Chaussee, Port Louis, Mauritius. Moldova

Professional Association of Accountants and Auditors

The Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Moldova completed the formal registration of the Association of Professional Accountants and Auditors of the Republic of Moldova. Established with the support of the Ministry of Finance and the Minister, Mr. Valeriu Chitan, it became the first association of this type in the Commonwealth of Independent States.

The idea for the combined Association was originated by a group of professionals in the fields of accounting and auditing in Moldova. Their early initiatives were supported by international donors and experts. Late last month accountants and auditors from the capital and other Moldovan cities assembled in the Codru Hotel to name the Association, agree on a charter, and elect a Board of Directors and a Chairperson.

The Association is a self-regulating, non-governmental organization that will focus on up-grading the practice of accounting and auditing in the Republic. It was formed to improve the quality of the services that members can provide the clients and employers. Its founders also view the Association as a means for increasing opportunities for its members to participate in the process of their country's integration into the world of international commerce and finance, and also for preparing for the transition to international accounting standards on January 1, 1997. Pakistan

International Training Program

The performance audit wing of the Department of the Auditor General of Pakistan will hold a five-week International Intensive Training Program (ITP) in performance auditing from February 23 - March 27, 1997. The program will be the 32nd in the ITP series and the 11 th one to be offered internationally; it will be held in Lahore.

In the ten international programs offered previously, the participants have come from the Supreme Audit Institutions (SAI) of the People's Republic of China, Turkey, Nepal, Malaysia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Yemen, United Arab Republic, Libya, Maldives, Thailand and Ethiopia.