Yearly Archives: 2023

September 6, 2023

Majuro, Marshall Islands: The Republic of the Marshall Islands’ Office of the Auditor-General (OAG) was pleased and honored to host the 34^th annual conference and workshop of the Association of Pacific Islands Public Auditors (APIPA) during the week of August 28 to September 1, 2023 in Majuro, the capitol of the RMI. Over 400 participants attended the week-long conference and workshop. This was the first in-person APIPA conference since the global pandemic hit us and APIPA resorted to virtual training in the last three years. The theme for the APIPA conference was “Shining a Light on Public Accountability”. One of the founding principles of APIPA is to promote the use of public resources and strengthen the auditing and accounting profession across its member jurisdictions. Since its inception, APIPA has offered professional and capacity development trainings to its members. A total of 2,190 course certificates were awarded to 406 participants, reflecting 13,804 continuing professional education units during the 2023 APIPA conference.

The training courses this year were designed to respond to emerging issues and trends across accounting, finance, management, and auditing sectors across APIPA jurisdictions. The audit tracks were held at the Marshall Islands Resort while the finance management and leadership courses were at the International Convention Center throughout the week. The APIPA Principals (Executive Body) also held its annual meeting during the week.

The 34^th APIPA conference also included several planned after-hour activities which included a Night Market which was coordinated with the RMI Office of Commerce, Investment, and Tourism where locals showcased their beautiful handicrafts, and tasty local food, along with great music and entertainment for our visiting participants.

“The OAG was honored to be the host of the recently concluded 34^th annual workshop and conference of APIPA here in Majuro. The annual workshop is a training opportunity for auditors and accountants to improve their skills relevant to their roles, and enable them to perform to their full potential. What is good for the development of our staff is also good for our organizational performance, productivity, and quality. I am positive that the participants at the 34^th annual APIPA conference found great value in their time here in Majuro, and will return to contribute more to their respective organizations” Auditor-General and Chairman of the 2023 APIPA, Mr. Junior Patrick said.

APIPA would like to extend its most sincere appreciation to the RMI Government, the U.S. Department of the Interior, and the Graduate School USA for their continued support of APIPA and our annual conference.

For more APIPA 2023 photos, please click the following link.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/pitiviti/sets/72177720311024828/

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Media Contact:

Leban Joash – IT Manager & Communication Officer

Email: joashlebon@gmail.com | Phone: 692 625 3390

Website: www.rmioag.com

June 21, 2023

Majuro, Marshall Islands: The Office of the Auditor-General (OAG) proudly announces that it received a rating of pass for its recent Peer Review from a team of auditors from the Association of Pacific Islands Public Auditors (APIPA) in accordance with the Government Auditing Standards issued by the Comptroller General of the United States. The Government Auditing Standards require all audit organizations that perform audits and attestation engagements following the Government Auditing Standards to undergo an external quality control review (or peer review) performed by reviewers independent of the audit organization being reviewed at least once every three years[1]. An audit organization can receive a rating of pass, pass with deficiencies, or fail. The OAG received a rating of pass. The Auditor-General Junior Patrick congratulates his staff on this achievement and recognizes the staff for their hard work and commitment to following all required auditing standards. The OAG’s Peer Review was conducted by Mr. Satrunino Tewid, Public Auditor of the Republic of Palau (Team Leader), Ms. Elizabeth M. Jonah, Auditor II of Kosrae State Office of the Public Auditor Office (Team Member), and Mr. Reggie Jay Mabel Junior Auditor II of Palau Office of the Public Auditor (Team Member). The objective of the review was to determine whether, during the period from January 1, 2018 to December 31, 2020, the OAG’s internal quality control system was suitably designed and operating effectively to provide reasonable assurance of compliance with those auditing standards. The onsite portion of the review took place from June 12 – 16, 2023. Based on its review, the Peer Review Team concluded that “OAG’s internal quality control system was adequately designed and operating effectively to provide reasonable assurance of compliance with the Government Auditing Standards and applicable legal and regulatory requirements for performance and financial audits during the period from January 1, 2018 to December 31, 2020”. In addition, the Peer Review Team also offered certain (verbal) suggestions to further strengthen OAG’s internal quality control system. We have accepted the Peer Review Team’s suggestions to further strengthen OAG’s quality control system. A copy of our Peer Review report may be viewed/retrieved at the OAG website at https://www.rmioag.com/peer-review-reports/.

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[1] Due to impacts of Covid-19 and restrictions on travels, APIPA had suspended its peer reviews earlier and requested time extension for its members to complete their required peer reviews. GAO granted APIPA extension to complete its peer reviews.

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Leban Joash – IT Manager / Communication Officer

Email: joashlebon@gmail.com | Phone: 692 625 3390

Website: www.rmioag.com

Majuro, Marshall Islands, April 27^th, 2023: The OAG is pleased to announce the capacity-building training and support it received from the European Union (EU) in the area of fraud detection and prevention by placing a Fraud Adviser and Expert to assist. The support received aims to strengthen the capability of OAG’s fraud prevention and detection funtion to conduct effective special reviews into alleged fraudulent activities across all governmental institutions.

The Fraud Adviser and Expert, Mr. Marc Alix, arrived in November 2022 to provide one-to-one hands-on training to OAG investigators. The training includes formal classroom instructions, reviewing and implementing international best practice investigations technical standards, reviewing existing complaint-handling operations, and improving other investigations-specific policies and procedures as necessary.  He is a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist, CAMS; Certified Fraud Examiner, CFE; Certified Forensic Financial Analyst, MAFF/CFFA; International Association for Financial Crimes, Financial Crimes Investigator; International Asset Recovery Specialist; Criminal Intelligence Analyst; Former Bank Examiner of The New York Branch of The USA Federal Reserve Board of Governors. In addition, Mr. Alix has over 31 years of experience in regulatory compliance related to anti-money laundering, counter-terrorist financing, fraud, corruption, ethics, sanctions, forensic investigations, intelligence gathering, surveillance, and information technology operations, among other financial crimes-related experience and accomplishments. He is stationed at the OAG for a period of 8-9 months, possibly longer, to continue to provide support to our investigators.

The OAG would like to thank the EU for the technical assistance and support, which is funded through the Budget Support towards RMI’s Public Financial Management (PRF) reforms.

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Media Contact:

Leban Joash – IT Manager & Communication Officer

Email: joashlebon@gmail.com | Phone: 692 625 3390

Website: www.rmioag.com