EU4PFM сontinues summer Internal Audit training series for the State Customs Service

On 9 and 29 July, EU4PFM International Experts on Public Internal Financial Control Manfred van Kesteren and Markus Erlmoser delivered two sessions of the summer Internal Audit training series for the Internal Audit Department of the State Customs Service of Ukraine. The sessions focused on audit design for single audit engagements.

The first session established the conceptual foundations of designing an audit (plan), with participants exploring what an audit should cover and which criteria should be used to assess performance. The second session concentrated on the technical aspects of audit design, including audit methodology, qualitative and quantitative data gathering techniques and approaches for analysing audit evidence which forms the basis for audit conclusions.

Manfred van Kesteren explained how to turn an audit’s technical design into a practical tool for conducting the engagement. As the expert noted, the conceptual design defines what the audit is intended to determine and why it should be conducted, while the technical design explains how sufficient audit evidence will be obtained and analysed.

Among the key principles highlighted during the session were:

• define the evidence required before selecting audit methods;
• prioritise the quality of evidence over its quantity;
• choose audit techniques based on the evidence needed, rather than on ease of implementation;
• recognise that interviews help explain evidence but rarely constitute sufficient audit evidence on their own;
• distinguish clearly between audit evidence, audit findings and audit conclusions, as these are sequential rather than interchangeable concepts.

Markus Erlmoser, in turn, presented an approach that treats an audit as a formal project. This enables audit engagements to be delivered on schedule, within budget and to provide management with timely, practical and high-quality conclusions. In addition, Markus presented a range of innovative audit techniques like scenario planning, visualisation of descriptive statistics and variance analysis. He outlined several key principles for developing an audit programme:

• audit should focus on systems, not on individuals;
• ensure auditors and management share a common understanding of the audit subject;
• promote open and transparent information-sharing, free from hidden agendas;
• consistently apply a multi-method approach;
• use project management principles as a framework for conducting audits;
• plan resource allocation at both the work package and methodological levels.

Participants also discussed which new tools could complement the traditional audit toolkit.

The summer Internal Audit training series is designed to strengthen the professional capacities of the State Customs Service’s Internal Audit Department and support the implementation of the new National Internal Audit Standards, aligned with the Global Internal Audit Standards (GIAS). The next training session which will be conducted in August will focus on reporting and quality assurance.