The Royal Audit Authority (RAA) is auditing five on-going activities for the first time.

Calling it a concurrent audit, RAA officials say that it is a new auditing approach adopted to study the progress and benefits of the activities. RAA usually audits activities that are completed, which is called post audit.

The five activities are the East-West Highway widening project, central schools, gewog centre (GC) roads, in-country travel and daily allowances (TA/DA) and revenue management of thromdes.

Auditor general (AG) Tshering Kezang said that the concurrent audit, which started since the start of this financial year, is conducted as a management tool to correct if there are any issues at the implementation of the projects. “This auditing is also expected to help in the timely completion of the projects.”

He said that RAA would audit the in-country TA/DA claims of all government agencies and corporations.

Deputy auditor general Chimi Dorji, however, said that there is no separate auditing on the five activities but auditors conducting the normal auditing are asked to prioritise the five activities as a thrust area.

He said that given RAA’s mandate of enhancing accountability, transparency and good governance, the concurrent auditing is expected to achieve the mandate.

RAA’s assistant auditor general Chandra Gurung explained that the concurrent auditing of activities are not done on an ad hoc basis but is as per the professional audit planning, which is conducted annually.

He said that RAA has specific criteria while selecting the audit thrust area. “We look at the budget spending on projects, visibility of the projects and risk to good governance and management.”

The audit of the five activities is expected to complete next March or April.

Tashi Dema