Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and AFROSAI-E partner to strengthen SAIs
We are delighted to announce that Switzerland through its State Secretariat for Economic Affairs – also known as SECO has signed a contribution agreement with AFROSAI-E to support the implementation of the AFROSAI-E Strategic Plan for 2020 – 2024, and targeted capacity building measures for its 26 member SAIs.
“We are extremely pleased to welcome SECO as an institutional partner. We are confident that through this programme, we will be better positioned to achieve our strategic objectives and support our SAIs to strengthen their capacity to be well-governed, independent, professional, and relevant. Aside from the contribution agreement, we also look forward to engaging SECO on their initiatives in the region related to public finance management, such as their project on public procurement, infrastructure, and knowledge management at municipal level. – AFROSAI-E CEO, Meisie Nkau
By supporting this programme, SECO makes an important contribution to the overarching objective of the current Swiss Federal Dispatch on Development, which is to support sustainable economic growth and prosperity. The programme is particularly relevant in the context of SECO’s ambition to improve governance and contribute to anti-corruption efforts, because SAIs play a key role in ensuring transparency and accountability of public institutions. Better performing SAIs benefit citizens by curbing corruption, guaranteeing value for taxpayer’s money, increasing access to services and ultimately reducing poverty.
The Swiss Ambassador to South Africa, Dr Nicholas Brühl met with the AFROSAI-E Secretariat leadership in October and in a message recorded for the 16th AFROSAI-E Technical Conference, he said: “Through targeted training and capacity building, this programme helps the SAIs in Africa to fulfil their mandate, to hold public institutions accountable, efficiently and effectively. In addition, the programme supports AFROSAI-E to expand its materials and interventions areas beyond traditional audit methodologies. This will enable SAIs to respond to the current needs and challenges of citizens in emerging areas such as environmental audit or disaster management audit, thereby achieving greater audit impact and overall contributing to more transparency within the public sphere. Overall, Switzerland is looking forward to partner with AFROSAI-E for the next years!”