TCU honored for its election to the United Nations Board of Auditors

Last Thursday (11/9), the Brazilian Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) was honored for its election to the Board of Auditors of the United Nations (UN). The motion for recognition by the Organization of the Supreme Audit Institutions of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (OISC/CPLP) was presented during the XII General Assembly of the organization, held this week in Guinea-Bissau. Minister Walton Alencar represented the TCU at the meeting. 

The document acknowledges the importance of TCU’s presence on the Board. "This is a very important achievement within the external and independent public audit community. This election, in addition to enhancing the already recognized international relevance and excellence of TCU's performance, will certainly contribute to the growth and promotion of the Portuguese language and the values of our organization (OISC/CPLP) in the international community of Courts of Accounts and similar institutions", the member countries stated in the motion. 

TCU will take office in June 2024, when Chile's current mandate ends. The Court will lead the Board for six years, until 2030. Minister Walton Alencar spoke on behalf of SAI Brazil on the assembly. "Performing oversight functions on such a large scale requires urgent efforts from an institution like the TCU. We are committed to acquiring the means to perform a good job, and the support of the OISC/CPLP is fundamental. I thank all those involved in our organization", he said. 

Access the full motion in Portuguese here.

XII OISC/CPLP General Assembly

The OISC/CPLP General Assembly is held every two years and brings together SAIs of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking countries.  

In addition to the presentation of the organization's accounts, the OISC/CPLP Strategic Plan 2023-2028 and the actions taken from the 2023 Action Plan were presented. The 2024 Action Plan of the organization was also presented and approved by the members. 

The presentation of the outcomes of the OISC/CPLP Coordinated Audit of Protected Areas was one of the highlights of the meeting. The audit evaluated the participating countries’ progress implementing the  Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) linked to biodiversity. It was divided into four stages: training, development, planning, and implementation. 100 auditors from 33 national and subnational audit institutions distributed in 24 countries were mobilized to carry out the work. A total of 128 protected areas were assessed. In 61% of them, the implementation and management level was considered low, in 47%, average, and in 20% the level was considered high. By the end of 2023, the detailing of results will be consolidated and disseminated to achieve comprehensive and effective disclosure. TCU also presented the ClimateScanner, a tool under development that will enable Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) to assess and monitor the government actions to address the climate crisis. The TCU-led project is a global initiative that will collect, consolidate, and publicize data on government actions related to climate change.  

Minister Walton Alencar Rodrigues reported that the Court will begin next week a pilot exchange program  for female auditors from Portuguese-speaking SAI’s to train women in leadership roles. "We believe that representation is essential for equity, and TCU plans to expand the program to the Organization of Latin American and Caribbean Supreme Audit Institutions (OLACEFS) region", he emphasized. 

The program will count on the participation of women from the SAIs of Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal, Sao Tome and Principe, and East Timor. "Thank you very much to all present SAIs for the massive participation in the exchange program. Thank you very much to the ProPALOP TL SAI program for supporting this initiative", noted Minister Walton Alencar Rodrigues.

Technical theme and Declaration of Bissau

The technical theme of this year’s General Assembly was “Communicating and promoting the values and benefits of Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs): effective communication and relationship with stakeholders”. The conclusions and recommendations resulting from the technical discussions of the meeting were consolidated in the Declaration of Bissau. One of the main objectives will be to establish communication guidelines and instructions for the OISC/CPLP.  

Access the Declaration of Bissau in Portuguese here.