International Seminar Presents CASt Research Findings

On September 9, the INTOSAI Centre for Advanced Studies (CASt) concluded its cycle of activities with the presentation of groundbreaking research results on issues of major relevance to government auditing. The CASt is led by the Supervisory Committee on Emerging Issues (SCEI) of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) and coordinated by the Serzedello Corrêa Institute (ISC) for Capacity Building in partnership with the Department of International Relations (Serint) of the Brazilian Federal Court of Accounts (TCU).

Studies on artificial intelligence, climate change, and poverty reduction were presented during an event livestreamed on YouTube and hosted by TCU Minister Bruno Dantas. The research was conducted between October 2024 and January 2025 by university researchers and supervisors from Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) across different countries and continents, focusing on emerging themes in public auditing.

Minister Bruno Dantas, who holds a PhD in Law and is a permanent faculty member of the Institute's Master's Program, emphasized the importance of initiatives such as CASt in bringing academic production closer to public administration demands. Our role is to build bridges between Law, Economics, and Accountability, thereby strengthening government audit and fostering solutions that deliver tangible benefits to society, he stated.

Dantas also highlighted INTOSAI's commitment to the issue: CASt demonstrates the power of international cooperation in generating scientific knowledge applied to oversight, reinforcing INTOSAI's commitment to innovation and social justice.

The event, held in the Institute's auditorium, also featured a masterclass delivered by Minister Bruno Dantas and a panel discussion with Professor Fernando Menguin, PhD in Economics, mediated by Débora Costa, academic coordinator of the Institute's Specialization in Economic Analysis of Law and PhD in Economics.

The masterclass and panel discussion, entitled Building Bridges in Public Administration: Law, Economics, and Accountability, marked the inauguration of the second class of the Professional Master's Degree in Oversight of Public Administration and the Specialization in Economic Analysis of Law, both offered by the Institute, TCU's School of Government.

Global issues under discussion

The CASt research addressed three priority areas:

• Impacts of artificial intelligence on SAIs
• Auditing climate finance

• Combating hunger and poverty

Researchers from Australia, the United States, South Africa, and Brazil were selected to conduct studies under the supervision of INTOSAI member SAIs, in an international cooperation effort that reinforces the global nature of the initiative.

During the seminar, the following studies were presented in detail:

• Auditing Climate Financing: The role of SAIs in combating climate change - Dessalegn Mihret (Australia).
• Humans in the audit loop: Exploring how AI can enhance SAIs legitimacy - Nicolas Lagos (USA).
• Development of effective methods and tools for the auditing of AI algorithms by Supreme Audit Institutions - Dirk Brand (South Africa).
• A New era in Poverty Diagnostics: Experimental knowledge from machine learning to improve the efficiency of social programs in combating poverty - Francisco Alexandre Correia Arruda (Brazil).

All papers were peer-reviewed and submitted for publication in specialized journals, consolidating CASt as a hub for scientific production applied to public auditing.

CASt reaffirmed the commitment of Supreme Audit Institutions to innovation by encouraging solutions that support audit activities and contribute to the global debate on governance, sustainable development, and social justice.