OPA to host govt auditors from 23 countries

The Commonwealth will host next week a gathering of over 30 government auditors from 23 countries.

The South Pacific Association of Supreme Audit Institutions will be holding its Congress meeting on Saipan from May 22 to May 26, 2006 at Fiesta Resort and Spa Saipan.

“This will be the first time a SPASAI Congress event will be held in a U.S. jurisdiction and a first for the CNMI to host such an important gathering of international government audit institutions,” according to the CNMI Office of the Public Auditor, which joined SPASAI in 2000.

The last two SPASAI Congress gatherings were held in Apia, Samoa and Raratonga, Cook Islands.

Local public auditor Michael Sablan is the chairman of the international organization.

In addition to the discussion of SPASAI organizational and business matters, next week’s event will include presentations on different topics.

David Cohen, deputy assistant secretary for the U.S. Department of the Interior, will speak on Interior initiatives on enhancing financial accountability among U.S.-affiliated governments.

Jim Barry, special agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigations, will talk about terrorism activities in the Pacific region and opportunities for collaborative efforts among and between SPASAI members and law enforcement agencies to combat this threat in our Pacific communities.

Ralph Capio, attorney and expert in government contract law, will tackle government procurement and common indicators of fraud in procurement.

Sablan will discuss the Commonwealth’s Ethics Act, which he said is considered to be among the strictest ethics laws in the United States.

According to Sablan, SPASAI is only one group of “supreme audit institutions” under the umbrella of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions.

INTOSAI is a United Nations affiliated organization “whose mission is to provide mutual support, foster the exchange of ideas, knowledge, and experiences, act as a recognized voice of SAIs with the international community.”

SPASAI has counterparts in the European, Asian, African, Caribbean, and Arabian regions.

Sablan said that OPA’s membership in SPASAI had provided the office and its staff much needed access to and participation in critical training programs.

He reported that over the last 4 years, seven OPA managers and analysts participated in various technical training workshops sponsored by SPASAI. These workshops were provided to OPA and its staff at no cost to the CNMI government.