Opening Remarks at the Workshop: South Asian PAC Secretariats Workshop

Naoko Ishii, Country Director

World Bank Sri Lanka

Opening Remarks at the Workshop: South Asian PAC Secretariats Workshop

18-20 February 2008

Ms. Priyanee Wijesekera, Secretary General of Parliament.

Ms. Meenakshi Dhar, Director of Programmes, CPA

Members of the Head Table

Distinguished Guests

Ladies and gentlemen,

It is indeed a pleasure to be here today to welcome you to this South Asian

Public Accounts Committee Parliamentary Secretariat’s workshop.

You may ask why the World Bank is hosting this kind of workshop? Why is the World Bank interested in strengthening systems of governance and accountability?  It is because we believe that a capable and accountable state creates opportunities for poor people, provides better services, and improves development outcomes. And we have no shortage of academic researches which tell us there is strong linkage among governance, growth and poverty reduction.

While good governance is primarily a responsibility of the executive arm of the government, exacting accountability from the government remains a primary responsibility of the legislature.  Legislatures control the public purse, through approval of budget estimates at the beginning of the public financial management cycle, and through scrutiny of the public accounts at the end of the cycle.  Public Accounts Committees are concerned with the end of this public financial management cycle.  They ensure accountability by examining the reports of the Supreme Audit Institution, by calling responsible government officials to testify at its hearings, and by recommending appropriate actions by the government where necessary.

All aspects of the public financial management cycle are important.  In a number of countries in South Asia, however, we have witnessed the legislative scrutiny part of the cycle is only just being established, or re-established, or is temporarily not working, or is facing a backlog of several years’ worth of audit reports.  Thus, legislative scrutiny is often one of the weakest aspects of public financial management systems, systems of governance and accountability.

Please allow me to touch upon cases in Sri Lanka. Recently we have seen how the principal oversight function of public funds in Sri Lanka is exercised by the two standing committees of Parliament -- the Committee on Public Accounts (COPA) and the Committee of Public Enterprises (COPE).   COPA reviews the accounts of all ministries, departments and local authorities, while COPE examines public corporations and government business undertakings. These two committees have benefited immensely from dynamic chair persons, who have done valuable service to the country, pointing out the cost to the country due to fraud and corruption. It is a significant achievement that COPE findings have triggered formal debates in Parliament. These are positive steps that Sri Lanka has taken to ensure that good governance and accountability mechanisms are in place ensuring effective development outcomes for the country.  That said, effective follow-up seems to remain an issue, which you can discuss during the workshop.

Noteworthy here in Sri Lanka is also the exemplary relationship the Auditor General of Sri Lanka has with the two committees.  The work of the committees is primarily based on the Auditor General's reports. In addition, the Auditor General attends all deliberations and his assistance is sought to prioritize issues for scrutiny.  In this whole process, it is the Secretariat that plays the all important supporting role to the committees in holding effective committee deliberations.

It is an axiom that all South Asian countries stand to benefit by working towards strengthening the Governance framework. In support of this, the World Bank together with the World Bank Institute is pleased to, and honored to collaborate with Commonwealth Parliamentary Association in conducting this workshop today.

I understand that this is the first workshop to be aimed entirely at the secretariat staff level of Public Accounts Committees.  I hope it is the first of many, because we believe Public Accounts Committees cannot function well without strong secretariats.  We also realize that, while committee members change from time to time, the secretariat remains in place over several legislatures. 

At this workshop, we are counting on you to articulate realistic, practical action plans to strengthen legislative scrutiny of the public accounts in your country contexts.  This is important, strategic work.  I wish you every success in completing your action plans over the next 3 days, and in implementing them in the years ahead.   I assure you that the World Bank stands ready to support you in your efforts.

Thank you and good luck.