Responding to the Challenges of Supreme Audit Institutions: Can Legislatures and Civil Society Help?

Responding to the Challenges of Supreme Audit Institutions: Can Legislatures and Civil Society Help?

The gaps between approved budgets and the realization of policy and development goals stand among key governance challenges in many developing countries. Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) play an important role in holding governments to account. However, many SAIs face serious challenges when trying to evaluate the expenditures and performance of government agencies. This paper explores those challenges in detail and suggests how SAIs can overcome some of them by forming and strengthening alliances with parliaments and civil society.