A supreme audit institution is an independent national-level institution which conducts audits of government activities. Most supreme audit institutions are established in their country's constitution, and their mandate is further refined in national legislation. Supreme audit institutions play an important role in providing oversight and accountability in a country by monitoring the use of public funds and reviewing the quality and accuracy of government financial reporting. They also contribute to anti-corruption efforts. Depending on the country, a supreme audit institution may be called a court of audit (common in Europe and its former colonies), auditor-general (common in the Anglosphere) or the board of audit (in some Asian countries). Nearly every supreme audit institution in the world is a member of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions, which works to establish and disseminate international standards and good practices.
In some countries, such as with Taiwan's Control Yuan, the audit institution may constitute a separate, independent branch of government in addition to the more typical executive, legislative and judicial branches.
List of supreme audit institutions
Afghanistan: Supreme Audit Office (Merged with the Directorate of Supervision and Prosecution of Decrees and Orders in 2024)
Albania: State Supreme Audit (Albania)
Algeria: Cour des Comptes
Andorra: Tribunal de Comptes
Angola: Tribunal de Contas de Angola
Antigua and Barbuda: Supreme Audit Institution
Argentina: Auditoría General de la Nación
Armenia: Chamber of Audit
Australia: Australian National Audit Office
Austria: Rechnungshof
Azerbaijan: Chamber of Accounts
Bahamas: Office of the Auditor General
Bahrain: National Audit Office
Bangladesh: Comptroller and Auditor General
Barbados: Auditor General's Office
Belarus: State Control Committee
Belgium: Court of Audit of Belgium
Belize: The Office of the Auditor General
Benin: Chambre des Comptes de la Cour Suprême
Bhutan: Royal Audit Authority
Bolivia: Contraloría General del Estado
Botswana: Office of the Auditor General
Brazil: Tribunal de Contas da União
Bulgaria: Chamber of Audit
Cape Verde: Tribunal de Contas
Cambodia: National Audit Authority of Cambodia
Canada: Auditor General of Canada
Central African Republic: Inspection Général d’État
Chile: Comptroller General of Chile
China: National Audit Office
Colombia: Contraloria General de la República
Comoros: Cour Suprême – Section des Comptes des Comores
Costa Rica: Contraloria General de la República
Ivory Coast: Cour des Comptes de Côte d'Ivoire
Croatia: Državni ured za reviziju (State Audit Office)
Cuba: Contraloría General de la República de Cuba
Cyprus: Audit Office of the Republic
Czech Republic: Supreme Audit Office
Democratic Republic of the Congo: Cour des Comptes
Denmark: Rigsrevisionen
Djibouti: Cour des Comptes
Dominica: Audit Department
Dominican Republic: Cámara de Cuentas de la República Dominicana
Egypt: Central Auditing Organization
Eritrea: Office of the Auditor General
Estonia: National Audit Office of Estonia
Europe: European Court of Auditors
Fiji: Office of the Auditor General
Finland: National Audit Office of Finland
France: Court of Audit
Gabon: Cour des Comptes
Gambia: National Audit Office
Ghana: Ghana Audit Service
Germany: Bundesrechnungshof
Georgia: State Audit Office of Georgia
Greece: Court of Audit
Grenada: Audit Department
Guatemala: Contraloría General de Cuentas
Guinea: Cour des Comptes
Guinea-Bissau: Tribunal de Contas
Guyana: The Audit Office of Guyana
Haiti: Cour Supérieure CCA
Honduras: Tribunal Superior de Cuentas
Hungary: Állami Számvevőszék
Iceland: Ríkisendurskoðun
India: Comptroller and Auditor General of India
Indonesia: Audit Board of Indonesia
Iran: Supreme Audit Court
Iraq: Federal Board of Supreme Audit
Ireland: Comptroller and Auditor General
Israel: State Comptroller of Israel
Italy: Court of Audit
Jamaica: Audit Department
Japan: Board of Audit
Jordan: Audit Bureau of Jordan
Kazakhstan: Accounts Committee
Kenya: Kenya National Audit Office
Kiribati: Kiribati National Audit Office
Kosovo: National Audit Office of Kosovo
Kuwait: State Audit Bureau
Kyrgyzstan: The Accounts Chamber of the Kyrgyz Republic
Laos: State Audit Organization
Latvia: State Audit Office of the Republic of Latvia
Lebanon: Cour des Comptes
Lesotho: Office of the Auditor General
Liberia: General Auditing Commission
Libya: Libyan Audit Bureau
Liechtenstein: Finanzkontrolle des Fürstentums Liechtenstein
Lithuania: National Audit Office of Lithuania
Luxembourg: Cour des Comptes
Madagascar: Cour des Comptes
Malawi: National Audit Office
Malaysia: National Audit Department
Maldives: Auditor General's Office
Mali: Contrôle Général des Services Publics
Malta: National Audit Office
Marshall Islands: Office of the Auditor General
Mauritania: Cour des Comptes de la République Islamique de Mauritanie
Mauritius: National Audit Office
Mexico: Auditoría Superior de la Federación
Federated States of Micronesia: Office of the Public Auditor
Moldova: Curtea de Conturi
Monaco: Commission Supérieure des Comptes
Mongolia: Mongolian National Audit Office
Montenegro: State Audit Institution of Montenegro
Morocco: Cour des Comptes
Mozambique: Tribunal Administrativo
Namibia: Office of the Auditor-General
Nauru: Department of Audit
Myanmar: Office of the Auditor General
Nepal: Office of the Auditor General
Netherlands: Court of Audit
New Zealand: Office of the Auditor-General
Nicaragua: Consejo Superior de la Contraloría General
Niger: Cour des comptes
Nigeria: Office of the Auditor General for the Federation
North Macedonia: Drzaven zavod za revizija
Norway: Office of the Auditor General of Norway
Oman: State Audit Institution
Pakistan: Auditor General of Pakistan
Palau: Office of the Public Auditor
Palestine: State Audit and Administrative Control Bureau
Panama: Contraloría General de la República de Panamá
Papua New Guinea: Auditor General's Office
Paraguay: Contraloría General de la República
Peru: Contraloria General de la República
Philippines: Commission on Audit of the Philippines
Poland: Supreme Audit Office
Portugal: Court of Auditors
Qatar: State Audit Bureau
Republic of the Congo: Cour des Comptes et de Discipline Budgétaire
Romania: Court of Audit
Russia: Accounts Chamber of Russia
Rwanda: Office of the Auditor General
Saint Kitts and Nevis: The Audit Office
Saint Lucia: Office of the Director of Audit
Samoa: Samoa Audit Office
São Tomé and Príncipe: Tribunal de Contas
Saudi Arabia: General Court of Audit
Senegal: Cour des Comptes
Serbia: State Audit Institution (Državna revizorska institucija)
Seychelles: The Audit Department
Sierra Leone: Audit Service Sierra Leone
Singapore: Auditor General's Office
Slovakia: Najvyšši kontrolný úrad Slovenskej republiky
Slovenia: Court of Audit of Slovenia
Solomon Islands: Office of the Auditor General
Somalia: Office of the Auditor General
South Africa: Auditor-General (South Africa)
Republic of Korea: Board of Audit and Inspection
South Sudan: National Audit Chamber
Spain: Court of Auditors
Sri Lanka: National Audit Office
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: Audit Office
Sudan: National Audit Chamber
Suriname: Rekenkamer van Suriname
Sweden: Swedish National Audit Office
Switzerland: Eidgenössische Finanzkontrolle
Syria: The Central Organization of Financial Control
Taiwan: National Audit Office
Tajikistan: Accounts Chamber of the Republic of Tajikistan
Tanzania: National Audit Office
Thailand: State Audit Office of the Kingdom of Thailand
Timor-Leste: Tribunal de Recurso
Togo: La Cour des Comptes
Tonga: Audit Department
Trinidad and Tobago: Auditor General's Department
Tunisia: Cour des Comptes
Turkey: Court of Accounts
Turkmenistan: Office of the Auditor General of Turkmenistan
Tuvalu: Office of the Auditor General
Uganda: Office of the Auditor General
Ukraine: Accounting Chamber
United Arab Emirates: State Audit Institution
United Kingdom: National Audit Office
United States: Government Accountability Office
Uruguay: Tribunal de Cuentas de la República
Uzbekistan: Chamber of Auditors of Uzbekistan
Vanuatu: Office of the Auditor General
Vatican City: Officium Recognitoris Generalis
Venezuela: Contraloría General de la República
Vietnam: State Audit Office of Vietnam
Yemen: Central Organization for Control and Auditing
Zambia: Office of the Auditor General
Zimbabwe: Office of the Auditor General
See also
- European Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions
- Government performance auditing
- INTOSAI Development Initiative
- Organization of Latin American and Caribbean Supreme Audit Institutions
- Separation of powers
References
- "External Audit – Supreme Audit Institutions - OECD". www.oecd.org. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
- "Features and functions of supreme audit institutions" (PDF). The World Bank.
- Blume, Lorenz; Voigt, Stefan (22 July 2010). "Does organizational design of supreme audit institutions matter? A cross-country assessment". European Journal of Political Economy. 27 (2): 215–229. doi:10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2010.07.001.
- Stapenhurst, Rick; Titsworth, Jack (June 2002). "Features and Functions of Supreme Audit Institutions" (PDF). World Bank Group.
- Meyers, C. Bernard; Bajpai, Rajni (September 1, 2020). "Enhancing Government Effectiveness and Transparency : The Fight Against Corruption" (PDF). World Bank Group.
- "Full Members - INTOSAI". www.intosai.org. Retrieved 2020-09-25.
- "Eight Govt Institutions Merged Into Ministries". TOLONews. 15 May 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2024.