President dr. László Windisch and Vice-President dr. Csaba Szomolai attended the annual meeting of Heads of SAIs of V4+2 countries, on 3-4 May 2023 in Brno.
The joint work of the countries of the Central European region (the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Austria and Slovenia) started in the early 1990s and since the early 2000s, in line with an established tradition, members of the V4+2 have been meeting annually on Presidential level. These meetings enhance the deepening of cooperation, as participants coming from countries with similar economic, social and cultural backgrounds face similar challenges. During the meeting in the Czech Republic, participants explored how to increase the impact of public financial audit.
In his presentation, President of the SAO said that as the new head of the institution, his goal is to establish a modern Audit Office. To achieve this, in parallel with the new SAO Act that entered into force on 1 January 2023, the institution has renewed its audit methodology, and in the future will place greater emphasis on real-time audits as close as possible to economic events, on the systemic assessment of certain processes of public finances, and on strengthening its supporting and advisory role. In line with this, significant changes have been made to the organisational structure, new solutions and working methods have been introduced to support the identification of emerging risks and timely responses to the changing environment.
Heads of SAIs participating in the event agreed that the selection of audit topics plays a particular importance in enhancing the impact of external audits, and that it is equally important to communicate audit findings and messages in an appropriate manner not only to the recipients of the audit but also to the general public. To this end, SAIs should consider using all tools made available by technological developments. As the closing chord of the event, the Austrian Court of Audit took over the symbol of the V4+2 cooperation, the bell, and with it the rotating presidency, meaning that next year’s meeting will take place in Graz, Austria, which will be followed by the Hungarian Presidency in 2025.