National Audit Office The Gambia Win Prestigious prize for Best Performance Audit Report for 2020

On May 17th, 2021, we were announced as the winner for the African Organization for English-speaking Supreme Audit Institutions (AFROSAI-E) Best Performance audit Report prestigious prize which was initiated in 2007 and currently being chaired by the Swedish National Audit Office. The aim of the prize is to promote timely and high-quality performance audit reports that are relevant and impactful, and to share experiences and acknowledge the efforts of performance auditors in the region.

Each SAI in the AFROSAI-E region is invited to nominate a maximum of two performance audit reports for the Prize with no restrictions on what topics the reports may address. In 2018,we made our first attempt and submitted its report on Drug Storage and Distributed by the Central Medical Stores. This year, ten (10) reports were submitted from 7 countries including Tanzania, Mauritius, Sudan, Rwanda, Botswana, Zambia. Since the inception of the award, only eight countries have won so far, some countries have won the prize more than once. We are happy, and proud to have received this prestigious award for the first time this year. The winning Performance Audit report was on Emergency Obstetric Care in Public Health Facilities by the Ministry of Health, and covers the period from January 2017-December 2019, assesses the inadequate access to Emergency Obstetric Care (EmOC) services over the years. The report was completed in September, submitted to The Gambia National Assembly in December 2020 and published on the NAO website in January 2021.

Performance Audit is an independent assessment or examination of the extent to which an organization, programme or scheme operates economically, efficiently, and effectively. It goes beyond judgements of compliance and accuracy to also evaluate performance and the value for money obtained through government transactions. Resources are scarce and should be used in the best possible way. The main reason for carrying out performance audits is that the audits can lead to better use of resources by public entity/entities and provide support to democratic government. Therefore, performance audits help ministries, departments, and agencies to improve their operations. It identifies important problems, analyze the causes and effects and present recommendations for the usage of public resources in a better.

Our Performance Audit function was established in 2014 and developed into a unit in January 2019. We started with 5 members which was over the period increased, currently the unit has a total of 16 staff. Since the establishment of the function, seven (7) reports have been completed and sent to National Assembly and available on or website.

On Wednesday, May 26th, we held a Press Briefing at our office in Kanifing for the official announcement of the award and share background of our Performance Audit Unit. The Director of Performance Audit, Baba S Drammeh shared:” Unfortunately, all these reports have not yet been discussed by National Assembly. The discussions would have led to the timely publication of the reports for citizens to have access to, present an opportunity for the National Assembly to put pressure on the relevant ministries and departments to implement the recommendations and eventually translate into better service delivery to improve the lives of Gambian women who use obstetric care services.”

Our office continue to measure impactful success through auditing and stakeholder engagement that is geared to increasing the usefulness of auditing in The Gambia. These include our recently launched Summarized Audit Report on the 2016 Auditor General’s Certificate & Report on the financial statements of the Government of The Gambia and publication of latest audit reports, which are all available on our website. We would like to congratulate the Performance Audit Unit, other NAO staff and all development partners who contribute to our work in ensuring accountability and effective resource management through public auditing.</div>

NAO Staff and members of the Press at the Press Briefing on May 26th

You can access the winning report here.

You can read the full press brief statements by the Auditor General and Director of Performance Audit

You can read the report summary of the winning report here.