Auditor General Trần Sỹ Thanh of the State Audit Office of Việt Nam chairs the opening ceremony of the 15th ASOSAI Assembly from Hà Nội on Tuesday. VNA/VNS Photo Phương Hoa

HÀ NỘI - The 15th assembly of the Asian Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (ASOSAI) convened on Tuesday under the chairmanship of Trần Sỹ Thanh, Auditor General of the State Audit Office of Việt Nam.

The meeting was held as an online conference, with representatives from supreme audit institutions joining from the host country of Thailand and other ASOSAI member countries.

Thanh is also Chair of ASOSAI for the 2018-21 term.

Speaking at the meeting, the Vietnamese auditor general praised the efforts of all member countries to organise the online conference amid the complicated COVID-19 situation in the region and around the world.

“As COVID-19 is leaving huge impacts on the economy and social development of most Asian countries, the ASOSAI community has come together and come up with timely initiatives and solutions to adapt to the pandemic,” he said.

It’s an incredible effort from all supreme audit institutions (SAI), especially SAI Thailand, which is the host of the 15th ASOSAI assembly, and SAI China, its Secretary General, who worked closely with SAI Việt Nam to make the conference happen, he added.

During its three years as ASOSAI Chair, the State Audit Office of Việt Nam had tried its best to implement the Hanoi Declaration on “Environmental Auditing for Sustainable Development”, which was approved at the 14th ASOSAI assembly in Hà Nội in 2018, he said.

Thailand's State Auditor General Chanathap Indamra agreed that the COVID-19 pandemic was changing every sector, including auditing, therefore this meeting between the supreme audit institutions was of the utmost importance to all ASOSAI member countries.

“We highly value your participation today. This is the 15th time we all sit down together to discuss how to help ASOSAI grow. Thailand's State Auditor is honoured to take on the chairmanship of ASOSAI for the 2021-24 term,” he said.

This ASOSAI Assembly would not have been successful without the support of Việt Nam and China amid complicated developments of the pandemic, he added.

Aleksei Kudrin, Chair of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), said that the 15th ASOSAI Assembly held in an online format had demonstrated the flexibility of the audit community.

The Bangkok Declaration adopted at this assembly would be the key document to orient the main activities of the ASOSAI in the future, he said.

He thanked the State Audit Office of Việt Nam for its efforts to address many important issues, helping to promote ASOSAI’s reputation in Asia.

After the opening ceremony, the 15th ASOSAI Assembly started the first and second plenary sessions, the 8th Symposium and the 57th Governing Board Meeting. — VNS