1. CAROSAI’S Strategic Planning Experience
IDI-INTOSAI Regions workshop
Oslo
4-6 September 2017

2. Basic information Question Region’s status/response
When last has your Region carried out a strategic planning exercise?
The activity commenced during the regional congress which was held in June The following three (3) priority areas were decided in the above mentioned congress:
High quality audits creating regional impact
Strategic performance measurement and reporting
Effective stakeholder engagement
These area were further built on with the assistance of IDI in September The Plan itself was finalised following input and review by all members of CAROSAI in November 2016.

3. Basic information cont’d
Question
Region’s status/response
To what extent have you used the INTOSAI Framework for Regional Professionalism and IDI Guidance on Strategic Management in INTOSAI Regions to guide your strategic planning and to create maximum value for your member SAIs?
The Regions plans were done in conjunction with the IDI using INTOSAI Framework. It allows for:
Outcomes at both the SAI level and the regional level
Performance monitoring and evaluation

4. CAROSAI’s Strategic Priorities and Objectives
High Quality Audits Creating Regional Impact
ISSAI based Cooperative Audits
CAROSAI Quality Assurance Mechanism
CAROSAI support for ISSAI practices
Strategic Performance Measurement and Reporting for Effectiveness
Facilitate SAI PMF
SAI Business and Capacity Development Plan
Effective Stakeholder Engagement to Maintain Relevance
Stakeholder Mapping
Active Engagement
The core business of any SAI is to deliver value and benefits to citizens by conducting high quality audits in areas of national and regional relevance.
ISSA based Cooperative audits in three audit streams – Financial, Compliance and Performance Audits
A robust QA mechanism to provide independent assurance as to whether the audits conducted meet quality requirements as stated in the ISSAIs
Enhancing the professional capacity of auditors within the region through blended learning mechanisms
The SAI PMF will be used to create the following results from which strategies to enhance or correct can be developed: the identification of each SAIs strengths and weaknesses; the strengthening of internal performance management and accountability; allowing for external reporting to stakeholders demonstrate progress of performance; demonstrate benefits to citizens support ISSAI implementation; allow for greater donor/external support.
Stakeholder management to support advocacy for independence though transparency and accountability

5. Key mechanisms/initiatives to achieve region’s priorities and objectives
Fostering Communities of Practice through the coordination of the Secretariat
Knowledge sharing
Quality assurance
Development tools
Blended learning programmes
Donor coordination and support
Collaborative audits
So far CAROSAI has undertaken capacity building workshops through donor support, the IDI as well as SAI twinning to achieve our objectives:
Financial Statement Audits (April 2017)
LMS Administrator Training Workshop (May 2017)
Procurement Audit (May 2017)
Stakeholder Engagement Workshop (August 2017)
Individual SAI-PMF Assessments: SAI Trinidad & Tobago (2016), SAI Suriname (2016), SAI Barbados (2017), and SAI Jamaica (2017)

6. What capacity have you created, or do you plan to create to achieve region’s objectives?
Effective governance structure and processes
Regional network and resource person pool from which to build on capacity needs
Procurement audit
Stakeholder engagement
LMS administration
SAIs against corruption
SDG’s
SAI-PMF Assessment
Regional strategy, methodology and technology to support communication

7. Conclusion Question Region’s advice & suggestions
Is there any advice that you wish to ask of the other Regions and role players at the workshop (in terms of some of the challenges that you may be experiencing in carrying out strategic planning)?
Commitment to complete deliverables from capacity building workshops held
Not all SAIs are equal
Not all SAIs currently have SBPs allowing for alignment of individual SAI objectives
Staffing of the Secretariat
Importance of creating a regional pool of resource persons
The capacity within SAIs vary – some are as small as 8 and others are as large as This limits the participation of the SAIs in initiatives even though they have identified it as a priority area for support. The allowances, by legislation of what types of audits each SAI can conduct also serves as another obstacle. The Secretariat has attempted to ensure that all collaborative/parallel audits undertaken were audit originally scheduled by each SAI. To coordinate this the SAIs were asked to submit their planned audit programmes for 2 years to ascertain areas of commonality.

8. Question
Region’s advice & suggestions
Do you have any suggestions for enhancements to the INTOSAI Framework of Regional Professionalism and/or the IDI Guidance on Strategic Management in INTOSAI Regions?
PASAI as a region has a similar working environment as CAROSAI and had implemented SAI PMF - lite, can you advise how this was implemented, the lessons learnt and the recommendation to CAROSAI going forward on this matter?
Within CAROSAI one size does not fit all and as such albeit some of tools geared towards professionalism have not to date seen all SAIs participating.