International Cooperation Audit Report "Environmental Management for the Protection of Natural Resources in the Amazon Region"

Report ID: 335

The Amazon Basin is equivalent to 41% of the South American Continental space, in which participate Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela and French Guiana, so that enables find a high number of thermic floors; hence, the diversity of endemic species of flora and fauna. In the Amazonia there are 1150 rivers of different magnitude that carry more than 20% of world’s freshwater.  All this richness is being in danger by the destructive combination created by the Global Warming and Deforestation

The singular importance of the Amazon Basin  motivated the Comptroller General's Offices of Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, and the Court of Accounts of Brazil to sign a Cooperation Agreement to conduct a coordinated audit to evaluate the management carried out by their respective governments regarding the policies of conservation and management of the natural and cultural heritage of the Amazon region.

Thi cooperative audit was performed under the framework of the activities of OLACEFS  Environment Special Technical Commission. The audit in cooperation included a selective evaluation of the principal public institutions of each country, in charge of implementing the Amazon Cooperation Treaty, in order to establish the proper level of compliance
with the commitments arising from said Treaty and the management executed by government entities.

The objectives of the audit were:

• To assess the management conducted by the governments of the countries of the Amazon Region, about meeting the goals and commitments established in the framework of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty, with the aim to elaborate a report that contributes to the conservation and sustainable use of the natural and cultural resources of the region.

• To assess the management developed by government agencies and entities responsible for the conservation, management of natural and cultural heritage of the Amazon region, aimed at finding sustainable development and social cohesion.

The audit was supported by In Went – Capacity Building International of Germany that accepted the initiative to develop the audit, through the regional office for the Andean countries, and also financed important aspects for the execution of this work.

Source: https://www.contraloria.gob.ec/Informativo/InformesAuditoriaAmbiental/AuditoriaAmbiental

Informe Internacional de la Auditoría Cooperativa de Gestión Ambiental para la protección de los recursos naturales en la región Amazónica

Report ID: 337

La Cuenca Amazónica equivale al 41% del espacio continental sudamericano, en el que participan Brasil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Perú, Surinam, Venezuela y Guayana Francesa, por lo que permite encontrar un alto número de pisos térmicos; de ahí la diversidad de especies endémicas de flora y fauna. En la Amazonia hay 1150 ríos de diferente magnitud que transportan más del 20% del agua dulce del mundo.  Toda esta riqueza está en peligro por la combinación destructiva creada por el Calentamiento Global y la Deforestación.

La singular importancia de la cuenca del Amazonas motivó a las Contralorías Generales de Colombia, el Ecuador y el Perú, y al Tribunal de Cuentas del Brasil a firmar un Acuerdo de Cooperación para realizar una auditoría coordinada que evaluara la gestión realizada por sus respectivos gobiernos en relación con las políticas de conservación y gestión del patrimonio natural y cultural de la región amazónica.

Esta auditoría cooperativa se realizó en el marco de las actividades de la Comisión Técnica Especial de Medio Ambiente de la OLACEFS. La auditoría en cooperación incluyó una evaluación selectiva de las principales instituciones públicas de cada país, encargadas de aplicar el Tratado de Cooperación Amazónica, a fin de establecer el nivel de cumplimiento adecuado con los compromisos derivados de dicho Tratado y la gestión ejecutada por las entidades gubernamentales.

Los objetivos de la auditoría fueron:
- Evaluar la gestión llevada a cabo por los gobiernos de los países de la Región Amazónica, sobre el cumplimiento de las metas y compromisos establecidos en el marco del Tratado de Cooperación Amazónica, con el fin de elaborar un informe que contribuya a la conservación y al uso sostenible de los recursos naturales y culturales de la región.
- Evaluar la gestión desarrollada por los organismos gubernamentales y las entidades responsables de la conservación, la gestión del patrimonio natural y cultural de la región amazónica, con el fin de encontrar el desarrollo sostenible y la cohesión social.

La auditoría contó con el apoyo de In Went - Capacity Building International de Alemania, que aceptó la iniciativa de desarrollar la auditoría, a través de la oficina regional para los países andinos, y también financió aspectos importantes para la ejecución de esta labor.

Fuente: https://www.contraloria.gob.ec/Informativo/InformesAuditoriaAmbiental/AuditoriaAmbiental

Joint Report on the Results of the International Coordinated Audit on the Prevention and Consequences Elimination of Floods

Report ID: 356

The International Coordinated Audit on the Prevention and Consequences Elimination of Floods was carried out in the framework of the EUROSAI Working Group on the Audit of Funds Allocated to Disasters and Catastrophes. The SAIs of of Belarus, Georgia, Poland, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine (audit coordinator) and the European Court of Auditors participated in the audit.

The purpose of the audit was the assessment of the establishment by national bodies of the response mechanisms in case of floods and the timeliness of such actions, the effectiveness of the flood risk management system and the reduction of the harmful impact of floods, the economy and legality of using the allocated budget funds for the above purpose.

Participants of the international coordinated audit unanimously state that in the process of managing natural disasters, the amount of money invested in reducing the risk of a catastrophe is the most cost-effective, as proper prevention and preparedness measures can significantly reduce the adverse impact of natural disasters.

The international coordinated audit highlighted, that in the countries of participating SAIs and at EU level (according to the findings of the European Court of Auditors):

✓ legal and organizational frameworks for flood protection planning and management have been established, however there is a need to further finalizing the programming documents, specification of the developed policies, strengthening coordination between the competent authorities, as well as strict adherence to the requirements of European and national legislation;

 ✓ a system of flood risk management based on the basin principle was introduced and regional bodies of river basin management were established, but integrated flood risk management was not provided in national and cross-border river basins;

✓ measures aimed at flood protection have not been implemented effectively, in particular due to late decision-making;

 ✓ approaches to financing flood measures are imperfect, do not provide the need for funds as most of SAIs-participants noted, and flood risk management plans sent to the European Commission do not always identify the source of funds, as ECA reported;

 ✓ there is a need to improve forecasting of future flood risk.

The study of this problem resulted in elaboration of key recommendations to the governments and responsible bodies of the countries.

Participants of the international coordinated audit share the provisions of the INTOSAI Guidance GUID 9000 “Cooperative Audits between SAIs” and identify a decisive factor in cooperative efforts to find a common solution for a specific audit topic, as their countries have similar interests in sphere of flood prevention and its consequences elimination.

Source: EUROSAI Database of Audits - https://www.eurosai.org/en/databases/audits/Joint-Report-on-the-Results-of-the-International-Coordinated-Audit-on-the-Prevention-and-Consequences-Elimination-of-Floods/

Joint Report on the Results of the International Audit on Waste Management and Utilization

Report ID: 366

The International Coordinated Audit on Waste Management and Utilization was conducted in the framework of the EUROSAI Working Group on the Audit of Funds Allocated to Disasters and Catastrophes. The purposes of the national audits – were to assess the state and efficiency of the waste management system in the countries participants of the audit.

The Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) of Moldova, Serbia and Ukraine participated in the audit. The SAI of Ukraine was the audit coordinator, The aim of national audits was to assess the state and effectiveness of the waste management system in countries of SAIs– participants of the international audit. The scope of the audit comprised from 2015-2018.

The results of the national audits conducted in the field of household, industrial and other hazardous waste, which can pose a serious threat to human health and the environment, as well as lead to environmental and man-made disasters, showed: for those countries, whose SAIs participated in the audit, common inconsistencies/gaps and problems within existing waste management systems

The results of the cooperative audit indicate the need to strengthen the governments’ efforts to move from the existing linear economy to a circular economy based on the maximum processing of waste generated in the territories of countries as well as the creation of an integrated waste management system in accordance with the EU “waste management hierarchy” in order to reduce the negative impact on the environment, public health and prevent the occurrence of environmental and man-made disasters.

Fuente:  EUROSAI Database of Audits -  https://www.eurosai.org/en/databases/audits/Joint-Report-on-the-Results-of-the-International-Audit-on-Waste-Management-and-Utilization/

Resumo Executivo - Auditoria Coordenada das Áreas Protegidas (1ª edição)

Report ID: 372

As Áreas Protegidas (AP) são criadas considerando as características naturais relevantes dos territórios, com fronteiras geográficas definidas, e como uma resposta à necessidade de conservação da biodiversidade. Estas áreas são reconhecidas pela Convenção das Nações Unidas sobre Diversidade Biológica (CDB) como uma estratégia global para a conservação da biodiversidade. Neste sentido, o compromisso internacional estabelece objectivos para a protecção de áreas terrestres e marinhas que devem ser alcançados através da implementação de sistemas de áreas protegidas ecologicamente representativos e geridos de forma eficaz.

Neste contexto, no âmbito das actividades da Comissão Técnica Especial sobre Ambiente (COMTEMA) da Organização das Instituições Supremas de Auditoria da América Latina e Caraíbas (OLACEFS), as Instituições Supremas de Auditoria (ISC) da Argentina, Bolívia, Brasil (ISC Coordenadora), Colômbia, Costa Rica, Equador, El Salvador, Honduras, México, Paraguai (ISC Coordenadora), Peru e Venezuela realizaram uma auditoria coordenada. Esta auditoria foi apoiada pela Cooperação Alemã GIZ.

A auditoria avaliou se as áreas protegidas terrestres na América Latina possuem as condições institucionais, regulamentares e operacionais necessárias para alcançar os objectivos para os quais foram criadas. Como parte desta auditoria, foi possível avaliar 1120 áreas protegidas de uma forma padronizada, o que permitiu a elaboração de um diagnóstico sem precedentes da política pública de conservação da biodiversidade na região.

Para analisar a governação de áreas protegidas, o TCU criou o INDIMAPA, um método para avaliar a implementação e gestão de áreas protegidas. Esta ferramenta geo-referenciada utiliza indicadores e índices que são visualizados em mapas, para além de permitir a classificação das áreas protegidas em três gamas: vermelho, amarelo e verde, correspondentes respectivamente ao baixo, médio e alto nível de implementação da gestão. Desta forma, a partir da auditoria coordenada, a sociedade e as Instituições de Controlo poderão acompanhar a evolução na gestão do património público ambiental representado pelas áreas protegidas.

Fonte: https://portal.tcu.gov.br/biblioteca-digital/auditoria-coordenada-nas-areas-protegidas-da-america-latina.htm

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