The 8th INTOSAI WGBD Meeting: Promoting international cooperation in big data auditing

According to Mr. Ngo Van Tuan, 2024 marks an important milestone, celebrating the 30th anniversary of the establishment and development of the State Audit Office of Viet Nam (SAV). In recent years, SAV has proved itself as an essential and effective tool of the Party and State in monitoring and controlling the management and use of public finance and assets, enhancing accountability, and ensuring transparency in the use of the state budget. It has made significant contributions to the institutional development process during the country's development phase.

As part of the activities remarking its 30th anniversary, SAV co-hosted the 8th meeting of the INTOSAI WGBD. On behalf of SAV, Auditor General Ngo Van Tuan expressed his gratitude to the presence of Mr. Nguyen Duc Hai, Member of the Party Central Committee and Deputy Chairman of the National Assembly; Mr. Ma Wenhui, Deputy Auditor General of the Chinese National Audit Office (CNAO); and representatives from central and local agencies, ministries, international organizations, and embassies in Viet Nam, who attended the conference.
 

Auditor General Ngo Van Tuan highlighted that in recent years, the INTOSAI WGBD has made significant strides, particularly in sharing knowledge on high-quality auditing through the application of advanced technologies, which have been highly beneficial to the INTOSAI community and its members.

Joining as an observer from 2020, and becoming an official member in October 2023, SAV has made positive contributions to the Group’s activities. Most recently, SAV participated in the 7th annual meeting of the Working Group, held in Egypt, with 70 representatives from 26 members and observers. The conference focused on “Application of Big Data in Auditing,” offering substantial values in both professional knowledge and practical experience.

Building on the success of the 7th meeting, SAV coordinated with the CNAO to select the theme for this meeting: “Data Governance – A New Effective Tool in Auditing – From a Data Quality Perspective.” This allowed supreme audit institutions (SAIs), both members and observers, to research and share knowledge and experiences on the challenges, opportunities, and successful lessons related to improving data governance and big data auditing.

With the hope that the conference would be successful, Auditor General Ngo Van Tuan encouraged delegates to continue contributing further insights, sharing experiences, and providing more practical lessons to deepen the issues the conference aimed to address.

Mr. Doan Minh Huan, Member of the Party Central Committee and Secretary of the Ninh Bình Provincial Party Committee, expressed the province's pleasure to cooperate with SAV to organize the Meeting. He believed the event would contribute to the overall success of INTOSAI’s activities, helping members share experiences on advanced methods and tools in big data, thus improving the efficiency of audit work and public financial management.

Huan also emphasized that this was a valuable opportunity for Ninh Binh province to showcase its cultural and historical values, the beauty, and the potentials of the region, particularly the scenic landscapes and unique cultural and historical heritage of the Hoa Lu Ancient Capital, a representative of the Red River civilization and the heroic Vietnamese people.

In a gesture of sincere appreciation to the National Assembly of Viet Nam, Deputy Auditor General of China, Mr. Ma Wenhui, conveyed the warm greetings and gratitude of Mr. Hou Kai, Auditor General of China, Chairman of the INTOSAI WGBD, to Mr. Nguyen Duc Hai, Deputy Chairman of the National Assembly. Mr. Ma Wenhui shared that the INTOSAI WGBD was established in 2016, with CNAO serving as the Chair and the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) as Vice Chair. The Group's main activities aim to identify opportunities and challenges SAIs face in the era of big data, and to promote information sharing and experience exchanges in the fields of big data and big data auditing.
 

As of August 2024, the INTOSAI WGBD had 43 official members and 6 observers, attracting over 50 delegates from countries and international organizations to this meeting.

To ensure the smooth organisation of the conference, SAV coordinated carefully with Ninh Binh province, paying special attention to the preparations, particularly given that some northern provinces of Viet Nam, including Ninh Binh, were being affected by Typhoon No. 3.

Ma Wenhui highlighted that Viet Nam is one of the important countries in Asia and a significant member of ASEAN. In recent years, Viet Nam has actively sought a development path suited to its national conditions, while promoting comprehensive reforms and enhancing its influence regionally and globally. In this process, SAV has been actively engaged in international exchanges and cooperation in the field of auditing.

SAV became an observer of the INTOSAI WGBD in April 2020 and an official member by the end of 2023. Since its joining, the Vietnamese colleagues havew actively participated in working group meetings and related activities, sharing successful experiences and making important contributions to the development of auditing in Asia and globally.

This 8th meeting officially opened on the morning of September 10th, with representatives from participating countries delivering insightful presentations aimed at mutual learning. "We have learned new concepts and methods regarding big data auditing, which will undoubtedly have a positive impact on big data auditing and bring greater efficiency to member SAIs," Ma Wenhui added.

In the future, the Working Group will continue to act as a professional platform, fostering deeper friendships and the exchange of professional knowledge and experience among nations. It will further promote international cooperation in big data auditing, supporting SAIs in enhancing their data governance capabilities and contributing to the economic and social development of their respective countries.

In conclusion, Mr. Ma Wenhui wished for the sustainable development of Viet Nam’s economy and society, sharing, “We are very pleased to visit Ninh Binh and feel the warmth and friendliness of the Vietnamese people. We will take advantage of this valuable opportunity to enhance the exchange of experiences and knowledge sharing to ensure the Meeting's great success.”