The Audit Authority of Montenegro participated in the regional conference of Audit Authorities of IPA beneficiaries, which was held on October 19 and 20, 2023 in Istanbul. The main topic of the conference was the experiences gained from IPA II as well as the future challenges in auditing when it comes to IPA III.
The opening speech was given by Ahmet Tutal, the auditor general of the Audit Authority of Turkey. The representatives of the Audit Authorities of IPA beneficiaries – North Macedonia, Albania, Serbia, Turkey, and Montenegro, as well as the representatives of the Croatian Audit Authority, OLAF and DG AGRI, played an active role at the conference.
Auditor General Ksenija Barjaktarović, on behalf of the Audit Authority of Montenegro, gave a presentation in which she presented the current situation in the Audit Authority, plans for capacity building, experience related to IPA II, interesting findings during the conduct of audits in the IPA II programming period, as well as future challenges when it comes to IPA III. Our colleague Rina Mučaj was one of the participants in the panel where coordination between OLAF, AFCOS and audit authorities, as well as future challenges in IPA III, were discussed.
There was also a discussion about the general issues faced by audit authorities during audits, their findings and recommendations. Examples of good practice that can be used to improve the results obtained through the use of EU funds were also discussed. There was also a conversation about the need for better coordination between OLAF, AFCOS and audit authorities in order to contribute to better protection of EU funds.