The Auditor General's Report on the Public Accounts of Sierra Leone for the Year ending 31st December, 2011 has been submitted and tabled in Parliament on the 18th of January, 2013.

The Report was tabled by the Deputy Speaker of Parliament and Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, Hon Chernor R.M. Bah in a well attended ceremony in Parliament.

In an interview with Mr. Martin Sandy, Information, Education and Communications Officer of Audit Service Sierra Leone (ASSL), he said that the institution independently reviewed the economy, efficiency and effectiveness of Government as the custodian of public funds and ensured that moneys were used in the manner intended by Parliament as well as being clearly and accurately reported. He stated that the Auditor General's Report 2011 was very unique as it had an inclusion of Reports on Projects, Performance Audits, Local Councils and a Special Audit on the National Revenue Authority.

Mr. Sandy highlighted that as the Guardian of Sierra Leone's Economic Security, ASSL conduct its work in a professional, ethical and transparent manner to assure the productive stewardship of the investment of taxpayers and other stakeholders, and to safeguard the citizens' interest in the public sector. 

Commenting on the successes of the institution, the IEC Officer said that last year, in addition to the audits of MDAs, public enterprises, schools, councils and local authorities ASSL conducted five Performance Audits and submitted them to Parliament. The Performance audits were concerned with the distribution of seed rice, malaria intervention, the generation and collection of revenue in the fisheries sector, the examination and monitoring of vehicles and the supply of potable water.

He referred to Section 119 of the 1991 Constitution of Sierra Leone which mandated the Auditor General to "audit the Public Accounts of Sierra Leone and all public offices, including the courts, the accounts of the central and local government administrations, of the universities and public institutions of like nature, any statutory corporation, company or other body or organization established by an Act of Parliament or statutory instrument or otherwise set up partly or wholly out of Public Funds".

The full report on the Public Accounts of Sierra Leone for the Year ending 31st December, 2011 is available on the Audit Service Sierra Leone website www.auditservice.gov.sl