A three-member delegation led by the Chairman of the State Audit Commission, Office of the Auditor General of Thailand, His Excellency Professor Chaisit Trachoetham is on four-day visit to Bhutan upon the invitation of the Auditor General of Bhutan.
 
The two Supreme Audit Institutions of Thailand and Bhutan signed a Memorandum of Understanding at the RAA Conference Hall today, the 23rd of August 2016. The MoU establishes a transparent framework for cooperation and aims at mutual institutional strengthening and increasing the effectiveness of public sector audit of respective SAI to contribute to value for money and good governance.
 
The MoU is expected to enhance relationship between the two SAIs in terms of mutual   cooperation, knowledge and experience sharing and mutual benefits. The delegation returns to Thailand on the 25th of August 2016.

The Royal Audit Authority is currently hosting the ASOSAI Seminar on the theme “ISSAI Implementation - Experience and Strategy” at Paro. The Seminar is a forum that the ASOSAI organizes regularly and this is the first time it is being hosted in Bhutan. The five-day seminar was inaugurated by the Honorable Finance Minister of Bhutan, Lyonpo Namgay Dorji on the 22^nd of August 2016.

The officials of the RAA are undergoing a consolidated introductory-cum-refreshers course on Google Apps. The course provided by the Department of IT and Telecom under Ministry of Information & Communication, is primarily to maximize the usage of the paid Google Apps to improve efficiency of the day-to-day operations and to reduce the cost of the Government. The course is being conducted for 130 auditors in two batches on the 10^th and 11^th of August 2016.

The RAA signed the Annual Performance Compact Agreement for 2016-2017 between the Auditor General, the Deputy Auditors General and respective Assistant Auditors General of the eleven Divisions of the Head Quarters and four regional Offices of Assistant Auditor General. The Annual Performance Compact Agreements are aligned with the Annual Performance Target set keeping in line with the RAA’s Strategic Plan and Operational Plan 2015-2020. The Agreements were signed on 10^th August 2017 and witnessed by other officials of the RAA.

A team from the UNDP led by the Resident Representative Ms. Niamh Collier-Smith made a brief presentation on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the UN. The presentation touched upon the goals that were most relevant to Bhutan and the RAA in particular. The presentation was focused on the Goal 16 of the SDGs “Peace, Justice & Strong Institutions” and was followed by a brief Q&A session.

The Royal Audit Authority signed the grant titled “Strengthening Environmental Auditing towards Protection & Conservation of Environment” with the Bhutan Trust Fund for Environmental Conservation in presence of Gross National Happiness Commission on 1^st August 2016 at the BTFEC Office. The grant of Nu.6.924 million will facilitate the RAA in capacity and institutional building through strengthening of environmental auditing which would contribute towards Environmental Conservation.

His Holiness the Je Khenpo visited the RAA’s Professional Development Centre construction site in Tsirang and graced it with Thugmen and blessings on 30^th July 2016. His Holiness was received by the Hon’ble Auditor General of Bhutan and team from the Head Quarters & the OAAG, Tsirang. Also present on the occasion were the Tsirang Dzongdag, Lam Neten of Tsirang and Officials of the Tsirang Dzongkhag Administration.

The Royal Audit Authority is pleased to release the 10^th issue of its bi-annual Newsletter today, 29^th July 2016.  This issue has been prepared compiling all important events and initiatives undertaken by the Royal Audit Authority in the last six months and it aims to serve as a communication channel to disseminate such important information to all the stakeholders.

The Royal Audit Authority launched its second Strategic Plan 2015-2020, today 27^th July 2016. The event was graced by His Excellency Lyonpo Namgay Dorji, the Minister for Finance, also present were representatives of the various media houses and officials of the RAA. The Strategic Plan document is a roadmap that the RAA will forge towards attainment of newer heights and meeting aspirations of stakeholders, adding value and benefits to the citizens.

Sixty Auditors will leave for training programme on International Standards for Supreme Audit Institutions (ISSAI) to be held from 25^th July 2016 to 5^th August 2016 at iCISA, New Delhi.