10 Nov 2022

Digitalisation and mindset change could propel the internal audit function towards realising its potential as an assurance service of note if fully embraced, Minister of Finance, Ms Peggy Serame has said.

Ms Serame was speaking at the inauguration of the 11th Internal Audit National Conference, which commenced Wednesday and ends today.

“Digitisation is proving to be an inexorable business enabler, which has potential to improve organisational efficiency and productivity, while ushering in high levels of resiliency and agility,” she said.

Ms Serame added that the internal audit profession should make concerted effort toward attaining full digital transformation in order to enhance its value add.

Therefore, she urged internal auditors to be steadfast and reformist in their approach to delivering services and strive to transform to become a data driven service provider, worthy of recognition as management’s trusted advisor.

“Rapid changes in the corporate world requires auditors to be agile and move at the speed of risk to be trusted advisors,” she said. She indicated that the recent developments both domestically and globally were testimony that the environment in which organisations were operating in were indeed volatile.

Therefore, she said time was right for organisations to embark on the path to align to the country’s reset agenda and mobilise all elements of national development, to provide direction and understanding with respect to implementation of priorities to deliver high impact goals of government.

On mindset change, Ms Serame said internal auditors needed an entirely new approach in order to do things differently. “For instance, in order to enhance the competency and agility, one may want to be directly responsible for their self-development and not leave their capacitation needs to their employer,” she said.

Ms Serame said persisting, internal auditors would be better prepared to influence management’s responses to disruptions and evolving risks faced by their organisations.

“To the latter, internal auditors should not only advise boards and managements on improving conventional corporate governance practices, business recovery and contingency planning geared at overcoming the current or any future challenges,” she added.

Meanwhile, on the state of corporate governance in the country, Botswana Accountancy Oversight Authority (BAOA) chief executive officer, Mr Duncan Majinda said government should be cautious not to intervene in appointment of chief executive officers by established boards of State Owned Enterprises (SOEs).

Mr Majinda said intrusion could ultimately attract CEOs that were not competitive to strategically drive government agendas for the great benefit of the country.

He said based on corporate governance review conducted on 27 SOEs, only three companies were complaint while 24 were not. 

Mr Majinda said of the 17 organisations reviewed for corporate governance, they discovered that they had no succession plans of chairpersons and CEOs, inappropriate appointment of directors as well as non-disclosure of remuneration, among others.

That, he said was clear indication that local organisations were far much behind in adhering to parameters of corporate governance. ENDS