Financial Auditor for Financial Year Ended 31 December 2023

Financial Audits of Regional Secretariat

of Coral Triangle Initiative Coral Reefs Fisheries and Food Securities

For Financial Year Ended 31 December 2023

Over the past years, the implementation has taken many forms. At the regional level, multilateral action is undertaken by the CT6 governments, along with coordinated action by CT6 partners operating at the regional scale (e.g., funding agencies, international Non-Governmental Organizations [NGOs], and private sector companies). At the national level, broad stakeholder alliances collaborate around a shared national agenda in each country. And at the sub-national level, local governments and local stakeholders carry out collaborative efforts to generate needed impacts on-the-ground. A set of coordination mechanisms help catalyse this collective action, connect key actors, and maintain momentum.

OBJECTIVES

The objective of this engagement is to conduct a financial audit of the CTI CFF resources managed by Regional Secretariat of CTI CFF and its program activities as approved for the Year 2023 in accordance with Generally Accepted Auditing Standard.

All amounts in the financial audit report is stated in U.S. dollars. The auditors should indicate the exchange rate(s) used in the notes to the financial statement.

AUDIT SCOPE

RS CTI CFF Financial Regulations Article 11.2 The CTI-CFF Executive Director shall submit annual financial statements to the CTI COM and the CTI CSO. The annual financial statements shall show, for the financial year to which they relate:

a. the income and expenditure relating to all funds including donations from CTI Partners, Collaborators, and other source of funds and accounts;

b. the status with regard to budget/appropriations, including:

-the approved budget/appropriations;

-the actual expenditure under or in excess of the approved budget/appropriations;

-any other income;

-the detailed amounts charged against these appropriations and other income;

c. the financial assets and liabilities of the Secretariat;

d. investments, where such investments shall be restricted to securities and other investments issued by financial institutions or Government bodies with current ratings, provided by a rating body approved by the Secretariat’s Auditor, indicating a strong capacity to pay;

e. Loss of assets and bad debts proposed in accordance with Regulation.

f. Provide such other information as may be appropriate to indicate the financial position of the Secretariat.

 

In addition, the Financial Regulations Article 14.4 on External Audit requires the scope of audit will include as follows:

The Auditor shall conduct their examination of the financial statements in conformity with generally accepted auditing standards and shall report on all relevant matters, including:

- Whether, in their opinion, the statements are based on proper accounts and records;

- Whether the statements are in agreement with the accounts and the records;

- Whether, in their opinion, the income, expenditure and the acquisition and disposal of assets with these Regulations; and

- Observations with respect to the efficiency and economy of the financial procedures which will include on human resources, procurements, travel management, cash management, general administration and information systems.

METHODOLOGY

Both parties agreed that audit activities could be done physically and virtually.

Pre-Audit Documents Reviewed

Following is a list of documents applicable to different CTI CFF programs. The auditor must review the applicable documents considered necessary to perform the audit:

• The Annual Financial Statement for 2023

• Budget Report:

• 2023 Actual Expenditure

• 2023 Approved Budget

• Rules and Regulations pertaining to the CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat including letters, emails, and other related documents.

• Any previous audit reports, financial reviews that directly relate to the objectives of the audit.

Follow-up prior Audit Recommendation

The Auditor must review the implementation of previous Audit Recommendation carried-out by the Secretariat

Opening and exit meeting:

The Auditor must hold the opening and Exit meeting with the Regional Secretariat. The CSO Chair must be notified.

 

REPORT & TIMELINE

Audit Reports

RS CTI-CFF Financial Regulations Article 14.6, the Auditor shall, within sixty (60) days of the date upon which the annual financial statements are submitted by the Executive Director (i.e. 31 March 2023 at the latest), issue a report on the audit of the financial statements and relevant procedures related to the accounts for the financial period, which shall include such information as the Auditor deems necessary. The Auditor shall provide two copies of the Audit Reports and Audited Financial Statements, one copy to the Chair of the CTI CSO and another copy to the Regional Secretariat upon completion of the audit as stated in the contract.

The format and content of the audit reports must contain:

i. Statement of Responsibilities of the Regional Secretariat

ii. Independent Auditor’s Report

iii. Financial Statements

• Statement of financial position

• Statement of activities and changes in net assets

• Statement of cash flows

iv. Notes to Financial Statements

1. The Regional Secretariat

2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

3. Cash and cash equivalent

4. Account Receivables

5. Prepaid Expenses

6. Fixed Assets

7. Account Payables

8. Accrued Expenses

9. Member’s Contribution

10. Salaries

11. Expenditures

12. Program Service Expenditures

13. Communication and Information

14. General Administration

15. Governance and Others

16. Recruitment

17. Other (Depreciation & Exchange rate)

v. Supplementary Information

• Budget and Actual CTI CFF Member’s Contributions for the period of 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023

• Budget and Actual Donors/Partners Contributions for the period of 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023

 

Timeline

The Auditor must prepare Audit Schedule which will describe the detail of activities and dates:

Detail of Activities and dates

o Signing the Audit Contract

o Audit planning

o Collecting data

o Opening Meeting and commencement of the field audit

o Preparation of first draft of audit report

o First draft of audit report submitted to Regional Secretariat

o Comment from Regional Secretariat on the First draft report

o Revised draft report incorporating comments from Regional

o Submitting the second draft report to the Regional Secretariat

o Regional Secretariat comments the second draft report

o Revised the second draft report incorporating comments from Secretariat

o Final draft report as confirmed by the Secretariat

o Exit meeting

o Preparation for final audit report

o Final Audit Report submitted to Chair of CTI CSO and to Regional Secretariat CTI CFF

 

THE AUDIT FIRM AND QUALIFICATIONS OF THE AUDITORS

• The Audit Firm shall be an Auditor-General or equivalent statutory authority from a Party affiliated with internationally recognized independent auditor or an internationally recognized independent auditor with local office establish in Indonesia with experience in the audit of international organizations.

• The Audit Firm should state its legal nature, the total number of auditors who are owners and/or employees of the firm as well as auditing services provided by the firm and state whether the firm has any associations or affiliation with any other professional firm as auditors in the Indonesia or abroad.

• The Audit Firm must employ adequate staff with appropriate professional qualifications and suitable experience in auditing the accounts of entities comparable in size and complexity to the entity being audited.

6 • The Auditor’s team should be experienced in applying international audit standards applicable for the audit.

• The Auditor’s team should have a sound-track record in conducting an audit review of international organizations or public entities with not for-profit experience.

• The Auditor’s team should have working knowledge in Bahasa Indonesia, as some vouchers, receipts, additional reports may not be available in English.

• The Auditor’s team must be completely impartial and independent from all aspects of management or financial interests in the entity being audited.

• Curriculum vitae (CVs) should be provided by the principal of the firm of auditors who would be responsible for signing the opinion, together with the CVs of managers, supervisors and key personnel proposed as part of the audit team. CVs should include details on audits carried out by the applicable staff, including ongoing assignments indicating capability and capacity to undertake the audit.

ILLUSTRATIVE BUDGET AND FEES

Please outline your budget proposals for the audit in US Dollar. It will include Professional Fees and Out of Pocket Expenses (fixed cost).