| Yemen: Integrity Scorecard Report > Sub-Category: Supreme Audit Institution | ||
| Indicators | Score | |
| 58 | Is there a national supreme audit institution, auditor general or equivalent agency covering the entire public sector? | 100 |
| 59 | Is the supreme audit institution effective? | 25 |
| 60 | Can citizens access reports of the supreme audit institution? | 17 |
Indicator and sub-Indicator Details
| 58 | Is there a national supreme audit institution, auditor general or equivalent agency covering the entire public sector? | |||||||
| 58: In law, is there a national supreme audit institution, auditor general or equivalent agency covering the entire public sector? | ||||||||
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Comments: COCA is the national supreme audit institution for all government ministries, agencies, authorities, and public and mixed-sector enterprises. References: Law 39, 1992, Concerning the Cental Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA), [ LINK ]
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| 59 | Is the supreme audit institution effective? | |||||||
| 59a: In law, the supreme audit institution is protected from political interference. | ||||||||
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Comments: COCA is under the auspices of the Executive Office of the Presidency, and its chairman and top staff are appointed by presidential decree. The law clearly states that the appointment of its senior officers is by presidential decree and is not subject to legislative approval. The fact that COCA is by law under the presidential office makes its independence rather fluid. References: Law 39, 1992, Concerning the Cental Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA, [ LINK ]
Peer Review Comments: According to Article 22 of Law 39 for 1992 , the Central Organization for Control and Auditing is an independent agency in performing its duties, and no party is allowed to interfere in its affairs.
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| 59b: In practice, the head of the audit agency is protected from removal without relevant justification. | ||||||||
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Comments: Article 19 (a) explicitly leaves the designation of the chairman of COCA to the President of the Republic. Article 19 (b) states that the chairman is immune from removal or relocation unless he is proven to have violated the law or was deficient in carrying out his duties. There have been occasions in the past when the chairman was actually deligent in his duties, and this may have been cause for his dismissal. References: Law 39, 1992, Concerning the Central Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA), [ LINK ], Article !9 (a), (b)
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| 59c: In practice, the audit agency has a professional, full-time staff. | ||||||||
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Comments: The staff of the Central Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA) numbers 1700 and is spread throughout Yemen. They undergo continuous training. References: [ LINK ]
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| 59d: In practice, audit agency appointments support the independence of the agency. | ||||||||
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Comments: Appointments of the top positions in COCA are by presidential decree and are not subject to review by Parliament. References: [ LINK ] Law 39, 1992, Concerning the Central Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA), [ LINK ]
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| 59e: In practice, the audit agency receives regular funding. | ||||||||
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Comments: The budget for the Central Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA) is included in the government's general budget. " Although the law stipulates that COCA's budget is independent, it complains of Finance Ministry practices that aren't indicative of such independence, even regarding finances. From Yemen Times, quoting from a World Bank study References: [ LINK ]
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| 59f: In practice, the audit agency makes regular public reports. | ||||||||
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Comments: "The Central Organization for Control and Auditings (COCA) reports were given to Parliament but were not made accessible to the general public." Article 11 states that COCA should inform the relevant government agency of its findings in cases concerning that agency. If the relevant agency does not act upon the report within 30 days, COCA can refer the case to the General Prosecution of Public Property. However, in the cases involving ministers, vice ministers and undersecretaries, the reports are given to the president. Article 13 states that COCA presents its reports to the relevant entities, with copies to the other concerned entities and the Presidential Council (which has now been annulled, and thus to the president). COCA also sends its reports on the review of the budgets, final accounts and performance assessments of various government entities to the entities concerned, with copies to the other relevant concerned entities. COCA sends its annual review of the Final Account of the Government Budget (and the attached budgets of "autonomous" units) to the president, Parliament, the Cabinet and other relevant concerned entities.
References: [ LINK ] Law 39, 1992, Concerning the Central Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA), [ LINK ]
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| 59g: In practice, the government acts on the findings of the audit agency. | ||||||||
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Comments: The first source clearly indicates that the ombudsmans efforts often lead to a dead end: The Central Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA), as an anti-corruption watchdog, in practice is not an independent body. It is answerable to the president and presents its report to Parliament once a year. It has been monitoring government revenues, spending, procurement and performance. But its reports are either not taken into account or are being used to blackmail government officials. This is confirmed by other reports as well as personal experience: "At year's end, of the 518 cases, 490 had been sent to the judiciary for action, while the remaining 28 cases were still under consideration. COCA's reports were given to Parliament but were not accessible to the general public. Only low-ranking officials have been prosecuted for corruption since COCA's inception."
References: [ LINK ]
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| 59h: In practice, the audit agency is able to initiate its own investigations. | ||||||||
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Comments: Institutions that deal with corruption during the investigation: The Central Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA), Public Prosecution for Public Funs (public property cases), Supreme Judicial Council (for cases involving judges and prosecutors) and Ministry of Finance, for checks and control of finance affairs. This is confirmed by other reports as well and personal experience: "At year's end, of the 518 cases, 490 had been sent to the judiciary for action, while the remaining 28 cases were still under consideration. COCA's reports were given to Parliament but were not accessible to the general public. Only low-ranking officials have been prosecuted for corruption since COCA's inception." The Central Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA), as an anti-corruption watchdog, in practice is not an independent body. It is answerable to the president and presents its report to Parliament once a year. It has been monitoring government revenues, spending, procurement and performance. But its reports are either not taken into account or are being used to blackmail government officials.
References: [ LINK ]
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| 60 | Can citizens access reports of the supreme audit institution? | |||||||
| 60a: In law, citizens can access reports of the audit agency. | ||||||||
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Comments: COCA presents its reports to the relevant agency, to other concerned entities and to the President of the Republic, and at year end presents a report to Parliament on its review of the final accounts of the budget. References: Law 39, 1992, Concerning the Central Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA), Articles 11, 13, [ LINK ]
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| 60b: In practice, citizens can access audit reports within a reasonable time period. | ||||||||
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Comments: There are reports that manage to reach the press. References: [ LINK ]
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| 60c: In practice, citizens can access the audit reports at a reasonable cost. | ||||||||
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Comments: Stipulations in pertinent COCO legislation and other related laws further reinforce the limitations of public access to most of the output of the ombudsman agencies. They are also not available in COCA website. References: Personal experience Various published Central Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA) reports leaked to the press, [ LINK ]
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