Enhancing the transparency and performance of Chile's supreme audit institution

This chapter examines practices used by the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic (Contraloría General de la República, CGR) – Chile’s supreme audit institution (SAI) – to improve its transparency and demonstrate its impact. Transparency and performance are elements for enhancing the CGR’s own accountability – and leading by example. In examining the CGR’s practices, the chapter examines the institution’s: i) efforts to enhance transparency of its mandate, responsibilities and operations, including through the use of the Internet and social media and ii) approaches to measure the performance of its internal operations and audit assignments. The analysis is framed by International Standards of Supreme Audit Institutions (ISSAI), INTOSAI good guidance and a past UN/INTOSAI Symposium on Government Audit. Specific reference is made to INTOSAI “Principles Transparency and Accountability” (ISSAI 20), INTOSAI How to Increase the Use and Impact of Audit Reports: A Guide for Supreme Audit Institutions and the UN/INTOSAI “Symposium on the Value and Benefits of Government Audit in a Globalised Environment”. The chapter includes comparative data for the CGR as well as 13 SAIs collected through an OECD survey conducted specifically for this peer review.