big data and technology can boost the quality of audit: Shashi Kant Sharma

NEW DELHI: Use of big data and technology can boost the quality of audit, Shashi Kant Sharma, Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), has said.

"There is a tremendous buzz in the international audit community about the great potential that big data and data analytics can offer. There are several other ways by which Supreme Audit Institutions (SAI) could use technology to improve the quality and accuracy of its audit plans, to make audit efforts more focused, and bring out audit findings that are incisive and reader friendly, resulting in overall improvement in the quality of audit," Sharma said, after inaugurating the 23rd Commonwealth Auditors General Conference in New Delhi.

The conference, being attended by 74 participants from 36 countries, is an opportunity for auditors to share their experiences and to know the global best practices.

Some of the key speakers at the conference included John Thorpe, Executive Leader of National Audit Office of UK, and Harib Saeed Al Amimi, President of the State Audit Institution of UAE and the Chairman of International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI).

Amini appreciated the efforts of CAG of India towards capacity development in the field of environment auditing through the International Centre for Environment Audit and Sustainable Development (ICED) near Jaipur. Prasenjit Mukherjee, Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General, delivered the keynote address on "Fostering Partnerships for Capacity Development in Public Audit".