Audit into programme funds to start this year: Minister

FINANCE Minister Rainbo Paita says there will be an audit into the use of service improvement programme (SIP) funds in the provinces and districts from this year.
He told Parliament on Friday that the Government allocated K5 million to the Department of Implementation and Rural Development (DIRD) to do the auditing.
East Sepik Governor Allan Bird asked Paita if an audit was done to determine the effectiveness of the programmes since their inception.
A total of K1.1 billion has been spent annually on the programme, totalling K11 billion in the last 10 years.
“There hasn’t been a specific audit on that programme, DSIP (district services improvement programme) and PSIP (provincial services improvement programme),” Paita said.
“This year Government has allocated K5 million to the Department of DIRD.
“That funding is now available to the department to carry out not just an audit but a forensic audit as to districts and provinces.
“We will start that process now. The first initial funding of K5 million is available now to start that process.” Paita also welcomed Bird’s request for East Sepik to be the first provinces to be audited together with Finschhafen.
“He (Bird) has volunteered that his province will be one of the first provinces to be audited.
“I welcome that by the governor and I call upon all the governor’s districts.
“From the districts, my district will be one of the first districts to be audited.
“So East Sepik and Finschhafen will be one of the first districts and provinces for us to audit.”
Paita said the programme would start this year and all funds would be released under SIP.
Parliament was adjourned to today at 10am.