The Institute of Internal Auditors Malawi (IIA-M) has urged internal auditors to stand out and help their organisations to survive the country’s tough economic environment characterised by high inflation and a cost of living crisis.
Speaking during the IIA-M Annual Lakeshore Conference in Mangochi on Friday, IIA-M president Dickson Chisambila decried that internal auditors in many organisations are not properly placed, resulting in the audit function being made redundant.
He said in many cases, the head of internal audit is placed in a lower ranked position, which becomes difficult to effectively perform their duties.
Said Chisambila: “How can that internal auditor discuss strategic issues when they are not fully recognised. Some organisations don’t know the importance of internal audit and as a professional body, we try all the time to advise.”
He said besides lack of recognition, there are also other external factors that affect the audit function, including weak regulatory framework and inadequate finances to support the audit function.
Chisambila advised internal auditors to safeguard information that has been acquired in a confidential manner, saying revealing confidential information is a breach of internal auditors’ code of ethics.
In her keynote address, High Court of Malawi Judge Zione Ntaba hailed internal auditors for their pivotal role in various organisations and companies in as far as integrity and transparency is concerned.
“We know that most people don’t like internal auditors, nobody likes control, but we understand the important role that internal auditors play,” she said.
Some of the presenters during the conference included financial expert Jimmy Lipunga, who spoke financial security in retirement and Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority director general Daud Suleman, whose presentation was titled Digital and cyber: Keeping ahead of the Game.
The two-day conference was held under the theme ‘Internal audit: Believe, adapt and thrive’.
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