Following the convincing majority of the Saeima (90 for, 1 against) on 6 December 2023, Mr Edgars Korčagins, a current Council Member of the State Audit Office of Latvia, was appointed as the Auditor General of the Republic of Latvia for a four-year term. E. Korčagins will take office when he has taken the oath of the Auditor General following the procedures stipulated in the State Audit Office Law of Latvia, on 14 December 2023 provisionally.
“Together with the State Audit Office team, we will continue the “course taken” towards performance audits, i.e., assessing performance aspects more during audits, respectively whether state funds been spent sufficiently economically and have state services achieved a sufficiently good result? Following our Strategy, we will continue to strengthen the impact of audits both in cooperation with state and municipal institutions in the implementation of recommendations and through educational work and communication to strengthen awareness of public sector auditing and greater involvement of citizens and cooperation partners. We will also continue to strengthen the work of the State Audit Office of Latvia internationally. However, there is always room for improvement, and for the further development of the State Audit Office of Latvia, I see as priorities (1) increasing the efficiency of public sector auditing by transferring as many audit resources as possible from financial audits to performance audits in the coming years, (2) implementation of public sector auditing in areas that have a significant impact on issues relevant to the state (state administration, society), (3) improvement of cooperation with state and municipal institutions by focusing implementation of the recommendations provided by the State Audit Office of Latvia on specific achievable results rather than processes and actions, as well as (4) assessment of the functional results of the mandate of recovery granted to the State Audit Office of Latvia in 2019 and the possibilities of improving the recovery process,” stated Mr Edgars Korčagins, the new Auditor General.
E. Korčagins also points out that “we are currently in the middle stage of the State Audit Office’s Strategy (2022 - 2025), and that the strategic goals set by the institution will remain unchanged, that is, the efficient, diligent and legal operation of the public sector in the public interest”. During the following strategic period, the State Audit Office of Latvia will also increase the proportion of performance audits in order to assess whether state funds are spent economically and effectively by providing the greatest possible benefit to the public with the least possible funds.
Mr Edgars Korčagins obtained a master’s degree in law from the University of Latvia. Since 21 December 2015, E. Korčagins has been a Council Member of the State Audit Office of Latvia and Director of the Fifth Audit Department (audited areas of the department – local and regional governments). Before working in the State Audit Office of Latvia, he gained long-term experience in state administration in the development of various policies and laws and regulations, as well as being the Deputy Director General of the Employers’ Confederation of Latvia for six years.
Mr Edgars Korčagins replaces Mr Rolands Irklis, who headed the State Audit Office of Latvia from 28 January 2021 to 1 December 2023.
About the State Audit Office of Latvia
The State Audit Office of the Republic of Latvia is an independent, collegial supreme audit institution. The purpose of its activity is to find out whether the actions with the financial means and property of a public entity are legal, correct, useful and in line with public interests, as well as to provide recommendations for the elimination of discovered irregularities. The State Audit Office conducts audits in accordance with International Standards of Supreme Audit Institutions of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions INTOSAI (ISSAI), whose recognition in Latvia is determined by the Auditor General.
100 years of AUDIT STRENGTH
On 16 August 2023, the State Audit Law turned 100 years old. With the adoption of this Law, the State Audit Office from a formal de facto institution founded on 2 December 1918 became a de jure independent, collegial supreme audit institution of the Republic of Latvia. The State Audit Office is one of the independent state institutions enshrined in the Satversme (Constitution) of Latvia. The Constitution was signed by Roberts Ivanovs as the secretary of the Constitutional Assembly, who was then confirmed as the Auditor General. He worked as the first Auditor General for 12 years. His signature confirmed the text of our Constitution alongside that of Jānis Čakste.
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