No. 17

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Problems Related to Local Government Audit, Supervision and Inspection in Estonia

18 June 2008

Studies

RiTo No. 17, 2008

  • Raivo Linnas

    Ph.D. student in public administration, Tallinn University of Technology

In many cases, local governments have not been able to act according to the needs and interests of municipal residents and in adherence to the principles of local government.

This is an indication of problems in the system for audit supervision and inspection of municipal government units. The writer articulates fundamental principles for developing operable solutions for studying the system of audit supervision and inspection of municipal government units. These principles could serve as philosophical tenets based on which a scientific investigation of the system could be planned and carried out, and well-developed solutions suitable and practical for the actual environment could be found. No system can be perfect and perpetually reliable. A system will not result in security if even one subsystem does not ensure security. Complete reliability cannot be achieved in the case of societal systems even if the system is integral and working. In the case of treating and creating a system of municipal government audit supervision and inspection, it is likewise not possible to count on anything else but the possibility to reduce the level of risk.

It remains to be hoped that politicians and state and municipal officials will start directing more attention to the audit supervision and inspection of municipal governments and that they will find a solution that ensures an equilibrium between internal and external audit, supervision and inspection, and reasonable proportions of audit, supervision and inspection.

Full article in Estonian

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