The meeting addressed the current state and prospects of cooperation between the supreme audit institutions of the two countries, the exchange of best practices in public audit, the implementation of international standards in practice, and the implementation of joint projects.

It was noted that in recent years, relations between the Chamber of Accounts of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the State Audit Office of Latvia have gone beyond simple exchange of experience and developed into a partnership based on mutual trust and concrete practical results. Within the framework of the Cooperation Agreement signed between the institutions, work is being carried out on exchanging knowledge and experience, enhancing the professional capacity of auditors, organizing seminars and training sessions, and studying modern audit methodologies.

During the meeting, M. Abdullayev briefed the Latvian side on the large-scale transformation processes being implemented in Uzbekistan’s public financial control system. In particular, he outlined the work underway on the use of digital technologies, artificial intelligence, and big data analytics in public audit, the expansion of remote auditing, and the organization of control activities based on risk analysis.

It was noted that today, alongside traditional financial control, the Chamber of Accounts is developing compliance, performance, and IT audit functions. The digitalization of audit processes is strengthening not only mechanisms for addressing identified deficiencies, but also preventive control mechanisms aimed at preventing such deficiencies.

The large-scale reforms being implemented in the country at the initiative of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, including reforms aimed at modernizing the public administration and public financial control systems and ensuring openness and transparency, were also highly appreciated. The importance of a modern and effective public audit institution in these processes was particularly emphasized.

During the discussions, the sides agreed to further strengthen cooperation in performance auditing, IT auditing, artificial intelligence, and Big Data. They also discussed the exchange of experience in assessing the effectiveness of public investments, public procurement, state-owned enterprises, and government programs, as well as monitoring the implementation of audit recommendations.

N. Imonqulov, Head of a Division of the Chamber of Accounts, delivered a presentation on public budget audit and control. The presentation covered the Chamber’s functions in the budget sphere, examination of the draft budget, the budget execution process and its audit, as well as the audit conclusion on budget execution.

Z. Olimjonov, Head of a Division of the Chamber of Accounts, provided an overview of the key areas for ensuring transparency in reviewing projects involving international financial institutions and promoting the effective use of external borrowing.

The supreme audit institutions of Uzbekistan and Latvia identified self-assessment as one of the promising areas of practical cooperation and agreed to explore opportunities for conducting such audits on topics of social importance.

The meeting also focused on enhancing the professional qualifications of auditors, organizing joint training programs and sessions, and expanding the exchange of experience among young auditors.