MINISTRY OF BASIC & SECONDARY EDUCATION MOBSE …documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/... · Audit Report & Management Letter Report for the Year Ended 31st December 2017 MINISTRY OF

Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education – The Gambia Projects Coordination Unit – IDA Projects – READ Project Audit Report & Management Letter Report for the Year Ended 31st December 2017

MINISTRY OF BASIC & SECONDARY EDUCATION – MOBSE

PROJECTS COORDINATION UNIT – IDA PROJECT – THE GAMBIA

______________________________________________________________________

AUDIT REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST

DECEMBER 2017

RESULTS FOR EDUCATION ACHIEVEMENT & DEVELOPMENT PROJECT - READ

PROJECT ID: P133079

______________________________________________________________________

AUGUSTUS PROM

AUDIT. TAX. ADVISORY.

REGISTERED AUDITORS

3 KAIRABA AVENUE

3RD

FLOOR CENTENARY BUILDING

SERREKUNDA, KSMD

THE GAMBIA

JULY 2018

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Contents Page

1 General Information 3

2 Project Background 4

3 Audit Objective & Scope 5

4 Internal Controls Summary of the PMU 8

5 Compliance Review with Laws, Regulations & Financing Agreement 8

6 PMU’s Responsibilities to the Project Financial Statements 9

7 Audit Report on the READ Project 11

8 READ Special Account Statement 14

9 Appendix to the READ Project Financial Statement

Appendix A – Withdrawal Application 18

Appendix B – Project Fixed Asset Register 19

Appendix C – Budget Variance Report 22

Appendix D – List of Ineligible Expenditure 23

10 Management Letter Report 24

1


1. General Information

1.1. Staff of the Project Management Unit (PMU)

Abdoulie Sowe Deputy Project Manager

Alhagi Bah Project Financial Controller

Ebou Serign Gaye Construction Program Manager

Haddy Jack Donor Coordinator

Addison Gomez Procurement Officer

Haddy Sanneh- Gibba Admin Assistant

1.2. Bankers Central Bank of The Gambia ECOWAS Avenue

Banjul

The Gambia

1.3. Financiers

The World Bank International Development Association 18 18 H Street Washington DC 20433 USA

1.4. Financial Auditor Augustus Prom Audit. Tax. Advisory.

Registered Auditors

3 Kairaba Avenue

3rd

Fl. Centenary Building

Serrekunda, KSMD

P.O Box 587, Banjul

The Gambia.

2


2. Background

The World Bank Group (the Bank) has been supporting the Government of The Gambia in its

development efforts since the early 1970s. The Gambia government has received the Grants

from the IDA for the READ Project which is a grant of USD 18.8 million (IDA USD 11.9

million and GPE USD 6.9 million) was approved on the 6th

March 2014 to finance the Results

for Education Achievement and Development Project (READ) and will end by 31st August

2018.

The objectives of the project are to increase access to and equity in basic education, to

improve the quality of teaching and learning and to the strengthen management.

3


3. Audit Objectives & Scope

3.1. Audit Objectives

The overall objective of the audit of the Project Financial Statements is to enable the

auditor to express a professional and independent opinion (s) on the financial position of

the Projects for the year ended and to ensure that the funds disbursed to the Special

Project Accounts have been used in accordance with the Project’s objectives. The Scope

of the Audit is limited to the Special Accounts of the PMU as stated in the audit contract

including the SOEs (Withdrawal Applications).

The auditor should assess whether the Project’s Special Account Statements have been

prepared in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and give a true

and fair view of the operations of the PMU’s Special Project Accounts. Any material

deviations from these principles and the impact of such departures on the Project Special

Account Statements as presented should be stated.

The audit should also enable the auditor to assess compliance with the provisions of the

Project Grant Agreements.

The Project Accounts (books of account) provide the basis for the preparation of the

Special Account Statements and are established to reflect the financial transactions in

respect of the PMU’s activities, as maintained by the PMU. They are also responsible for

maintaining adequate internal controls and supporting documents for all transactions.

The audit will be conducted in accordance with International Standards on Auditing

(ISA), as promulgated by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and will

be including such tests and auditing procedures as the auditor considers necessary under

the circumstances.

3.2 Scope of the Audit As stated above, the audit is being carried out in accordance with International Standards

of Auditing (ISA) and includes such test and controls, as the auditors consider necessary

under the circumstances.

School Grant Facility

Besides expressing an opinion on the financial statements, the auditor will be required to

verify whether the grants for the schools have been disbursed according to the Project

Implementation Manual and that the intended identified beneficiaries have received the

funds. The scope of the subject project selected will be identified by the auditors.

4


Internal Control Systems

The audit firm is to assess the Internal Control systems of the PCU. This would include

aspects such as adequacy and effectiveness of accounting, financial and operational

controls, and any needs for revision; level of compliance and established policies; plans

and procedures; reliability of the accounting system, data and financial reports;

Methods of remedying weak controls or creating them where there are none; verification

of assets and liabilities; and integrity, controls, security and effectiveness of the operation

of the computerized system. The audit report for each fiscal year ended must cover the

following:

(a) All Bank funds have been used in accordance with the conditions of the Grants

Agreement with due attention to economy and efficiency and only for the purposes for

which the funds was provided;

(b) Counterpart funds where applicable have been provided and used in accordance with the

conditions of the Loan Agreement.

(c) Goods and services financed have been procured in accordance with the Loan Agreement

and in accordance with the World Bank Procurement Policies and Procedures.

(d) All necessary supporting documents, records and accounts have been kept in respect of

all Project activities. Clear linkages should exist between the books of account and the

Project Financial Statements presented to the Bank as well as level of disbursement and

physical completion stage.

(e) Where special accounts have been used, they have been maintained in accordance with

the provisions of the Loan Agreement and in accordance with the Bank’s rules and

procedures.

(f) Comment on whether the school improvement grants have been disbursed according to

the grant procedures described in the implementation manual and the duly indentified

beneficiaries have received the funds to which they are entitled;

(g) The Project Financial Statements have been prepared in accordance with (IFRs/IAS)

issued by the International Accounting Standards Board and give a true and fair view of

the financial position of the Projects as at 31 December 2017 and of its receipts and

expenditures for the period ended.

(h) The audit firm has carried out a comprehensive assessment of the adequacy and

effectiveness of the accounting and overall internal control system to monitor

expenditures and other financial transactions and ensure safe custody of Project financed

assets.

5


3.3 Project Financial Statements

The project financial statements should include:

(a) Yearly Special Account Statement

(b) Reconciliation between the amounts shown as received by the project and those

shown as being disbursed by WB as an annex;

(c) A statement of comparison between actual expenditures and budget estimates;

(d) Notes accompanying the PFSs;

(e) List of Project Fixed Assets

(f) List of Project Ineligible Expenditure

3.4 Quality Control & Documentation Procedures

The auditor shall apply International Standards on Auditing (ISA 220), and therefore

required to do the following:

(a) Obtain relevant information to evaluate circumstances and relationships that

create threats to independence;

(b) Evaluate information on identified breaches which create threat to independence

of the audit engagement;

(c) Take appropriate action to eliminate such threats or reduce them to an acceptable

level by applying safeguards;

(d) Document conclusions on independence of the engagement.

6


3.5 Management Letter Report

The auditor shall prepare a ‘Management Letter Report to:

(a) Give comments and observations on the accounting records, systems and controls

that were examined during the course of the audit;

(b) Identify specific deficiencies and areas of weakness in systems and controls that

have come to our attention and make recommendations for their improvement;

(c) Report on the degree of compliance to applicable National Laws & Regulations

and each of the financial covenants of the Financing (Grant) agreements and give

comments on internal and external matters affecting such compliance;

(d) Communicate matters that have come to attention during the audit that might have

a significant impact on the implementation of the project;

(e) Bring to attention any other matters that the auditor considers pertinent;

7


4. Summary of Audit Results

Internal Controls

We have assessed the overall internal control environment of as Satisfactory. This

was based on the outcome of tests of components of the project’s control environment

assessed as follows: -

Details Results

Control Consciousness Satisfactory

Segregation of Duties Satisfactory

Management & Supervision Satisfactory

Competence of Personnel Satisfactory

Protection of Fixed Assets Satisfactory

Accounting & Protection of Records Satisfactory

5. Compliance with Laws, Regulations & Financing Agreement

We performed tests of the Project’s compliance with certain provisions of law and

regulations and the Financing agreement. However, our tests disclosed no instances of

material non-compliance with the laws and regulations and the loan agreement. Our

objective was not to verify overall compliance with laws and regulations etc.

8


6. Statement of the PMU’s Responsibilities to the Financial Statements

It is the responsibility of the Projects Management Unit (PMU) at the Ministry of Basic and

Secondary Education (MOBSE) to prepare the project financial statement which gives a

true and fair view of the state of affairs of the projects for each year. In preparing these

Financial Statements, the PMU is required to;

Select Suitable Accounting Policies and apply them Consistently;

Make judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; and

Ensure compliance with IDAs loan agreements and disbursement guidelines.

Ensure that accepted accounting principles have been followed, subject to any

material departures disclose and explained in the Financial Statements.

The financial statements consist of the following;

1. Special Account Statements

2. Statement of Uses of Funds

3. Appendices to the Financial Statements

The PMU is responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with

reasonable accuracy at any time, the financial position of the project and to ensure that the

special account statements comply with the loan agreement. They are also responsible for

safeguarding the assets of the project and hence for taking reasonable steps for the

prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. They should also provide all

relevant information necessary for the performance of the audit.

9


AUDITORS REPORT ON THE

RESULTS FOR EDUCATION ACHIEVEMENT & DEVELOPMENT

(READ PROJECT)

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31st DECEMBER 2017

10


AUGUSTUS PROM

AUDIT.TAX.ADVISORY. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3 Kairaba Avenue – P O Box 587, The Gambia - Telephone (220)4378146/ 4392376 / 4378147 – Fax (220) 4378148

E-mail: [email protected] www.augustus-prom.gm

7. Auditor’s Report on Results for Education Achievement and Development (READ) To Members of The Project Management Unit- MOBSE Government of The Gambia/ IDA

Auditor’s Opinion

We have audited the READ Special Account Statement for the year then ended, and

notes to the Financial Statements including Accounting Policies applicable to the Project.

In our opinion, all external funds have been used in accordance with the conditions of the

Project Agreements, goods and services have been procured in accordance with the

Project Agreements. In our opinion, proper books of accounts have been kept with

adequate internal controls. The READ Project Special Account Statement gives a true

and fair view of the financial position of the READ Project as at 31st December 2017,

prepared in accordance with World Bank Donor guidelines and on IPSAS Cash basis of

accounting.

Basis of Opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standard on Auditing (ISAs).

0ur responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s

Responsibilities for the Audit of the financial Statements section of our report. We are

independence of the Company in accordance with the International Ethics Standards

Board for Accountants’ Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (IESBA Code)

together with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial

statements in The Gambia and we have fulfilled our other responsibilities in accordance

with these requirements and the IESBA Code. We believe that the audit evidence we

have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

11

mailto:[email protected]


Responsibilities of Management and those charged with governance for the

Financial Statements

Management is responsible for the preparation of financial statements that give a true and fair

view in accordance with IPSAS Cash Basis Accounting, and in the manner required by the

Project Agreement and for such internal control as management determines is necessary to

enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether

due to fraud or error. In preparing the financial statements, management is responsible for

assessing the Project’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters

related to going concern operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so. Those charged

with governance are responsible for overseeing the Projects’s financial reporting process.

Auditors Responsibilities for the Audit of Financial Statements

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a

whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an

auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but

is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs will always detect a material

misstatement when it exists. Misstatement can arise from fraud or error and are considered

material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the

economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

As part of an audit in accordance with ISAs, we exercise professional judgment and maintain

professional skepticism throughout the audit. We also:

Identify and assess the risk of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether

due to fraud or error design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and

obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than for

one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intention omissions,

misrepresentations, or the override of internal control.

Obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit in order to design

procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of

expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Institute’s internal control.

Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of

accounting estimates and related disclosures made by management.

12


Conclude on the appropriateness of management’s use of the going concern basis of

accounting and basic on the audit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertainty

exists relating to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the Institute’s

ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a material uncertainty exists,

we are required to draw attention in our auditor’s report to the related disclosures in the

financial statements or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our

conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditor’s

report. However, future events or conditions may cause the Institute to cease to continue

as a going concern.

Evaluate the overall presentation, structure and content of the Financial Statements,

including the disclosures, and whether the Institute’s financial statements represent the

underlying transactions and events in a manner that achieves fair presentation.

We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the

planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant

deficiencies in internal control.We also provide those charged with governance with a statement

that we have complied with relevant ethical requirement regarding independence, and to

communicate with them all relationships and other matters that may reasonably be thought to

bear on our independence, and where applicable, related safeguards.

From the matters communicated with those charged with governance, we determine those

matters that were of most significant in the audit of the financial statements of the current period

and are therefore the key audit matters. We describe these matters in our auditor’s report unless

law or regulation precludes public disclosure about the matter or when, in extremely rare

circumstances, we determine that a matter should not be communicated in our report because the

adverse consequences of doing so would reasonably be expected to outweigh the public interest

benefits of such communication.

The Engagement Partner on the audit resulting in this independent auditor’s report is Mr

Augustus F. Prom.

................................................................

AUGUSTUS PROM

AUDIT. TAX. ADVISORY

REGISTERED AUDITORS

DATE: ............................................ 2018

13


8. IDA USD Special Account Statement – READ Project

For the year ended 31 December 2017

Central Bank of The Gambia Account Year ended Year Ended Cumulative

31 Dec 2017 31st Dec 2016 Inception to 31

st Dec 2017

USD USD

Opening balance 327,425 57,589 -

Receipts

IDA funds (See Page 18) 2,707,132 4,444,506 15,375,039

Other Income- READ PPA - - 113,864

__________ _________ ___________

Total Funds Available 3,034,557 4,502,095 15,488,903

__________ _________ __________

Expenditures by Category

Works 222,886 237,266 3,260,371

Goods 759,571 292,531 1,790,708

Consultancy Services 424,806 816,194 1,451,858

Training 463,909 897,465 3,104,608

School Grants 181,922 213,818 521,418

Operating cost 980,238 1,720,794 5,361,348

Translation Differences (56) (3,398) (2,689)

___________ ____________ ___________

Total Expenditures 3,033,276 4,174,670 15,487,622

___________ ____________ __________

Receipts over Expenditures 1,281 327,425 1,281

___________ ___________ __________

Closing Cash balance 1,281 327,425 1,281

========== ========= =========

14


Represented by

IDA Special Account Balance 1,281 327,425 1,281

========= ========= =========

15


8.1 Statement of Uses of Funds – READ Project Expenditure by Component

For the year ended 31 December 2017

Year ended Year ended Cumulative

31 Dec 2017 31 Dec 2016 Inception to 31st Dec 2017

USD USD USD

Increasing Access & Equity 423,337 692,107 4,516,141

Improving Teaching & Reading 2,283,389 3,020,712 9,222,726

Strengthen Management 326,606 465,249 1,746,178

Translation Difference (56) (3,398) 2,577

___________ ___________ ___________

3,033,276 4,174,670 15,487,622

___________ ___________ ___________

16


9. Appendices to the READ Special Account Statement

Appendix A Withdrawal Applications & Reconciliations

Appendix B Project Fixed Asset Register

Appendix C Budget Variance Report

Appendix D Ineligible Expenditure

17


Appendix A- Withdrawal Application Reconciliation

Source Year App No Application

Amount

Amount Rec. in

Fin. Statement

Difference

IDA 2017 15 2,366,652 2,366,652 -

IDA 2017 16 340,480 340,480 -

Total 2,707,132 2,707,132 -

The Withdrawal Applications above has been reconciled to the Project Financial Statements

and there was no difference between the financials and the amount disbursed by the donor.

18


Appendix B - Fixed Asset Register

Description Agree. Loc. Analysis Budget Date Identification

number Location

Original Value

Computers

Acer Laptop Bai Ndure 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 01 TVET 39,240.00

Acer Laptop Sulayman Jallow 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 02 SQAD 39,240.00

Acer Laptop Kawsu A.J. Sama 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 03 SQAD 39,240.00

ASUS Laptop Ebrima Camara 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 04 INSET 28,743.00

ASUS Laptop Saffie Camara 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 05 INSET 28,743.30

ASUS Laptop Sheikh Tijan Bah 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 06 MOBSE 28,743.30

ASUS Laptop Muhammed A. Badjan 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 07 MADRASSA 28,743.30

ASUS Laptop Malamin I.L. Bojang 99 300 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 08 RED3 28,743.30

ASUS Laptop Sainey Ndong 99 200 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 09 RED2 28,743.30

ASUS Laptop Alhagie Jallow 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015/ 10 RED1 28,743.30

ASUS Laptop Haddy Khan 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 11 ECD 28,743.30

ASUS Laptop Ndeban Joof Ndong 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 12 ECD 28,743.30

ASUS Laptop Fanny Njie 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 13 ECD 28,743.30

ASUS Laptop Famara Camara 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 14 ECD 28,743.00

Dell Laptop Andrew Gomez 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 15 M&E Units 79,461.00

Dell Laptop Ousman Bah 99 500 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 16 RED5 79,461.00

Dell Laptop Adama Jimba Jobe 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 17 STD 79,461.00

Dell Laptop Lamin Conteh 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 18 STD 79,461.00

Dell Laptop Muhammed B.S. Jallow 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 19 MOBSE 79,461.00

Dell Laptop Addison Gomez 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 20 PCU/MoBSE 79,461.00

Dell Laptop Ansumana Demba 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 21 PCU/MoBSE 79,461.00

Dell Laptop Musa Bah 99 400 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 22 RED4 79,461.00

HP Laptop Mbachu Cham 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015/23 ITHRD 38,749.50

Lenovo Tpad Laptop Badou S. Jallow 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ laptop 2015 / 24 PPARBD 38,749.50

Lenovo Tpad Laptop Claudiana A Cole 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 25 RED6 38,749.50

Lenovo Tpad Laptop Sohna Foon 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 26 PPARBD 38,749.50

Lenovo Tpad Saikou Sanyang 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 27 ITHRD 38,749.50

Lenovo Tpad Musa K.S. Sarr 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 28 PPARBD 38,749.00

Lenovo Tpad Fatou A. Jallow 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 29 ITHRD 38,749.50

Lenovo Tpad Michael Mendy 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 read lAPTOP 2015 / 30 RED2 38,749.50

Lenovo Tpad Ebrima Joof 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ laptop 2015 / 31 SERVICES 38,749.50

19


Lenovo Tpad Musa Jassy 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 32 PCU/MoBSE 38,749.50

Lenovo Tpad Hannah Chapman 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 33 PCU/MoBSE 38,749.50

Lenovo Tpad Laptop Yaya Touray 99 100 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 34 PCU/MoBSE 38,749.50

Lenovo Tpad Laptop Musa Suso 99 400 30203 A2A 04-Nov-15 READ Laptop 2015 / 35 RED4 38,749.50

1,573,326.70

Printers

Printer 99 100 21003 A4A 04-Dec-14 READ Printer/1 ECD 15,000.00

Multifunctional Copier 99 100 30204 A2A 30-Nov-15 READ Multicopier 2015/1 ECD 67,000.00

Multifunctional Copier 99 100 30204 A2A 30-Nov-15 READ Multicopier 2015/2 PPARBD 67,000.00



Multifunctional Copier Region 1 99 100 30204 A2A 30-Nov-15 READ Multi Copier 2015/5 RED1 67,000.00




Multi Functional Copier Region 5 99 500 30204 A2A 30-Nov-15 READ Multi Copier 2015/9 RED5 67,000.00


Multifunctional Printer Alpha Bah 99 100 30204 A2A 30-Nov-15 READ Mulit Printer 2015/11 PPARBD 39,000.00

Multifunctional Printer Musa Jassy 99 100 30204 A2A 30-Nov-15 READ Multi Printer 2015/12 PCU/MoBSE 39,000.00

Multifunctional Printer DPM PCU 99 100 30204 A2A 30-Nov-15 READ Multi Printer 2015/13 PCU 39,000.00

763,000.00

Furniture

Office Desk 99 100 21003 A4A 12-Apr-15 READ Desk/2 ECD 9,500.00




Chairs Office 99 100 21003 A4A 04-Dec-14 READ Chair/6 ECD 3,600.00






Cupboard 99 100 21003 A4A 04-Dec-14 READ Cupboard/12 ECD 8,500.00




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Filing tray 99 100 21003 A4A 04-Dec-14 READ Filing Tray/16 ECD 600.00



Filing Cabinet 99 100 21003 A4A 04-Dec-14 READ Filing Cabinet/19 ECD 7,000.00

Filing Cabinet 99 100 21003 A4A 04-Dec-14 READ Filing Cabinet/20 ECD 7,000.00

109,400.00

Cars

Ford Renger Pick-up 98 100 20302 A2B 23-Dec-14 WB 244 TA INSET MOBSE 1,260,000.00

Ford Renger Pick-up 98 100 20302 A2B 23-Dec-14 WB 245 TA Services MOBSE 1,260,000.00

Ford Renger Pick-up 98 100 20302 A2B 23-Dec-14 WB 246 TA PPARBD MOBSE 1,260,000.00

Ford Renger Pick-up 98 100 20302 A2B 23-Dec-14 WB 247 TA ANFEU MOBSE 1,260,000.00

Double Carbin Pich-up 98 100 20302 A2B 23-Dec-14 WB 248 TA ECCD MOBSE 1,260,000.00

Ford Ranger Pick-up 98 100 20302 A2B 23-Dec-14 GEP 041 TA PO/PCU MOBSE 1,260,000.00

7,560,001.00

Other Equipment

Projector 99 100 21003 A4A 04-Dec-14 READ Projector/21 ECD 35,000.00

Refrigator 99 1 21003 A4A 04-Dec-14 READ Refrigator/22 ECD 10,000.00

Projector 99 100 30204 A2A 30-Nov-15 READ Projector 2015/13 PPARBD 37,500.00

Projector 99 100 30204 A2A 30-Nov-15 READ Projector 2015/14 PPARBD 39,500.00

Document Scanner 99 100 30204 A2A 30-Nov-15 READ Scanner 2015/15 PPARBD 17,000.00

139,000.00

Lie Bamba Enterprise

15/2016 Furniture for Majalis 17Cupboard and 34 Blackboard

221,000.00

Total

10,365,727.70

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Appendix C- Budget Variance Detail Budget Actual Variance USD USD USD Expenditures Increasing Access & Equity 527,117 423,337 103,780 Improving Teaching & Reading 1,210,411 2,283,389 (1,072,978) Improving Sector Mgmnt. 307,632 326,606 (18,974) __________ ___________ __________ 2,045,160 3,033,332 (988,172) ========= ========== =========

22


Appendix D - List of Ineligible Project Expenditures Year ended Cumulative

31st Dec 2016 31st Dec 2016

USD USD

Ineligible expenditure Nil Nil

________ _______

23

Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education – The Gambia Project Coordination Unit – IDA Projects – READ Audit Report & Management Letter Report for the Year Ended 31st December 2017

10. MANAGEMENT LETTER REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31

st DECEMBER 2017

24


IN-CONFIDENCE

Ref: AP/C/839/18/(01) 9th

July 2018

The Members (GOTG/MOBSE-PMU/IDA-World Bank)

Thro: The Project Manager-PMU

Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education

Willy Thorpe Place Building

Banjul, The Gambia

Dear Sir, INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION (IDA) PROJECTS – READ

MINISTRY OF BASIC AND SECONDARY EDUCATAION

MANAGEMENT LETTER REPORT FOR THE FOR YEAR ENDED 31st DECEMBER 2017

We have completed the audit of the project’s financial statements for the READ project for the

year ended 31st December 2017 and wish to bring to your attention the following audit

observations which came to light during the course of the audit exercise with suggestions and

recommendations for possible systems, controls and compliance improvement as necessary.

These observations with their recommendations for improvement are based on the review and

assessment of the project’s financial reports, books of accounts, records, internal controls system

and procedures, performance of accounting personnel, procurements, payroll, compliance to the

financing agreements and applicable national laws etc.

For your information, the purpose of the audit is to enable us to express our professional opinion

on the Special Accounts Statements presented to us to audit by the PMU at MOBSE. The audit

should not be relied upon to disclose all defalcations or other irregularities that may exist in the

system. However, if such exist and were discovered during the course of the audit, they would

have been disclosed. We wish to thank the staff of the Project Management Unit and for the cooperation accorded to

us during the audit exercise. Should you require any information, please do not hesitate to

contact us.

Yours Faithfully,

................................................ AUGUSTUS PROM AUDIT. TAX. ADVISORY.

REGISTERED AUDITORS 25


PRIORITISATION OF AUDIT FINDINGS

The objective of the management letter report is to give added value to the client by communicating

appropriately to those charged with governance and management, recommendations for systems and

operational improvement based on observations gathered during the course of the audit.

The management letter is used to communicate with those charged with governance focusing on the

following:

Weaknesses noted within the internal controls system that could lead to material losses or

misstatements in the financial statements;

Efficiencies to be made, to improve the overall performance of the organization;

Failure to comply with policies, laws & regulations, financing conditions, service rules and other

laid down procedures;

Systems and Compliance issues to be addressed which would enable the audit to be successfully

completed within the required time-frame.

The findings which are stated in the management letter are categorized into a system of grading to

enable those in charge of management to better priorities on the implementation of recommendations

emanating from audit findings.

The audit findings raised are categorised into 3 different grades. The grades are as follows:

Grade 1 – These are findings that are highly significant and the urgent involvement of

management is required for their resolution;

Grade 2 – These are finding that may have a significant impact on the controls or compliance

environment resulting to a negative impact on operations within the Project;

Grade 3 – These are findings which are less significant than Grade 1 and 2 but still need

attention.

26


TABLE OF CONTENTS

No. Description Pages

1 Manual Accounting System 28

2 CCT for Facilitators 29

3 Contracts 30

4 Retirements 31

5 Hardship Allowance 32

6 Imprest System 34

7 Letter of Credit for the Printing of Books 36

8 Review on Previous Year Findings 37

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1. MANUAL ACCOUNTING SYSTEM

1.1 OBSERVATION

During the audit, we noted that the Tompro accounting system was unable to generate

the Financial Statements as a result Excel was used to generate the Project Financial

Statements as at 31st December 2017.

1.2 IMPLICATION

The project maintains an accounting system which is unable to generate Financial

Statement defeats the purpose of having an accounting system. Preparing Financial

Statements using excel could lead to errors or irregularities occurring which could go

undetected during the Financial Statement preparation stage.

1.3 RECOMMENDATION

We recommend that management should ensure that the accounting system is looked

into to ensure that the Accounting Package will be able to generate project financial

statements which are in line with good practice.

1.4 MANAGEMENT RESPONSE

The accounting system has already been upgraded to the latest version in June of 2018. We hope this will address the problem of the old tompro accounting system.

28

GRADE 1


2. CCT FOR FACILITATORS GRADE 1

2.1 OBSERVATION

Monthly payment to facilitators was done for the period under review amounting to

D52,500 per month. From our review of the payments and their supporting documents,

we observed that there was no recipient signature of the facilitator or a distribution list of

the funds to the beneficiaries.

2.2 IMPLICATION

A distribution list not provided means that we were unable to ascertain who received the

funds and makes us question how the project monitors the distribution in the event they

are not provided with a list.

2.3 RECOMMENDATION

We recommend that management should ensure that the recipients sign off upon

receiving for further verification.


We noted your concerns. These payments are paid direct to Gambia Teachers’ Coorporative Credit Union (GTUCCU) to pay to the beneficiary accounts held with them. When we requested for the payment printouts from GTUCCU, we were told that they normally over-ride the files but will be sending this every month, in future, to include into the retirements.

29


3. CONTRACTS

GRADE 1

3.1 OBSERVATION

The MOU between the Department of Water Resources and the project for the

supervision of the construction of concrete line wells & Drilling of boreholes at 20 basic

education school was sign on 5th August 2011 for a 6 months period with an amount of

D275,820. The payment voucher had a total contract amount of D854,600 paid in 2017

which indicates that the MOU is out of date. It was mentioned that there is a new MOU

which we are yet to be provided.

3.2 IMPLICATION

Management not providing us with a valid MOU indicates that there is no Valid MOU as

at now which means we were unable to ascertain the basis of the payment made.

3.3 RECOMMENDATION

We recommend that management should a valid contract is in place at all times.


Management will provide the relevant contract which will reconcile to the 2017 payments made.

30


4. RETIREMENTS GRADE 1

4.1 OBSERVATION During our review on expenses, we noted that the following expenses were made but

there were no retirements attached to the payment vouchers;

Date PV Amount – USD Task

31.5.17 55 14,595

Paid to Isatou Ndow with regard to Support in

implementation of the revised curriculum.

14.3.17 23C 3,306

Paid to NEA for the Monitoring of READ Project in

the intervention areas.

4.2 IMPLICATION

Retirements not provided means that we were unable to ascertain the validity of the

expenditure posted because there is no supporting documentation attached to the

voucher.

4.3 RECOMMENDATION

We recommend that management should address the above issue with regard to project

expenses for the period under review and ensure all retirements are provided.


We are following up the retirements from the Gambia College and National Environment Agency (NEA).

31


5. HARDSHIP ALLOWANCE GRADE 1

5.1 OBSERVATION We noted the following during our review on the Hardship allowance paid to teachers;

A. Teachers signing on behalf of Other teachers during the Collection of Hardship

Allowance

During discussions with management on the controls on hardship allowance, we were informed that teachers are not allowed to receive allowances on behalf of other teachers. We noted instances in which teachers were collecting on behalf of other teachers.

B. Balance of Hardship Due back to MOBSE

During our review on the Hardship allowance, we noted calculation errors totalling to

GMD83,124 which is to be retired back to the project.

Period Region Error - GMD

Feb 3 1,369

6 3,895

April 5 859

May 3 72,000

6 5,000

Total 77,000

5.2 IMPLICATION

Teachers signing on behalf of other teachers during the collection of hardship allowance

could lead to errors or irregularities which could expose the project to financial losses.

Errors during our review makes us question the review process during the retirement of

hardship allowances. Such errors could lead to financial losses to the project.

5.3 RECOMMENDATION

We recommend that management should ensure that the control designed with regard to

teachers receiving allowances on behalf of other teachers should be fully implemented.

There should be adequate reviews on the retirements of hardship allowance which will

further minimize the risk of errors occurring.

32



In consultation with GTUCCU, it was confirmed that the carried forward balances for some of the pages on the hardship allowance computation contained some errors which resulted to some overstatement of the balances. This is included in the retirements.

33


6. IMPREST SYSTEM GRADE 1

6.1 OBSERVATION

During our review on the imprest system of the project, we noted poor duty segregation

in the imprest process. The same person that is given the Cash to implement the activity

is the same person that distributes the cash for implementation and then is the same

person that retires back to the project on the funds given. We noted the following imprest

cash given out for activity implementation;

PV no Imprest Amount

USD

Person Cash Given

Person Distributing

Person Retiring

65 4,209

Haddy Khan Haddy Khan Haddy Khan

15 15,614

Haddy Khan Haddy Khan Haddy Khan

55 14,595 Isatou Ndaw Isatou Ndaw Isatou Ndaw

Furthermore we noted instances in which imprest were not retried for up to 11 months by

personnel implementing activities which is not in line with good practice. As follows;

PV no Imprest Amount

USD

Date Imprest was given

Date Imprest was retired

Duration

65 4,209

20.7.17 July 2018 1 Year

15 15,614

03.03.17 July 2018 1 Year 4 Months

55 14,595 31.5.17 Not Retired as at July 2017

1 year 2 Months still not retired

We further noted that there is no deadline given to personnel implementing in which they

are to implement and retire back to the project.

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6.2 IMPLICATION

Having one person being involved in the whole process from cash collection, to

distribution to retirement is not in line with good practice. Irregularities could occur which

could go undetected leading to financial losses to the project.

Having imprest amounts for long duration is not in line with good practice. Activity

deadlines not being given to implementing personnel to implement and then retire back

could lead to late implementation of activities which could have an impact on project

implementation.

6.3 RECOMMENDATION

We recommend that there should be another personnel involved in the process which

would further improve on the imprest system and minimize the risk of irregularities

occurring. There should be deadlines given for the implementation and retiring back to

the project.


Management has noted your concerns with the total commitment to put in place a better internal control system to address these concerns more effectively.

35


7. LETTER OF CREDIT FOR THE PRINTING OF BOOKS GRADE 1

7.1 OBSERVATION

In the period under review, there was a Letter of Credit taken from Standard Chartered

Bank for the printing of books for MOBSE amounting to USD544,736 to be paid to Tan

Print India.

During our review on the documents on the Letter of Credit, we noted it cost the project

USD536,614 but the amount taken from the Project’s bank account is USD544,736

giving a difference of USD8,122. Upon discussions with management it was confirmed

to us that this difference is as a result of bank charges in which there was no supporting

document to ascertain the explanation.

7.2 IMPLICATION

Management not providing us with documents to ascertain that the USD8,122 excess

payment relates to bank charges means that we were unable to confirm that bank

charges caused the difference as a result we question the basis of the excess payment.

7.3 RECOMMENDATION

We recommend that management should get in touch with the bank to provide evidence

that this amount relates to bank charges.


These excess charges are the external and internal charges levied on the LC by standard chartered bank Gambia and their foreign correspondent bank for the arrangement of the LC.

36


8. REVIEW ON PRIOR YEAR MANAGEMENT LETTER POINTS

AUDIT

PERIOD

DETAILS AUDIT OBSERVATION IMPLEMENTATION

STATUS

AUDITORS’

REMARKS

2016 Expenditure Training Reports not Provided

We noted instances in which reports were not

attached to the payment vouchers after activity

implementation.

Implemented This has been addressed by management.

2016 Retirements During our review on expenditures, we noted the

following payment in which only budgets were

attached and there was no supporting documents

attached to show how the budget was utilized;

08.11.16 Revision of Egra Text Book USD28,076

11.08.16 Facility Training on MultiGrade USD4,305

Implemented This has been addressed by management.

2016 Payments to

WAEC

Request for Payments without Justifications

We noted that payments were made to WAEC

towards the National Assessment Test conducted by

them. Our issue was that only a letter is sent from

WAEC to the project indicating an amount needed

without any breakdown or justification on how the

disbursed funds from the project will be utilized. As

follows;

Not Implemented This issue has not been

addressed by management.

37


MOU between the Project & WAEC

We are yet to be provided with the Memorandum of

Understanding between the Project & WAEC (The

Gambia).

2016 Stipends To

Gambia

Collage

Beneficiary Acknowledging Receiving the funds

During our review on stipend payments to Gambia

College, we noted that the only document attached to

the payment voucher was a list provided by the

College. We did a visit to Gambia College to ensure

that beneficiaries are receiving the stipends and we

noted that some forms are not being signed meaning

there should be retired funds back to the project

which was not the case.

Informal Request attached as Payment Vouchers

Based on our review, we noted that Stipends from the Gambia College was not formal i.e there was no letterhead showing the request from the college or the preparer of the list for the following transactions

Not Implemented This issue is being

addressed by management

2016 Hardship

Allowance

During our review on Hardship Allowance, we carried out a test on the computation of hardship allowance for the period under review which is normally a percentage of the teacher’s basic salary. We carried out a test and noted instances in which the basic salary used as a basis for computation is not accurate causing over or under payment of hardship allowance.

Implemented This has been addressed by

management.

2016 Stores During our test of completeness on the procurement

of food supplies and office stationary, we were taken

to the stores where the produced items are stored.

During our visit we noted that a container is used as

storage and we noted most items are poorly

Not Implemented This has not been addressed

by management.

38


arranged. Furthermore, most of these items such as

Ink Cartridges and office provisions are also kept at

room temperature which is not the case with the

Containers used for storage which could further

damage the items.

2016 School

improvement

Grant

Upon our review on the school sub grant, one of the

conditions for a school to be qualified to continue

receiving a School Sub Grant is that each school

must prepare a well-articulated School Improvement

Plan. We visit the regional education offices and

requested for the School Improvement Plan of the

following schools but this was not provided for

review;

Arangallen

Banjulinding

Jiboroh

Kambo Kerewan

Malada

Currently being

Implemented

This is currently being

implemented by

management, there is

currently an exercise being

conducted by the SQAD

instructed by the ministry.

2016 Retention Of

Civil Works

During our review of Civil works, we noted instances in which school have been built and handed over to the project and the schools are in use but the issue we noted was that there are two schools in which the defect period has passed and the project communicated to the contracts to carry out works on the defects. For over a year now the defects have still not been addressed by the contractors.


management.

39


2015 Cheque

Payment

Controls

During our review on project expenditure, we noted

material expenditures were paid for via cheques and

these material amounts were in the name of

individuals for activity implementation. Amounts as

high has USD 383,997.

Not Implemented During the period under

review, we noticed that

management is still making

material payments to

implementing officers to

implement activities.

2015 Reports to

Justify

Expenditures

We noted the following expenditures for activity

implementation made in which reports with regard to

the activity were not attached.AS follows;

Date Details Amount

05/10/15 Monitoring of CCT Marabouts USD481

06/01/15 Curriculm Research USD23,990

02/01/15 Hardship Verification USD3,675

06/01/15 Curriculm Research USD23,990

18/03/15 Hardship Allowance USD5,391


management.

2014 Basis of

Accounting

Based on our compliance review on the Project

Implementation Manual, we noted that Section V

Section 5.1 Accounting System & Procedures states

that the PCU should maintain the Project Accounts

on Accrual Basis whilst the project prepares the

account on Cash Basis Accounting although Cash

Basis Accounting is the acceptable format by the

donor which the project is going by.

Not Implemented The manual is still not in

line with the current cash

basis accounting.

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Documents

MINISTRY OF BASIC & SECONDARY EDUCATION MOBSE …documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/... · Audit Report & Management Letter Report for the Year Ended 31st December 2017 MINISTRY OF