Heads of Supreme Audit Institutions (SAI) of G20 nations and representatives of several global bodies met in Goa from June 12-14 for the SAI20 Summit. Comptroller of Audit General of India Girish Chandra Murmu, who chaired the summit, tells Shoma Patnaik that the summit discussions were very fulfilling to all member nations
Q: The SAI20 Summit had on agenda the audit of blue economy and artificial intelligence. Will the audit of these two sectors require regulatory changes in India and other member nations?
I don’t think any regulatory changes are required for audit of the blue economy. It is already there and has to be properly harnessed by all nations. As auditors we need to see how best to audit the inter-connected sectors. Blue economy has diverse components which includes not only traditional fisheries but also tourism, maritime transport, offshore renewable energy, aquaculture, etc. Audit of some of these sectors has already been done, but never comprehensively. In case of AI, the members of SAI20 will have to put in place regulatory mechanism although we have not prescribed specific laws. It is for individual countries to decide. The audit of AI will primarily focus on authenticity of data. It has been decided at the Summit that AI must not generate information that is not correct or misleading.
Q: How much will the audit of blue economy look into the interests of the fishermen community vis-à-vis the newer segments such as aquaculture or marine biotechnology, etc.?
The summit’s conclusion is that audit will have to be carried out holistically. The SAI20 group recognises the contribution of millions of people dependent on fisheries for their livelihood for fisheries. The audit is aimed at protecting the marine resources from climate change, sea pollution and discover how sustainable is the existing blue economy and whether it can support people who are already in the industry.
Q: There is a fear that fishermen will be sidelined if the scope of blue economy is extended to include more organised sectors?
Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam or ‘One Earth, One Family,’ is the theme of India’s G20 Presidency. People are at the centre of all G20 group deliberations. Ultimately fishermen remain at the core of blue economy and can never be ignored.
Q: Presently, it is the ecommerce players who are making the most effective use of AI. Will the audit of AI include ecommerce companies?
SAI auditors mainly conduct audits of government or public sector. They don’t do proprietary audits unless it is related to PPP or some kind of joint venture with the government. We do not know what will happen in due course, but right now there is no decision made by SAI20 on including ecommerce in AI audit.
Q: Now that the summit has ended, how will the deliberations be carried forward in the future?
Post-summit, a communiqué is under preparation that will be submitted to the G20 bloc. The communiqué will also be circulated among member nations which were not present. We have to reach a consensus among all members on the matter discussed.
Q: How would you evaluate the CAG office in India vis-à-vis the audit institutions of other nations?
CAG India is definitely one of the best audit institutions which is why it has received global recognition and is doing audit of several UN bodies. Our competency is world recognised. But at the same time, all nations have their own independent and competent audit institutions. There are three kinds of audit systems followed by nations. The quasi-judicial audit body is in Europe where the office of the public auditor is headed by not only audit experts but also judges who have the power of summoning the ministries, calling for records, pronouncing judgments, ordering investigation in case of embezzlement or corruption. The second type is of the audit board or chamber of accounts followed in SCO countries. Most countries have a single-authority audit office system like India.