The INTOSAI Supervisory Committee on Emerging Issues held the final webinar in the series of the COVID-19 related webinars within the COVID-19 Expert Group on October 20, 2020 on the topic “INTOSAI online transition-COVID-19: how can organizations adapt to the new normal of teleworking?” 

The earlier three webinars were on the topics: 

1. Priorities of SAIs in the COVID-19 pandemic: audit themes, methods and techniques 
2. Remote auditing: technological challenges and solutions 
3. Openness of SAIs and Ensuring Inclusiveness in Emergency Conditions” 

The event was aimed at evaluating the experience of transition to remote work within INTOSAI itself and was joined by 120 SAI representatives. The INTOSAI perspective was represented by the INTOSAI General Secretariat and PFAC, PSC, KSC and CBC Chairs and Vice Chair representatives. On the other hand, SAIs Italy, Czech Republic and Pakistan shared their individual experience of participating in or organizing multilateral events in time of the pandemic and adapting to the new conditions in general. 

Webinar while enlightening the flexibility and relative easiness to organize online events, which are turning out to be more representative and inclusive, cost-efficient and less time-consuming. concluded by noting that the COVID-19 pandemic has forced INTOSAI community to explore new ways of working. These developments have brought some inevitable challenges and drawbacks mainly technical problems and organizational issues in terms of managing different time zones. 

The members noted that apart from knowledge and experience sharing, the  INTOSAI leadership have constantly been aware of the particular needs of individual SAIs that were affected by the pandemic in the most severe way, which resulted in the decision to create INTOSAI Emergency Fund to provide financial support to SAIs in order to sustain the continuity of operations. Overall, the discussion showed that INTOSAI working bodies have served successfully as a necessary means to exchange experience, knowledge and other relevant information during the pandemic. This contribution has been valued and acknowledged on numerous occasions by INTOSAI members.  

The COVID-19 Expert Group of the Supervisory Committee on Emerging Issues shall continue its work, the next step being to finalize some particular recommendations based on this series of webinars and additional consultations in order to present them for the INTOSAI Governing Board.