RECURRING concerns over weak financial management systems, poor record keeping and inadequate internal controls across government ministries and agencies were highlighted in Parliament during the presentation of the Consolidated Review Report on the Whole of Government Audits from 2019 to 2022.
Presenting the report on behalf of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, Government MP Manoa Kamikamica said that despite improvements in financial reporting standards, persistent systemic weaknesses continued to expose government finances to risks of misreporting, fraud and operational inefficiency.
The committee noted that delays in preparing financial statements, weak supervision of accounting functions, incomplete asset records and ongoing reliance on manual systems remained major concerns throughout the review period.
According to the report, the proportion of ministries receiving unmodified audit opinions improved significantly from 52 per cent in 2019 to 86 per cent in 2022, reflecting better compliance with accounting standards and improved quality of financial reporting.
However, the committee stressed that recurring weaknesses within ministries and agencies required urgent attention from the Ministry of Finance and relevant authorities to prevent similar issues from reappearing in future audits.
The report also highlighted challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, including budget reprioritisation towards economic recovery, infrastructure and social protection measures, which placed additional pressure on public debt and government expenditure management.
To strengthen accountability, the committee recommended linking audit outcomes and implementation of audit recommendations to the performance assessments of permanent secretaries.
It also called for the urgent implementation of an integrated whole-of-government ICT system under Fiji’s National Digital Strategy 2025-2030.
