About Us

The Australasian Council of Auditors-General (ACAG) is a membership-based association established by Auditors-General. For more than 60 years ACAG has facilitated the sharing of information and intelligence between Auditors-General in a time of increasing complexity and rapid change. ACAG is a not-for-profit, unincorporated association governed by a Constitution.

The role of Auditor-General

The role of the Auditor-General is an important one. Auditors-General act as independent guardians of public accountability, ensuring government spending and activities can be scrutinised effectively.

Each Parliament relies on its Auditor-General to provide independent assurance that governmental activities are carried out and accounted for consistent with Parliament's intentions.

How Auditors-General support transparency and accountability

Auditors-General provide independent assurance to Parliament across public sector:

• Financial statements
• Performance of programs
• Compliance with laws and policies

What key mechanisms are require to enable an Auditor-General to support transparency and accountability

• Independence from Government executive is essential to ensure unbiased reporting
• Strong legislative protections and autonomy
• Access to information: ability to obtain all relevant information required to conduct an audit
• Public reporting: Auditors-General have the right and obligation to report audit findings publicly
• Following up on recommendations to ensure public sector agencies are addressing audit findings
• Parliamentary interface: Audit reports inform Parliamentary oversight and scrutiny of government 

What Auditors-General and public sector auditing achieves:

• Exposes waste, inefficiency, or non-compliance
• Drives improvements in public administration
• Supports Parliamentary decision-making 

How is ACAG funded?

Income is derived from member contributions. The proportional split for determining annual member contributions is categorised as follows: