Monitoring board receives final audit reports of Iraqi oil exports and development fund

Audits of both Iraq's oil export sales and a fund to manage the revenue continue to show a lack of accounting records, slow spending reports by Iraqi ministries and the absence of other control measures, according to the International Advisory and Monitoring Board for Iraq (IAMB).

The final audit report by KPMG covers the period beginning with the dissolution of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) on 29 June 2004 and ending on 31 December 2004.

The IAMB, which brings together Iraq, the UN and other international partners to ensure the appropriate use of the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI), said it has invited the Iraqi Government to act on the audit recommendations to strengthen financial controls and the administration of DFI resources.

The main weaknesses cited by the reports include incomplete DFI accounting records; untimely recording, reporting, reconciliation and follow-up of spending by Iraqi ministries; and incomplete records maintained by United States agencies, including disbursements that were not recorded in the Iraqi budget.

The findings also reveal a lack of documented justification for limited competition for contracts at the Iraqi ministries; unreconciled quantities of oil and oil products exported, indicating a lack of control and possible misappropriation of oil revenues, and significant difficulties in ensuring completeness and accuracy of Iraqi budgets and controls over expenditures; and non-deposit of proceeds of export sales of petroleum products into the appropriate accounts as called for by Security Council resolution 1483.