In the Fellowship component of our international program, senior auditors from the participating supreme audit institutions (SAIs) work with Canadian audit offices and are immersed in performance auditing and accountability practices. The participants are selected jointly by their Auditors General, our Canadian partners, and us.
Fellows have multiple responsibilities, as they contribute to Canadian offices, develop audit plans for their own SAIs, and study and apply new skills and knowledge. Historically, Fellows spent nine months in Canada; today, the Fellowships take a hybrid approach, which includes a mix of time in Canada and virtual programming that Fellows complete from their countries. The primary Fellowship activities are:
Audit team placement: At the heart of the Fellowship is the audit team placement. Each Fellow joins an audit team at one of our partner offices. Working alongside Canadian colleagues and mentors, the Fellows observe and apply Canadian performance audit practices and contribute to audits underway.
Special project: A performance audit plan: During their Fellowships, the participants each develop a plan for a performance audit that will be conducted in their countries. The SAI will carry out the planned audit within two years of the Fellow’s graduation, with the Fellow as the team leader and mentoring from CAAF where needed. The Fellows select their audit topics in consultation with their Auditor General. Their topics all relate to development priorities and the Fellows are mentored on how they can consider gender equality within their audits.
The Fellows work with mentors at their host legislative audit office and with us to develop their audit plans, while consulting with support teams from their home offices to obtain information on the auditee. At challenge sessions, the Fellows present their plans to mentors and other experts and receive feedback to improve their plans.
Additional meetings: To complement their learning about auditing at their host offices, Fellows visit other provincial and municipal audit offices in Canada. They also meet with other Canadian institutions and government departments and attend Public Accounts Committee hearings.
Professional development courses: The Fellows participate in several courses delivered by CAAF and by their host offices. Topics include performance audit concepts as well as professional skills such as communications, project management, and leadership. The Fellows also learn about gender equality issues and how they can be considered within performance audits.
Orientation and cultural activities help the Fellows to feel at home in Canada and to build lasting friendships among themselves and with their Canadian colleagues.
When the Fellows graduate and return to their offices, they implement and share what they have learned, becoming leaders, trainers, and agents of change, both at their SAIs and in their regional associations of SAIs.
The Canadian Audit and Accountability Foundation and the Fellows thank the Canadian offices that host Fellowships, welcome the Fellows for visits, and provide mentoring.