Audit of Compliance of Public Procurement: Theoretical and Practical Aspects

The purpose of the article is to identify the main elements of the public procurement compliance audit and disclose the practical aspects of its implementation. It was determined that the control function is a priority in the management of public procurement in Ukraine among other functions (planning, organization, accounting, analysis, motivation, regulation). The problem of non-compliance of legislative provision of the state audit with international ISSAI standards due to the lack of compliance audit was identified. The main legislative requirements (general and specific) for conducting the compliance audit were considered. The proposed author's vision of the purpose, tasks, subject, objects and subjects of compliance audit which correlates with international ISSAI standards. The objects of the audit are the activities of the customer (participant) at different stages of the life cycle of procurement items, public resources and the activities of responsible state agencies. The main entities (in accordance with the requirements of international standards) are the state auditor, controlled entity and potential users. The main issues on the directions and objects of compliance audit are detailed. The main issues on the areas and objects of compliance audit were detailed. The stages of compliance audit (planning, carrying out and preparation of reporting documentation) with the definition of control actions at each of them were disclosed. The criteria of legality and validity in the compliance audit (relevance, completeness, reliability, neutrality, clarity, usefulness, compatibility, acceptability, accessibility) were characterized. The internal sources of state audit (including compliance audit) of public procurement at the stage of pre-contractual and contractual procedures in the electronic procurement system, as well as the use of procurement items were described. The methods of state audit of public procurement by the objects of inspection (observation, verification, research, confirmation, analytical procedures) are highlighted.