Often in Kosovo, administrative procedures and legislative actions sound good in theory but fail in practice. Moreover, routine audits rarely yield change. Early in 2021, USAID, through the Transparent, Effective, and Accountable Municipalities activity in Kosovo, introduced performance audits, which analyze whether programs are achieving measurable goals at the municipal level. Piloted in the Municipalities of Gjilan and Vushtrri, the audits identified acute challenges hindering the effectiveness and speed of government service delivery.
Sherafedin Latifi, Head of Internal Audit Unit of the Municipality of Gjilan, feels privileged to have had the opportunity to assess the efficiency of the system on identification, verification, and registration of properties via revenue collection for 2019 and 2020.
As Latifi emphasized, “it is the management of the municipality that benefits from this activity as the outcomes of the performance audits greatly improves institutional reputation and increases public trust.”
Following the success in the two pilot municipalities, other municipalities, like the Municipality of Prizren, have also shown interest to include performance audit activity in their 2022 Work Plan. USAID is working with the Central Harmonization Department at the Ministry of Finance, Labor and Transfers, Kosovo’s internal audit oversight body, to include performance audits in its Strategy for 2022-2026, helping to preserve these accountability gains beyond USAID’s assistance.
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