Technology-Driven Citizen Engagement Regional Workshop ends in Monrovia

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The Technology Driven Citizen Engagement Regional Workshop, which began on Tuesday, February 21, 2023, ended on Friday, February 24, 2023 in Monrovia, Liberia.

The workshop, sponsored by the German International Cooperation or GIZ and facilitated by the African Organization of Supreme Audit Institution or AFROSAI-E, was a follow-up activity from the results of needs assessments and situational analysis performed in Botswana, Kenya and Liberia.

It focused on how to address gaps resulting from the assessments and the formulation of the roadmap for the seamless roll-out of the CitizenEYE Mobile application in the participating countries.

Participants from Botswana, Kenya, Liberia, Uganda and Ghana discussed and learned the specifics about the development and roll-out of the CitizenEYE App by the Ghana Audit Service, SAI Uganda and other experiences gained by partners GIZ and AFROSAI-E from working with this application.
The CitizenEYE is a mobile technology application that runs on smart phones and other computer devices. It provides citizens and residents of a country a platform to actively participate in transparency and accountability initiatives.

It also enables citizens and residents who have information relating to misappropriation and misapplication of public resources, system deficiencies and non-compliance with the relevant laws and regulations the avenue to safely and anonymously provide vital information to their respective national audit offices without fear of being victimized. Such information provided will then be analyzed, and subsequently serve as significant data during audits scheduling and planning to include risk assessment activities.
On Friday, February 24, 2023, participants from Botswana, Kenya and Liberia held group discussions and developed communication and stakeholder engagement strategies supporting the development and roll-out of the citizen engagement tool with emphasis on short and long-term, on- and offline marketing and communication strategies, as well as internal and external stakeholders borrowing from their colleagues from SAI Uganda and Ghana Audit Service followed by group presentations.
The Technical Advisor of Poor Financial Governance at GIZ, Malite Boehm, thanked the participating SAIs for the Regional Workshop and presented the next step, including the submission of the project document and discussion of the way forward in the coming weeks leading to the launch of the CitizenEYE App in the nearest future.
Deputy Auditor General for Audit Service Winsley S. Nanka, on behalf of the Auditor General P. Garswa Jackson, Sr., commended GIZ, AFOSAI-E and participating countries for coming to Liberia to conduct such a wonderful workshop.
Deputy Auditor General Nanka recounted the support of GIZ in sponsoring the environment Coastal Audit conducted by the GAC a few years ago, while hailing AFROSAI-E for continuously championing most of the capacity-building programs at the General Auditing Commission.
He said the GAC will remain engaged with these partners in pursuit of more capacity building initiatives.

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