When Supreme Audit Institutions engage with civil society: Exploring lessons from the Latin American Transparency Participation and Accountability Initiative

Abstract

The Transparency, Participation and Accountability Initiative illustrates emerging partnerships between audit institutions and citizens, and highlights the benefits and challenges of a cooperative approach for engaging with public officials. The Initiative has created a space for collaboration between civil society organisations and Supreme Audit Institutions in Latin America. It has become a valuable partner for audit institutions and has helped create regional consensus on the legitimacy of transparency and participation mechanisms in audit. However, enhancing the impact of this collaboration requires working with other actors, making the audit process relevant to citizens, and coordinating efforts with development partners.