Strengthening Legislative Oversight of Public Funds: Audit Scrutiny Key Performance Indicators

The African Organization of Public Accounts Committees (AFROPAC), in collaboration with the Global Fund, is set to launch a transformative two-year initiative (2025-2026) aimed at bolstering legislative oversight and accountability in public financial management, with a concentrated focus on the health sector. Recognizing the intrinsic link between effective governance and enhanced health outcomes, this initiative seeks to reinforce the role of legislative bodies in overseeing public and donor-funded health programs.

The initiative will commence with a pivotal workshop on July 18-19, 2025, in partnership with the National Assembly of Kenya. This workshop marks the first in a series of seven in-country training sessions, specifically designed for members of the Public Accounts Committee and Health Committees. The theme, “Strengthening Legislative Oversight of Public Funds: Audit Scrutiny Key Performance Indicators,” underscores the critical need for enhanced capacity-building among legislators.

A recent assessment by the Kenya 2023 Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) report revealed that the Legislative Scrutiny of Audit Reports (PI-31) received a rating of D. This indicates that the overall performance of external audit functions and legislative scrutiny remains inadequate, posing significant challenges to effective service delivery. There is therefore an urgent need for improvement in financial management processes to ensure impactful outcomes, particularly in the health sector.

These evaluations have underscored critical gaps within the health sector, emphasizing a disconnect between budget allocations and actual service delivery. The infrequency of performance audits and the often lagging legislative oversight from health and public accounts committees exacerbate these issues. Moreover, many health initiatives fail to integrate gender or climate considerations, which are essential for promoting inclusive development. Transparency remains a pressing concern, with limited public access to data on health expenditures and inadequate internal audits in county facilities.

Addressing these weaknesses, the upcoming training aims to empower legislators to assume a more informed and proactive role in the oversight of public finances within the health sector. The workshop will focus on four key objectives:

1. Strengthening the legislature’s role in audit scrutiny of public funds;
2. Promoting greater citizen participation in oversight of health sector spending;
3. Developing tools to track the implementation of Public Accounts Committee (PAC) recommendations in health;
4. Identifying critical public financial management (PFM) reforms to enhance legislative oversight.

AFROPAC is committed to its pursuit of a united, accountable, well-governed, and proudly prosperous Africa. We call on African parliaments and stakeholders to fortify legislative oversight mechanisms and safeguard public resources for the benefit of our people.