Photo Credit: Sol2023
The National Hosting Authority (NHA) of the Solomon Islands is facing criticism for delays in providing necessary documentation to auditors, slowing down the audit of the 2023 Pacific Games spending. The Solomon Islands Government, with donor support, spent an estimated $2.5 billion to host the two-week event in December 2023, which attracted thousands of athletes to Honiara.
According to Georgina Maka’a from In-depth Solomons, the auditor General David Dennis expressed concerns over the lack of proper documentation to validate actions and transactions for major procurements. Dennis, alongside KPMG partners Steve Nutley and Anare Manulevu, briefed Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele on the audit’s progress this week. The audits cover financial statements from 2019 to 2024 and a special procurement audit examining NHA’s practices.
Dennis stated that the audits are expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2025, pending timely receipt of the required documents. However, delays in obtaining proper documentation from NHA remain a significant challenge. Updates on the completion dates for the remaining financial audits (2022-2024) will be provided later.
The Pacific Games have been spoiled by allegations of excessive spending and bias in contract awards, including a controversial $6.4 million contract awarded to a local barbershop for toilet paper supply, which was later dismissed following public protest.
The Auditor General’s Office has engaged international firm KPMG to conduct both the financial statement and procurement audits.
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Read the article from Georgina Maka’a below:
