Strengthening Public Governance Through Internal Audit: Lessons And Perspectives From The Republic Of Moldova

This paper examines how internal audit contributes to improving governance in the public sector of the Republic of Moldova. The analysis is based on the national legal framework – Law on Public Internal Financial Control and the National Internal Audit Standards. These normative acts reflect the continued efforts of Moldova to promote transparency, accountability and better management in public entities. The paper also refers to key international frameworks, such as the International Professional Practices Framework in Internal Auditing, ISO Standard 37000 on Governance of Organizations – Guidance, SIGMA Principles of Public Administration and COSO Internal Control Integrated Framework. Evidence from the PIFC Consolidated Reports, the 2023 SIGMA Public Administration Assessment Report, as well as from internal audit activity reports from individual public entities, is used to illustrate how internal audit supports accountability and compliance, improves processes and contributes to better informed decisions. At the same time, the paper underlines several challenges, including affected independence of audit units, lack of resources and insufficient follow-up on audit recommendations. In the end, the paper presents several proposals for strengthening the internal audit function as an important element for good governance in Moldovan public administration.