State audit of the JSC “Electronic Finance Center” was completed in Kazakhstan

The Supreme Audit Chamber has summarized the results of the state audit of the JSC “Electronic Finance Center.” During the audit the work on the development and maintenance of information systems in the field of public finance was assessed.

The implementation of digital solutions in budget resource management is an important component of the digital transformation taking place in Kazakhstan. Modern technologies make it possible to continuously monitor financial flows, minimize the human factor, and obtain an analytical basis for making management decisions.

The key operator in this area is JSC “Electronic Finance Center,” a subordinate organization of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The audit conducted by the State Audit Chamber revealed a number of shortcomings and problematic issues that require attention and measures to be taken to address them.

Thus, there are gaps in strategic management: there is no reporting on the implementation of development plans for 2023-2024, certain indicators are not being achieved, and internal audit activities are either not being fully implemented or are being implemented late.

The work of the EFC as an integrator of the budget process is assessed as satisfactory, but the organization's internal regulatory documents have not been updated, which may limit the effectiveness of the work being carried out.

There is evidence that the EFC uses various approaches when calculating the cost of services. Auditors require an expert assessment of prices and the implementation of separate accounting for work and services in order to reduce the risks of incorrect pricing.  

During the audit, considerable attention was paid to information security issues. The information systems under maintenance, in trust management, and the Electronic Commercial Procurement IS had violations in basic information security requirements.

Some information systems are also currently used in full working order, although formally they are still in the trial operation stage.

In addition, conditions exist for unauthorized interference in the operation of a number of existing digital systems. The audit revealed over 600 cases of technical changes being made to the Electronic Public Procurement information system. For example, changes were made that disabled the review of experience and approval documents. The approaches taken by the EFC in this area need to be improved and strengthen control.

For the high-quality and secure functioning of information systems, the Ministry of Finance needs to pay more attention to the EFC activities.

• Overall, the audit revealed financial violations amounting to 566 million tenge.
• Inefficient planning and use of funds amounted to 13.5 billion tenge.

The necessary recommendations and instructions have been developed for all problematic issues identified by the SAC. Their implementation will be monitored until completion.