Majlis Passes MVR 133.6 Million Budget for Auditor General's Office Without Revision

The People's Majlis on Tuesday passed the budget of the Auditor General's Office for the upcoming year at MVR 133.6 million, exactly as requested by the office, without any amendments. The budget was approved with the unanimous support of 46 members present at the session. The approved sum includes MVR 90.1 million for recurrent expenditure and procurement, and MVR 43.5 million for the construction of the office's new building in Hulhumalé. Salaries and allowances for staff account for MVR 55.8 million of the recurrent expenses. A further MVR 3.5 million is set aside to recruit 14 new staff members next year, nine of whom are tied to the newly created Audit Quality Review and Monitoring Department and an increase in audits planned. The budget for next year is MVR 700,000 less than this year's revised budget. According to the office, the reduction follows adjustments mandated by the Finance Ministry's budget ceiling, including reductions in basic salary allocations by 10 percent and overtime by 55 percent. The office also adopted new calculation methods, such as not budgeting salaries for vacant positions and adjusting attendance allowances for annual leave. The Auditor General's Office, led by Auditor General Hussain Niyazi, plans to carry out 394 audits in 2027, including 120 pending audits. These include audits of the Department of Judicial Administration, hospitals under the Male' Group, the Health Ministry from 2022 to 2025, the police and the National Social Protection Agency, among others. Deferred special audits include the Thilamalé Bridge project and land-related projects by HDC.