UN brings top US firm to audit tsunami relief aid

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 12 January 2005, 09:33 GMT]
Amidst widespread allegations of mishandling of tsunami aid operation, the United Nations have Tuesday called in a top US audit firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers, to monitor and ensure the pledged international post-tsunami relief support reaches the right people.

Nearly USD one billion has already been pledged by various countries and international monitoring agencies, in addition to the private donations for relief and rebuilding effort in 12 tsunami-hit countries across the South-East Asian region.

Over 80 foreign countries gathered in Geneva yesterday to decide on the quantum of aids and to channel it through an appropriate mechanism to ensure that there will be no mishandling or misuse of these resources by political leaders, bureaucrats of various countries and that it speedily reached the needy people.

According reports, the world body has accepted an offer made by the well-recognized US audit firm, the PricewaterhouseCoopers to audit the huge sum of aid deliveries. This is in addition to the UN beefing up it own auditing services to ensure that all donations meant for tsunami victims were properly accounted for.

The reports of accepting the offer of the PricewaterhouseCoopers, came barely a couple of days after World Bank chief, said in Colombo that the Bank already has a mechanism in operation to combat any possible corruption of mishandling of such relief aids.

The move also coincided with the request by the international corruption watchdog, the Transparent International, to set up a transparent budgetary system for international rebuilding effort especially in the Indian Ocean region.