The Organization of SAIs of Mercosur Countries, Bolivia and Chile
On July 26, 1996, a Memorandum of Understanding among the Supreme Audit Institutions of Mercosur (SAIs from Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) was signed as a result of their common interest in setting up the Common Market of Southern Cone Countries through the Treaty of Asunción from 1991 – the interest to follow up on acts resulting from this integration – and also based on the goal of the four Organizations of sharing information and experiences.
In 1997, the General Controller's Office of Bolivia and the General Controller's Office of Chile joined this group of SAIs of Mercosur countries. The two institutions ratified the terms of the Memorandum of Understanding signed in July 1996. In 2006, the Office of the Comptroller General of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela joined the Organization; thus, today, seven institutions make up the Organization of SAIs of Mercosur Countries, Bolivia and Chile, established in 1999 after approval of its by-laws.
As provided for in those by-laws, the Organization is made up of the Joint Technical, Scientific and Cultural Cooperation Committee (a deliberative body), the Executive Secretariat and the Technical Coordinating Group.
Among other activities carried out by the Organization in recent years, special mention should be made of audits into the Mercosur information network, customs stations, and budget transfers to the Mercosur Administrative Secretariat, as well as environmental audits.
