Audit Office to step up efforts to strengthen capacity for oil & gas oversight

The Audit Office of Guyana has stepped up its effort to strengthen its capacity to scrutinise the burgeoning oil and gas sector, with Auditor General (AG) Deodat Sharma disclosing that previous efforts to secure funding for related initiatives have failed to materialise.

Sharma made these remarks on Friday after he handed over the 2025 AG Report to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Manzoor Nadir, in the Parliament Chambers. The AG’s office is responsible for conducting annual audits of public accounts, financial transactions or operations and financial statements.

Last year, Sharma indicated that he was working on establishing an oil and gas section within the Audit Office to monitor the local oil and gas industry. However, the AG told reporters on Friday that these efforts were thwarted by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in the previous parliament.

“I did send to the [last] PAC, which is responsible for our budget, and it was rejected. But as soon as the new PAC comes, I’ll send [the proposal] back to strengthen the Audit Office… So, we will be building our capacity in terms of the oil and gas sector, and it will go to the Public Accounts Committee for approval shortly, as soon as they are reconstituted,” he noted.

According to Sharma, “Just like we have a forensic audit section and a performance audit section, we’re going to ask for a specialised oil and gas sector section… What we will be doing is beefing up a separate unit for the oil and gas sector.”

Currently, at least one person in the AG’s office has upskilled themselves and obtained a doctorate in oil and gas auditing. Last September, the AG noted that there were fewer than a handful of officers who are equipped to tackle the oil and gas sector. In fact, he stated that while the then PAC had underscored the need to increase this number, it rejected a proposal from the Office to increase the complement of specialised auditors to around eight or nine.

Nevertheless, the Audit Office continues to work with regional and international stakeholders, such as the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), to strengthen its capacity.

In addition to attending several meetings on auditing the extractive industries, officers were also trained by oil and gas audit experts from Uganda and Rwanda. In the meantime, the Audit Office is also monitoring the various state agencies that have direct oversight of the operations within the local oil and gas sector.

“My office cannot [scrutinise] what is happening out there [offshore] because I would need more engineers, legal personnel, etc. to do that. So, what we have been doing is auditing the entities like the Natural Resource Fund, the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), and the [Guyana] Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) etc, that are responsible for coordinating what is happening out there. And the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), which grants all the tax exemptions, we do audit those aspects of it,” Sharma stated.

Over the years, the Guyana Government has been outsourcing experts, both local and overseas, to audit the expenses of ExxonMobil, the United States (US)-based company that is leading oil production operations in the offshore Stabroek Block.

Thus far, three cost oil audits have been conducted. The hired firms were expected to work alongside the Audit Office, training local officers on how they conduct their work and compile their reports.

But according to AG Sharma, this is yet to be done.

Only a few months ago, Guyana’s growing capacity to perform its own cost oil audits and audits in other extractive sectors was highlighted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which called for more work to be done.

“The authorities are encouraged to continue strengthening audit capacity, especially in the oil and gas sector,” the IMF said in its 2026 Article IV Mission concluding statement back in July.

But even as the Audit Office works on establishing a specialised department to monitor the local oil and gas sector, the agency is operating in a rapidly growing economy in which the state now has more resources to inject into larger projects.

Citing the fact that the national budget has moved from approximately $383.1 billion in 2021 to a staggering $1.558 trillion in 2026, AG Sharma says his office is also enhancing capacity to keep up with these changes, including increasing engineers in the Works and Structure Department.

“Our office continues its training and capacity building. Investing in training ensures that the Audit Office remains resilient, adaptive, and capable of delivering independent oversight that supports good governance… by equipping our auditors with up-to-date knowledge of international standards, modern auditing techniques, and emerging areas such as digital auditing, performance auditing, and a risk-based approach…the office can enhance both the quality and credibility of its work,” he noted.

Additionally, the existing audit work programme was reviewed with the aim of ensuring that the office remains responsive to the current environment.

The 2025 AG Report will be tabled in the National Assembly when it returns from recess in October.