In the third week of Internal Audit Awareness Month, members of the Audit Department visited Staff of the Akosombo Operational Area and undertook a walk-about at the Head Office to engage staff about their work [auditing, good governance practices, and a Q&A session].
The meeting formed part of the Area’s Weekly Safety Meeting. The discussions addressed; audit processes and internal controls, some common misconceptions about the Internal Audit (IA) profession, and other concerns about IA from the staff.
Ing. Job Kwame Aziaku, the Akosombo Area Manager, warmly welcomed the team and highlighted the essence of the engagement, which is to improve work processes of the Area and GRIDCo in general. He also congratulated Mr. Richard Ntim, Director of Internal Audit (DIA), for winning, “The Gilbert Ohene Dokyi Outstanding Personality Award” at the 2024 National Internal Audit and Governance Conference of the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) Ghana.
In his remarks, Mr. Richard Ntim, noted that May is globally recognised as Internal Audit Month, and his outfit will continue to use the period to engage staff. He reiterated the responsibility of the Audit Department to provide assurance and advice to Management and the Board. He explained some misconceptions about the audit profession, indicating that its main responsibility is to ensure GRIDCo is protected, and objectives achieved.
Mr. Joseph Dakora Zumasigee, Manager, Monitoring & Financial Audit, GRIDCo, [who is also the IIA Ghana President] emphasised that, among others, the purpose of Audit is to review the effectiveness of internal controls to protect GRIDCo and ensure the achievement of operational, reporting, and compliance objectives.
Mr. Benjamin Nkrumah, Manager of Management, and IT Audits in the Audit Department moderated the Q&A session. DIA assured staff that Audit would follow up on the issues raised for resolution.
Ing. Aziaku thanked the Audit Team and proposed for more of such engagements in the future.
In Tema, the team, dressed in branded colourful T-Shirts of White, Green, and Blue went round all the departments and sections within the Head Office. Leading the team, Mr. Joseph Dakora Zumasigee encouraged staff to have “an audit mindset,” urging colleagues to approach Internal Auditors with their concerns to avoid encountering challenges when auditing is being conducted. Staff were also encouraged to be abreast with GRIDCo’s policies, so their work is guided by the provisions.
Overall, The Audit Team has advised staff to use the Enterprise Risk Management process to report risks and incidents. They also reminded staff of GRIDCo’s “Code of Ethics” hotline (PLC 720-630) and encouraged them to report ethical concerns, as well.
