China has given high priority to the prevention and control of the COVID-19 pandemic. Facing the COVID-19 outbreak that caught all by surprise, under the guidance of President Xi Jinping, the Chinese government and Chinese people have been undaunted as they took on this formidable task. From day one of the fight against the outbreak, China has put people's life and health first and acted according to the overall principle of shoring up confidence, strengthening unity, ensuring science-based control and treatment and imposing targeted measures. It has mobilized the whole nation, set up collective control and treatment mechanisms and acted with openness and transparency in a people's war against the outbreak.
Since the outbreak, the National Audit Office of China (CNAO) has acted quickly to organize audit institutions nationwide to conduct a special audit of the funds and donations in response to the pandemic prevention and control. The audit covers earmarked fiscal funds, money and goods donated and subsidized loans for key anti-epidemic materials manufacturers. The audit priorities include:
----the implementation of relevant central government policies and decisions for the pandemic prevention and control;
----the implementation of policies on tax and fee cuts, fiscal subsidized and preferential loans;
----the general situation, appropriation and use of funds earmarked for the pandemic prevention and control arranged by the central and local finance departments at various levels;
---- the overall situation, distribution and use of public donations.
The audit objectives of the audit are, to promote a regulated management, efficient use and transparency of the funds and material for the pandemic prevention and control, to ensure the provision of essential medical supplies and daily necessities during spread of the pandemic, and to facilitate the smooth and efficient control and treatment of COVID-19. We will perform the audit diligently by identifying problems, urging corrections, and helping plug loopholes, improve management and mechanisms all in a timely manner.
While keeping operating and pushing forward planned audit projects, audit institutions prudently follow the government issued COVID-19 prevention requirements and place high emphasis on the safety of auditors. In practice, with more flexible working arrangements, auditors are conducting both off-site and on-site auditing, and making full use of big data audit techniques, by which auditors verify questionable points identified through data analysis while communicating with the audited entities via telecommunication and the internet, to ensure the success of both epidemic control and audit efforts.