Report on recipient audit of Wasagamack First Nation
Name: Wasagamack First Nation
Location: Manitoba
Population: 1,975 on reserve; 2,206 total registered
Default status at time of audit: third-party management (2012–2013)
Current default status: recipient-appointed advisor (Since April 1, 2016)
Current Chief: Chief Gary Knott
Time period covered by audit: April 1, 2011 to March 31, 2013
Amount of INAC funding audited: $20,328,388
Background
Indigenous Services Canada (ISC), formerly Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC), selected the Wasagamack First Nation for a recipient audit.
The objective of the recipient audit was to provide assurance that funding provided to the recipient by the Government of Canada was spent for its intended purposes and is in compliance with the terms and conditions of the relevant 2011–2012 and 2012–2013 Funding Agreements with ISC. The objective was achieved through:
- examination of the recipient's internal controls
- execution of a compliance review on the eligibility of the expenditures claimed under the terms and conditions of the applicable funding agreements
Deloitte LLP, an independent audit firm, was commissioned to undertake the recipient audit, which took place in March 2014.
Findings
The auditor noted that there was no identification by the third party manager of the expenditure by contribution type (i.e. set funding, fixed contribution, grant contribution); all funds received were managed at an aggregate level (i.e. total amount). The funding agreements require that the recipient keep proper accounts and records of the costs of the project. The auditor was unable to reconcile ISC contributions to amounts claimed at the program level.
The audit identified areas of development within program administration, financial management, and management reporting systems.
Program administration
A governance structure has been formally established. While work plans have been developed to achieve goals, there was no evidence provided of analysis, review and/or approval of the figures used. Management does not maintain documentation of program monitoring
Financial management
Deficiencies were identified in the financial practices relating to the accounting and expenditures claimed against the agreements. With respect to design and implementation of key control activities, it appears that controls related to segregation of duties may not be appropriately designed and implemented due to the limited number of finance personnel.
Management reporting systems
All reports required under the terms and conditions of the agreements were submitted and there were no outstanding reports at the date of the audit. However, reports were not consistently submitted in a timely manner.
Current status
A copy of the final report has been sent to the recipient. ISC and the recipient are working together to address the findings. The recipient was given a verbal briefing of the audit results.
Disclaimer: This audit summary was prepared based on information contained in a recipient audit report on Wasagamack First Nation, which was produced for ISC and is intended solely for the information and use of the recipient and ISC management. The audit summary only presents limited information on the general findings based on the audit procedures performed and does not provide information on the detailed procedures of findings. Consequently, this summary may not be appropriate for the purpose and use of the reader.