Terms of Reference for the Final Audit of the project “Enhancing and Protecting Children’s Rights in the Republic of Moldova”

Terms of Reference for the Final Audit of the project “Enhancing and Protecting Children’s Rights in the Republic of Moldova”

Introduction
The Child Rights Information Centre Moldova (CRIC), hereafter referred to as the ‘Cooperation partner’, is a non-governmental organization, set up in 1999. CRIC’s vision is a society with more care, understanding and respect for the human beings. We inspire adults to listen to the voice of every child and we work with children, families, authorities, public services and civil society in order to develop and apply solutions based on child rights.

See more info on CRIC on drepturilecopilului.md.

The Cooperation partner wishes to engage the services of an audit firm for the purpose of auditing the project “Enhancing and Protecting Children’s Rights in the Republic of Moldova”, as stipulated in the agreement between Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in the Republic of Moldova, hereinafter referred to as "the donor", and CRIC, hereinafter referred to as "the cooperation partner". The audit shall be carried out in accordance with international audit standards issued by IAASB (The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB)). The audit shall be carried out by an external, independent and qualified auditor.

I. Objectives and scope of the audit

The objective is to audit the financial report for the period 1 June – 31 December 2024 (total budget – 82,400.00 EUR) and to express an audit opinion according to ISA 800/805 on whether the financial report of CRIC is in accordance with the donor’s requirements for financial reporting as stipulated in the agreement between Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in the Republic of Moldova, and CRIC.

Regardless of which material amount the auditor chooses and works on the basis of, all discrepancies detected by the auditor and unadjusted by the donor regarding funds disbursed to the cooperation partner shall be stated in the report.

II. According to agreed upon procedures ISRS 4400, review the following areas in accordance with the Terms of reference below

Examine, assess and report on compliance with the terms and conditions of the agreement and applicable laws and regulations regarding accounting and taxes.

The auditor shall determine if supporting documentation relating to reported expenditure is available. The auditor shall report the amount of funds for which financial reporting does not meet required standards.

1. Follow up whether salary costs debited to the project are recorded throughout the duration of the project in a systemized way and examine whether the salary costs can be verified by sufficient supporting documentation.

2. Examine whether the financial report includes a comparison, for every budget item, between the actual costs/expenditures of activities and the budgeted costs/expenditures as approved by the donor for the period.

3. Follow up whether the cooperation partner complies with the applicable tax legislation with regard to taxes (e.g. Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and social security fees.

4. Follow up whether the cooperation partner has adhered to the procurement guidelines annexed or referred to in the agreement.

5. Review if outgoing balance for previous period is the same as incoming balance for the current period.
6. If the cooperation partner applies modified cash basis as accounting principle, the auditor shall describe whether the chosen accounting principle is acceptable for the established financial report.

7. Verify the unspent balance at the end of the project.

8. Regardless of materiality of the findings, the auditor shall quantify the amount for costs lacking sufficient supporting documentation.

III. The reporting

The reporting shall contain details regarding the audit methodology used and the scope of the audit.

The reporting shall be signed by the responsible auditor (not just the audit firm) and shall include the title of the responsible auditor.

The reporting from the auditor shall include an independent auditor’s report in accordance with the format in standard ISA 800/805 and the auditor’s opinion shall be clearly stated. The independent auditor’s report shall clearly stipulate that the audit has been conducted in accordance with ISA 800/805.
The reporting shall also include a Management Letter that discloses all audit findings and weaknesses identified during the audit process. The Management Letter shall include both significant and other findings. The auditor shall also make recommendations to address the identified findings and weaknesses. The recommendations shall be presented in priority order. The financial report that has been subject of the audit shall be attached to the audit reporting. If the auditor assesses that no findings or weaknesses have been identified during the audit that would result in a Management Letter, an explanation of this assessment must be disclosed in the audit reporting.

The reporting shall be written in English and be presented in two copies and in digital format for onward transmission to the donor by stated date, not later than 15 January 2024.

IV. Application procedure

Applications must be sent in English and entail the following:

• Expression of Interest and availability;
• CV/Organisation Profile should be presented;
• Two references from similar assignments.

Expression of Interest clearly marked “Audit of the project expenditures within the project Enhancing and Protecting Children’s Rights in the Republic of Moldova” should be sent to: office@ciddc.md. The application can also be submitted as hard copies at the address: 15 Coca str., Chisinau, Republic of Moldova.

The applications should be sent on or before 17:00 hours local time on December 26, 2024.

For any additional clarifications please call Arina Zîcu, 069390702.