The First Chamber of the Parliament of the Netherlands paid a courtesy visit to the General Audit Chamber

Philipsburg – A delegation from the First Chamber of the Parliament of the Netherlands paid a courtesy visit to the General Audit Chamber on Monday, January 4th, 2016.

Members of the delegation included the chairman Mr. Ruard Ganzevoort, as well as members Mr. Frank van Kappen, Ms. Sophie van Bijsterveld, Mr. Thom de Graaf and Ms. Meta Meijers. The clerk of the First Chamber, Mr. Fred Bergman accompanied the delegation along with Mr. Gert Versluis, the representative of the Netherlands in Philipsburg. Chairman of the General Audit Chamber, Ronald C. Halman, received the delegation. Secretary-General Joane Dovale-Meit and legal advisor Mr. Keith de Jong supported him during the meeting.

The visit was a first meeting between the General Audit Chamber and members of the Parliament of the Netherlands. During the short meeting, the members of the delegation discussed the development of the General Audit Chamber since its inception on October 10, 2010. Mr. Halman outlined challenges as well as successes in starting up a supreme audit institution on Sint Maarten. The Dutch Parliamentary delegation was particularly interested as to how the recommendations and findings from reports issued by the General Audit Chamber were received and utilized by Parliament and Government. In that regard, the General Audit Chamber is cautiously optimistic, citing an improved frequency in meetings with Parliament in 2015.

Other topics that were briefly discussed included integrity and the financial management of Sint Maarten. In terms of integrity, the delegation was interested in the status since publication of the Baseline Study: State of Affairs Institutional Integrity Management 2014.
The discussion on the financial situation related to the instruction issued to Sint Maarten by the Kingdom Council of Ministers.

”It was a cordial, insightful and interesting introductory meeting. Though short in length, I believe that the contact is helpful. We were able to explain more about the growth of a national audit institution, and thus illustrate to the Dutch representatives that successful institutional development is possible through commitment as well as efficient and effective use of resources. In addition, we gained insight regarding the issues that are of interest to the Dutch representatives”, according to Mr. Halman.

As an institution that seeks facts as part of its daily work, the General Audit Chamber welcomes opportunities to exchange ideas and broaden its knowledge base, Mr. Halman concluded.

Additional information regarding the General Audit Chamber is available on the website www.arsxm.org