Liberia: GAC Boss Makes Inroads in U.S.

The Auditor General of Liberia, P. Garswa Jackson Sr. who is in the United States along with other distinguished GAC officials has made huge inroads, signing a five-year Memorandum of Understanding with the United States Government Accountability Office (GAO).

The GAC boss and delegation are in the US on the invitation of GAO, and the milestone accomplishment was realized on Thursday, December 12, 2024, a GAC statement said.

As part of the MoU, the GAC will benefit from various capacity-building initiatives from the U.S. GAO Center of Audit Excellence through online and in-person trainings, and at least one auditor from the GAC will benefit from a three-month secondment program through the prestigious International Auditor Fellowship Program.

The GAC is upbeat about the achievement; the MoU with the prestigious United States Government Accountability Office represents a significant milestone for the GAC given the number of sanctions levied against former Liberian government officials about a year or so ago.

"It is also a testament that those officials and entities of government that distinguished themselves and conducted their activities with competence, credibility, and integrity still get the recognition from the very best and Liberia's biggest ally, the United States Government," the GAC statement asserted.

The signing comes amid delays by the Executive Mansion to ensure implementation of audit recommendations produced by the General Auditing Commission, including prosecution of officials liable of waste and abuse.

At the same time, Auditor General Jackson and his team will hold several other high-profile profile meetings with several US institutions, including Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Global Anti-Corruption Office, U.S. Department of State, and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), U.S. Department of Treasury. Others are Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO), United States Agency for International Development (USAID).