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Supreme Audit Office of Czech Republic (NKÚ)

The Ministry of the Environment lacks a compact information system and still uses 125 separate information systems and databases Read full summary in English

2015 report 14/12

The objective of the audit was to scrutinise the management of funds earmarked for the purchase and administration of ICT within the MoE and selected organisations which come under the management of the MoE. The audit identified the following risks: (1) non-existence of the Integrated environmental information system (IEIS) as an independent information system; (2) purchase of ICT, within the budget chapter of the MoE, through a state co-funded organisation CENIA which comes under the management of the MoE; (3) utilisation of the information systems. The audited period was 2010 to 2013; where relevant, the preceding and following periods were also scrutinised. The audit was managed by the SAO Board member Mr Jan Vedral.

In the report page 3

- The IEIS is more of a theoretical concept than an integrated information system. Consequently, the MoE has not fulfilled its obligation to see to and manage the IEIS according to Act No. 2/1969 Coll.

- The environment department currently uses 125 separate information systems and databases.

In the report page 3

- The IEIS Project Steering Committee did not meet once from 2010 to 2012 and did not issue the appropriate expert opinions on strategic activities of the environment department.

- The MoE failed to make sure that the Committee, as the main expert coordinating body, fulfilled its obligations as laid down in its statutes.

In the report page 2

- Fundamental project-management documents did not contain a duty to draw up a feasibility study analysing possible alternative solutions,

- the MoE could not be certain that it was implementing the most advantageous and most economical alternative

In the report page 3

- Data were stored multiple times in various information systems

- a need for greater storage capacity for the stored data and in the consequent increased operating costs

In the report page 3

- the only project (SIRIUS) through which the MoE went some way towards implementing the IEIS was cancelled without a replacement

- uneconomical and ineffective spending of CZK 21 million

In the report page 3

- Data in the selected and substantively related information systems were found to be incompatible

- Remedying this state of affairs will require additional spending.

In the report page 3

- certain information systems continue to be contractually dependent on a single contractor

- leads to the risk that the public tender will not be executed in the most economical manner

The risk cases visible on this page are collected and described by the e-Government Subgroup of the EUROSAI IT Working Group in contact with author Supreme Audit Institutions (SAI). In the same way, analytical assumptions and headings are chosen by the Subgroup. We encourage you to read the original texts by SAIs - to be found in the linked files.