Regulating statutory auditors' engagements in the public sector : a comparison of legal requirements and audit scope in france, South Africa and Denmark

Abstract EN

With the vast acceptance of the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) worldwide, the auditing profession has been making a substantial progress within the public sector.

This paper takes a comparative approach through the analysis of documentation from France, South Africa, and Denmark to investigate the regulations of statutory auditors' engagements within the public sphere and the prospects of standardisation.

Findings reveal major divergence between studied countries; France depends on the government in managing statutory auditors' engagements, the Supreme Audit Institution has extensive authorities for this task in South Africa, while local authorities have significant independence in managing their relationship with statutory auditors in Denmark.