After approximately 19 years of operation,the State Audit Office of Vietnam ( SAV) has affirmed its role as an effective management tool, which made many contributions to the country’s development. Although the legal position of the SAV is regulated in the SAV’s Law in 2005 but it has not been stated in the Constitution.

Regulating the legal position of the SAV in the Constitution is very essential regarding its independence and effective performance. Because it shall comply with SAI’s performance acknowledged in the Lima Declaration (1977), Mexico Declaration (2007) of the INTOSAI and will ensure efficiency, effectiveness and transparency in the SAV’s role as the agency supporting the supreme supervising power of the Parliament/National Assembly over the state.

In recent time, SAV has made its effort to accelerate the constitutionalized process of the SAV. One of the highlight activities is that SAV has successfully organized the international conference “The legal status of SAV and Auditor General in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam’s Constitution” which was attended by many foreign participants in the INTOSAI Community. Recognizing the effort of the SAV in the improvement of its independence, Mr. Josef Moser – President of Austrian Court of Account and INTOSAI Secretary General considers the SAV to be a model in the implementation of Resolution A/66/209 of the United Nation.

In 2013, the SAV’s development marks a major step forward when the proposal for the legal status of the SAV and the Auditor General was included in the Constitution Revision of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. One of the key points of the Constitution Revision stipulates that the SAV is an agency constituted by the National Assembly, to function independently and in compliance with the law, to audit the management and use of State finance and public property; the Auditor General is head of the SAV and shall report the results of the audits to National Assembly. The draft amendment of the Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam has been publicized on January 2nd, 2013, in which Article 122 about legal status, function and power of SAV and Auditor General is added. Currently, it is being consulted widely by civilian and is expected to be approved by the National Assembly at the end of 2013.