U.N. Appoints Former IIA Chairman as Director of Watchdog Group

July 29, 2010

Former IIA Chairman (1994-1995) Carman Lapointe, CIA, CCSA, CFE has been appointed under-secretary-general for Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) at the United Nations.

The United Nations issued a statement on behalf of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon last week welcoming the General Assembly’s quick approval of his nominee to the challenging position. “Ms. Lapointe possesses the breadth and depth of experience and expertise required for this demanding position,” the statement reads. It goes on to point out that “transparency and accountability are essential to the work of the Organization, and OIOS is critical to advancing that effort. That is why the Secretary-General acted as quickly as possible to propose an experienced, high-profile and able successor to this important post.” Lapointe, a Canadian, will be expected to build up the OIOS team, filling vacancies and taking on responsibilities that have largely gone unmet in recent years. She brings much experience to the post, having formerly served as auditor general of the World Bank and most recently as the director of the Office of Audit and Oversight of the International Fund for Agricultural Development in Rome.

Beyond her IIA chairmanship in 1994, Lapointe has been an active volunteer leader of The Institute. She currently serves as The IIA’s representative to the International Federation of Accountants’ Task Force revising auditing standard 610 on Using the Work of Internal Auditors. Most recently, she served on IIA committees to help develop a internal audit capability Model for the public sector and The IIA’s value proposition to internal audit stakeholders. And as a leader of The IIA’s professional issues committee in the early 90s, Lapointe was key contributor to The IIA’s role in helping develop COSO’s original Internal Control Integrated Framework. She also assisted in the development of the Certification in Control Self-Assessment. Lapointe has served on The IIA’s global advocacy committee, board of regents, Research Foundation board of trustees, and global and North American nominating committees