ABSTRACT

The study is on the appraisal of the role of internal audit in state government budget implementation, a study of office of auditor general of Abia state, Nigeria. The main objective was to find out the role of internal audit in the implementation of budget in Abia state. The specific objectives include! To determine the internal auditor 's role in the implementation of Abia state budget and to identify factors that hinders internal auditors role in the state, and to find out whether internal audit staff is adequately trained in modern auditing techniques to enable them function effectively in these aspect. The population size was 50 respondents. The data for this study was obtained from primary data source using questionnaires distributed to respondents, and these questionnaires was filled and returned back to the researcher. Data were analyzed using table percentages, and ANOVA. Result revealed that recommendation of internal audit department provide practical costbenefit solution for budget implementation, also that auditors plays a role in Abia state budget implementation, but the role is not significant. Therefore we recommended that; the internal audit unit at the state government level need additional staff that is qualified and competent in order to perform their functions effectively, and adequate emphasis should be place on internal audit report in the course of state budget drafting and strict implementation technique should be employed in the implementation of this budget, there should be clear information dissemination within the various department of the state government on the control measure taken, so that each department. would comply with the respective control system or face adequate sanction. We also concluded that auditors should be given adequate funding, time and total independence in the discharges of their duties to enable optimum efficiency in the interest of the state which provides funds and not just the management only. Auditors are highly relevant in the operations of the Abia state budgeting and budget implementation process as seen from the findings gathered by the researcher, which revealed that an audit report is a significant tool for state government budget.