Romania’s role in promoting transparency and integrity at the international level is today more relevant than ever, President Klaus Iohannis said on Tuesday, at the decoration ceremony of the Comptroller General of the United States of America and head of the US Government Accountability Office, Gene Dodaro, and the President of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions, Bruno Dantas.
The head of state emphasized that the decoration takes place on the 160th anniversary of the establishment of the Court of Accounts of Romania.
„Romania’s role in promoting transparency and integrity at the international level is today more relevant than ever. The Court of Accounts has become a pillar of Romania’s efforts to improve governmental integrity and align itself with the highest international standards in terms of good governance”, he said.
Iohannis emphasized the importance of international connection.
„In a complex world landscape, where geostrategic changes create constant pressures on the governments and economies of the world, international partnerships and the exchange of experience become essential. In this framework, the work of those present here today reflects the commitment to their own national systems, but and towards a more efficient global governance”, the president also said.
The president addressed the two and recalled that Gene Dodaro led the United States Government Accountability Office for over a decade.
„Under your leadership, the partnership between the institution you represent and the Court of Accounts of Romania was an essential one in the modernization and professionalization of the Romanian public audit. Your efforts contributed to a better supervision and control capacity in Romania, increasing governmental efficiency and ensuring a more transparent and responsible legislative process”, highlighted the president.
He also conveyed to Bruno Dantas that, through his efforts at the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions, he strengthened the role of supreme audit institutions „towards greater independence, including through international cooperation”.
„The ClimateScanner initiative, which you launched in 2023, laid the foundations for a global movement n public auditing. You thus highlighted the importance of monitoring climate actions and brought to the fore the need for global responsibility, uniting the international community of auditors in the face of a crucial challenges for our collective future”, the president added.
In the end, the head of state praised the example of the two.
„From the perspective of a Romania engaged in an increasingly complex international cooperation, your achievements are a model of professional excellence, but also a guide for a better and sustainable future. I hope that your example will inspire not only your colleagues from the field of audit, but also all those who believe in the power of reforms and transparency”, Klaus Iohannis also affirmed.
Gene Dodaro accepted the decoration from all his colleagues. He congratulated the president of the Court of Accounts, Mihai Busuioc, „for everything he did to ensure that the institution has the necessary reforms”.
„This will help the Government of Romania to be transparent, responsible and help to improve the government’s performance, for the benefit of Romanian citizens”, he pointed out.
Bruno Dantas thanked Busuioc „for his efforts to modernize and amplify the values and benefits of the Court of Accounts in Romania”.
Gene Dodaro and Bruno Dantas were decorated with the National Order of the Star of Romania in the rank of Grand Officer, „as a sign of high appreciation, for the exceptional contribution brought to the development of external public audit, as well as for the determining role they have within the international organizations of supreme audit institutions”.
