The Director General of Internal Audit under the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs, Mr. Modou Ceesay has been appointed as the Auditor General of the National Audit Office. This information reached us on the 16th Nov. 2022.
Mr. Ceesay is a finance, audit & risk management professional. Until his appointment as AG, he was the Chief Audit Executive for the government of The Gambia, providing leadership to the internal audit, risk management, and wider governance issues.
Mr. Ceesay has over 11 years of experience working in the finance departments, accounting, financial reporting, internal audit, risk management, business improvement, and governance fields.
Mr. Ceesay has contributed to placing internal audits in the perfect situation to provide the proper scrutiny and assist management in dealing with pressures from internal and external sources. His recommendations on Governance, Risk, and Controls in the Public Sector have helped Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to restore trust and achieve their goals more effectively and efficiently.
He has years of experience in promoting transparent and responsible use of public finances in MDAs, LGAs and Donor funded Projects and the wider public sector, helping Accounting Officers/Vote Controllers from strategic, operational, and risk management perspectives. With many years of internal auditing and public sector accounting experience, he has strived to improve the quality and added value of the internal audit function (IAF) as well as increase broader recognition of the profession in the Gambia.
Mr. Ceesay has provided management consulting and technical assistance to central and local governments in The Gambia and beyond. His efforts include facilitating the roll-out of Internal Audit Services to all MDAs in central government; implementing ‘good practices’ and developing related policies and procedures, contributing immensely to increase efficiency and effectiveness in internal Controls, risk management, and governance processes in the public sector. He has worked closely with experts and supervised local staff, ensuring the timely completion of all deliverables, and is very familiar with donor practices, policies, and procedures.
Furthermore, Mr. Ceesay has also championed and coordinated the smooth implementation of Enterprise Risk Management for the government, and in the process delivered training on ERM for designated government officials in collaboration with the Commonwealth Secretariat and the UNDP.
He has extensive project management experience, leading system implementations for CAATs (ACL and Arbutus Analyzer) for the Internal Audit Directorate under the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs and facilitating end-user training across numerous MDAs. He has proven senior-level experience in executive decision-making, policy direction, strategic business planning, and financial and personnel management with experience in both private and public sectors.
The management and staff of the Ministry wish him success in his new assignment.