Public Interest Committee (PIC)

Public Interest Committe (PIC)

The Public Interest Committee is the oversight body for the International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB), ensuring that the public interest is served by IPSASB in its standard setting activities.

Background

Oversight Activitites

The oversight activities of the Public Interest Committee are centred on the following three pillars:

Rigorous Due Process		Qualified and Inclusive Appointments		Relevant and Timely Standards
Rigorous Due Process Ensuring due process is the sine qua non of the Public Interest Committee’s activities. The Committee reviews the processes and procedures employed by IPSASB in its standard-setting activities to ensure rigorous due process in how IPSASB delivers high quality standards. This is carried out in accordance with the detailed International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board – Due Process and Working Procedures protocol agreed between the Committee and IPSASB.		Qualified and Inclusive Appointments Appointments to the International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board are made by the International Federation of Accountants. The Committee does not get involved in decisions on individual appointments. The role of the Committee is to ensure that the appointment process operates in the public interest. The Committee is committed to qualified and inclusive appointments to the IPSASB and to inclusiveness in all its dimensions – including gender, geography and accounting background. Such a representative Board will only strengthen the IPSASB and its mission. In this context, the Committee places emphasis on IFAC and its Nominating Committee developing and maintaining a robust “pipeline” of qualified candidates to ensure all appointments to the IPSASB are of high technical competency.		Relevant and Timely Standards The Public Interest Committee views the promotion of the development of relevant and timely standards as a crucial part of its mandate. It does so by concerning itself with the process by which decisions on strategy and work programme are developed. It does not take a view on individual standards. This involves having a public sector specific focus to its review of the overall strategy and work programme, and a concern for the number of activities undertaken at a single time and its effect on overall timeliness of the development of individual standards. In this context, it has also encouraged a wide consultation process by IPSASB for the development of its strategy and work programme.

The full Terms of Reference for the Public Interest Committee can be found here.

Members

The Public Interest Committee is comprised of individuals with expertise in public sector or financial reporting, and professional engagement in organizations that have an interest in promoting high-quality and internationally comparable financial information.

It is currently composed of four members from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institution (INTOSAI), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the World Bank.

Meetings

The Committee meets regularly, including with the Chair and Technical Director of IPSASB, the Chair of the IPSASB Consultative Advisory Group (CAG), the President and Chief Executive of International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) as well as its Managing Director of Professional Standards.

The Minutes (summary record) of the meetings are published in the weeks following each meeting:

2021

>March 2021, Virtual Meeting

2020

>October 2020, Virtual Meeting

2019

>March 2019, Paris, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

2018

>October 2018, Virtual Meeting

>February 2018, Paris, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

2017

>October 2017, Washington D.C., International Monetary Fund