about the relationship between internal and external audit, and the role of internal audit in
a company. According to the regulation on internal audit issued by the Cabinet of Ministers in
2005, all entities with assets exceeding USD 1 million must have an internal audit department led
by an auditor holding an external audit certificate. Internal auditors are responsible for internal
controls, assessing the work of executive bodies and other corporate functions, compliance with
legislation, accuracy of accounting records, safeguarding of assets and implementation of
corporate governance principles. Often, the work of internal auditors is perceived as a supplement
to the work of external auditors.
C. Professional Education and Training
50. There are 24 universities and 40 other institutes of higher learning in the Republic of
Uzbekistan.
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The Uzbek Law on Education established a two-level system of higher education:
Bachelor and Master Level. Education is multilingual; studies can be done in Uzbek, Russian,
English, Karakalpak, Kazakh, Kyrgyz and Tajik languages.
51. Progress in reforming Uzbek accounting and auditing has been coordinated with
progress in professional education and training. This approach, similarly to accounting reform
efforts, has led to minimizing the disconnect between academia and the profession; nevertheless,
further progress will be needed to support the reforms. The Minister of Finance issues decisions
on the content of business and economics education at both baccalaureate and master levels
before students move on to their pre-qualification studies. Since the audit certification program
consists of only four subjects, would-be auditors need to get a great deal of their relevant
education at university. But Uzbek university education is not adequate in this context. On a
cursory review, for example, the prescribed academic content does not fully cover the “grey text”
of International Education Standards (IES) in accounting, particularly, IES 2. IES 4 (on Ethics) is
not covered at all, while IES 3 to 8 are covered to some extent. Since IESs focus on
competencies, while Uzbek education content focuses on specific, formal content, any detailed
comparison is difficult. In any case, the quality of Uzbek education programs was not the subject
of a detailed assessment and, therefore, no comments are possible. It seems, however, that not all
institutions of higher education have adapted their curricula to reflect current financial reporting
requirements. Instead, they continue to teach “old” accounting with a focus on form over
substance, as opposed to outputs (financial statements, including the notes). Not all university
lecturers are experienced or have qualifications in NAS, NSA, IFRS and ISA-based financial
reporting. Furthermore, although there have been efforts to update the skills and knowledge of
university professors in the past, more current training and skills development programs are
needed.
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Source: www.gov.uz.
The Republic of Uzbekistan – Accounting and Auditing ROSC
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52. In addition to building better skills and knowledge of teaching staff, there is a need to
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