A Primer for Audit Preparedness

To promote electronic payments as an effective business practice under USAID awards, USAID published a Procurement Executive’s Bulletin in August 2014 entitled Guidance for Electronic Payments under USAID awards. The bulletin states that electronic payment systems are to be the default method of payment to transfer funds to direct program beneficiaries, subcontractors, and sub-recipients. A number of USAID implementing partners in Bangladesh have expressed concern about whether making transactions using mobile money meets the requisite USAID audit requirements. We spoke with USAID/Bangladesh’s Deputy Controller, USAID implementing partners who have already begun using mobile financial services (MFS), and an MFS provider to identify good record-keeping practices when making payments via mobile money, which are highlighted below.