Article 16 OCT responsibility

set up and implement management and control arrangements in such a way as to ensure that Community funds are being used efficiently and correctly. Appropriate internal and external financial controls are to be carried out in accordance with internationally accepted audit standards by the competent financial control authority, which must be independent for the purposes of performing this function;

provide the Commission with a description of these arrangements;

guarantee that assistance is managed in accordance with all the applicable rules and that the funds placed at their disposal are used in accordance with the principles of sound financial management;

certify that the declarations of expenditure presented to the Commission are accurate and that they result from accounting systems based on verifiable supporting documents;

present to the Commission, when each programming period is wound up, a declaration drawn up by a person or department having a function independent of the designated managing authority. This declaration shall summarise the conclusions of the checks carried out during previous years and shall assess the validity of the application for payment of the final balance and the legality and regularity of the transactions covered by the final certificate of expenditure. The OCT may attach their own opinion to this certificate if they consider it necessary;

cooperate with the Commission to ensure that EDF resources are used in accordance with the principles of sound financial management;

prevent, detect and correct irregularities, notify these to the Commission, in accordance with the rules, and keep the Commission informed of the progress of administrative and legal proceedings;

recover any amounts lost as a result of an irregularity detected and, where appropriate, charge interest on late payments;

take all the necessary measures to ensure compliance with the provisions of the indicative programme, including that the timetable of commitments and disbursements agreed at the time of programming is met; and

investigate any causes of delay in implementation and propose suitable measures to remedy the situation.