Audits and Inspections
SIGAR’s Audits and Inspections Directorate conducts audits and inspections of reconstruction activities in Afghanistan. These audits are aimed at a wide range of programs and activities to fulfill SIGAR’s legislative mandate. They identify problems associated with the United States’ reconstruction effort, and make recommendations to improve efficiency and effectiveness.
SIGAR’s audits range from assessments of program direction to narrower examinations of specific contracts or aspects of contract and program management. SIGAR’s inspections are quick-impact assessments to determine whether infrastructure projects have been properly constructed, are being used as intended, and can be sustained. SIGAR also conducts forensic reviews of reconstruction funds managed by the Department of Defense, Department of State, and the U.S. Agency for International Development. These forensic reviews identify anomalies that may indicate fraud.
Investigations
SIGAR’s Investigations Directorate conducts criminal and civil investigations relating to programs and operations supported with U.S. reconstruction dollars. It prevents and detects waste, fraud, and abuse through criminal prosecutions, civil actions, forfeitures, monetary recoveries, and suspensions and debarments.
Lessons Learned Program
SIGAR’s Lessons Learned Program was created to identify and preserve lessons from the U.S. reconstruction experience in Afghanistan, and to make recommendations to Congress and executive agencies on ways to improve our efforts in current and future operations. The team’s reports focus on key aspects of the reconstruction effort and document what the U.S. government sought to accomplish, assess what it achieved, and evaluate the degree to which these efforts helped the United States reach its strategic goals in Afghanistan. The directorate is made up of subject matter experts with considerable experience working and living in Afghanistan, aided by a team of experienced research analysts. In producing its reports, the Lessons Learned program also uses the significant skills and experience found in SIGAR’s Audits, Investigations, and Research and Analysis Directorates, as well as the Office of Special Projects.