Determinants of Internal Audit Effectiveness in Federal Public Sector Organizations in Nigeria

Abstract

The study investigates the determinants of internal audit effectiveness in Nigeria's federal public service with reference to 28 self accounting public sector organizations operating in the North East geo-political zone, one of six such zones recognized for political expediency. Primary data was obtained from 139 valid responses out of 148 questionnaires administered on internal auditors of such organizations. Partial least square SEM technique of multiple regressions was employed for data analysis. The finding of this study revealed that the quality of internal audit work; competence; and management support were most dominant with positive significant contribution on internal audit's ability to meet its objectives while independence and information and communication technology (ICT) conversely showed negative insignificant influence. The study recommends an improvement of operational standards; compliance with Internal Audit's minimum entry requirement; its recognition as an independent organizational function; and provision of required resources by relevant government offices (OAGF; OHSF; NITDA).