Social Sector Audit Department

The main areas of the department's audit activities are health, education, culture, sports and social affairs.

The department is responsible for the administrative and management costs incurred in the field of health care, as well as the costs related to public health programs. In addition, audit of the expenses related to the functioning of public institutions operating in the health sector.

The department oversees the administrative and operating costs of state programs in the fields of education, culture and sport, as well as the activities of legal entities under public law functioning in the field.

In addition, the department is entitled to audit state-funded social care programs.

The department prepares financial, compliance and performance audit reports, develops recommendations for the improvement of internal control mechanisms and prevention of violations and shortcomings as well as for the improvement of relevant administrative legal acts; Examines the state of implementation of the issued recommendations.

Mariam Zaalishvili

Head of Department

Mariam Zaalishvili was appointed as the head of the Social Sector Audit Department in the State Audit Office in August 2023, before that she served as the deputy head of the same department (2019-2023). At different times, she worked as an auditor-intern, auditor, senior and leading auditor (2011-2019).

She is involved in the ongoing international cooperation projects in the organization (cooperation projects with the Supreme Audit Institutions of the USA and European countries). At various times, she led the audits carried out by the State Audit Office within the projects financed by donor organizations (World Bank, USAID). She was involved in the professional education for SAI auditors organized by the international organization of supreme audit institutions INTOSAI IDI as a performance audit coach (2022). She is also one of the authors of the certification guide for public sector auditors. She has published several articles in INTOSAI Journal.

Mariam received certificate in the anti-corruption legislative studies from the American University (Washington College of Law; 2021). She has completed a four-months international auditor fellowship program in both auditing and management (2019) at the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) in Washington DC.

She holds Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) (Germany, Saarland University; 2011). She had received degree BA in the same direction at Caucasus University (2009).

She speaks English, German and Russian besides native Georgian.