Foreword
Asset management for public entities: Learning from local government examples.
Good asset management makes an essential contribution to the governance and management of a public entity’s business and is an integral part of an organisation’s wider service and financial planning process.
We wanted to foster further improvement of asset management in the public sector by sharing our views and examples from our 2009 audit of the asset management planning of 72 local authorities, carried out as part of our audit of Long-Term Council Community Plans (LTCCPs).
This publication is a resource for public sector asset managers and their organisations and governing bodies. We are confident that it will add value within those organisations and also encourage sharing of more good practice examples between asset managers and public sector organisations.
We would like to thank all the local authorities quoted in this publication for giving us their permission for their case studies to be included. Their willingness to be open and transparent is contributing to the effectiveness and efficiency of the public sector.
I would also like to thank my Specialist Assurance Services team for initiating this publication and for their efforts in bringing it to fruition. The document reflects well on the team’s knowledge and expertise in asset management and will be a useful resource in their work to provide advice and assurance to the public sector.
When we carry out our next major audit of LTCCPs in 2012, we are hoping that even more local authorities will have improved the quality of their asset management planning. We also hope that other public sector organisations will have benefited from this publication.
Stephen Walker
Executive Director, Audit New Zealand