AI and Data Mining Tools in the Audit of EU Funds Work: Part I

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and data mining tools are increasingly being used in the control, audit and fraud detection in EU funds by ECA, OLAF, EPPO, EC and MS, to improve fraud identification, risk assessment, compliance monitoring, and efficiency of their work. Taking into account the scale and complexity of EU funding programs (e.g. CP, CAP, NEXTGEN), the AI and other tools that we will present help verification experts, controllers and auditors to analyse vast datasets more effectively and efficiently than traditional methods.

This highly practical 2.5-day course will give you a complete overview and understanding of the current state of play of the use of AI and data analytics tools in the EU, the benefits they bring to our work, as well as risks and challenges involved.

We will cover in particular:

• legal framework and its implementation;
• EC-DG BUDG: AI, Arachne +, and other practical tools of fraud prevention and detection for MS. How to use it effectively in the management verifications of the Managing Authorities and audits of the Audit Authorities? How to use ARACHNE+ in the sampling methodology of the Managing Authorities if we decide to perform checks on a sample base? Practical know-how through workshops
• EC-DG Regio AI and other mining tools used in audit of EU Funds
• ECA
• EPPO
• MS and best practices: presentation of tools created in MS
• future AI outlook

You will learn about Artificial Intelligence (AI) and data mining tools already used by OLAF, EPPO, the EC, the ECA and Member States (MS) to improve the efficiency of their work in identifying main errors, irregularities and possible fraud cases in EU-funded projects.

You will also learn how AI and other tools that we will present can help you analyse vast datasets more effectively and efficiently than traditional methods and improve your work.

You will have the unique opportunity to practice the effective application of the new ARACHNE+ in the classroom with EC DG BUDG experts.

The course will give you a complete overview and understanding of the current state of play regarding the use of AI and data analytics tools in the EU, the benefits they bring to your work, as well as the risks and challenges associated with them, and the future outlook for AI.

• Managing Authorities, Audit Authorities, Intermediate Bodies, National Authorities, public bodies dealing with EU Funds, Joint Secretariats, and controllers under cross-border programmes, including auditors and experts from the IPA countries;
• internal auditors, independent auditors, and private audit companies dealing with or interested in EU-funded projects and programmes;
• managers and potential beneficiaries interested in EU-funded projects and programmes.

Project number: 2620604

Course venue
Housing and Urban Rehabilitation Institute (IHRU)
Av. Columbano Bordalo Pinheiro, n.º 5
1099-019 Lison
Portugal

Senior Project Officer
Ms Rafaella Giussani
Tel: +31 43 32 96 372
r.giussani@eipa.eu

Fee
The fee includes documentation and refreshments,  lunches, a sightseeing tour of Lisbon, and a dinner. Accommodation and travel costs are at the expense of the participants or their administration.

Discounts
EIPA member fee
EIPA offers a discount to all civil servants working for one of EIPA’s supporting countries, and civil servants working for an EU institution, body or agency.

Who are the supporting countries?
Civil servants coming from the following EIPA supporting countries are entitled to get the reduced fee: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden.

For all other participants, the regular fee applies.

Early bird discount
EIPA offers 10% off on registrations made eight weeks or more before the start of a course. The early bird discount is not cumulative with other discounts or promo codes, except for the EIPA member fee.

Loyalty coupon
As a token of appreciation we offer all our participants a loyalty coupon for one of our future courses. The offer can be shared with colleagues and relevant networks. The coupon will expire one year after its release. This discount is not cumulative with other discounts, except for the EIPA member fee.

Meals
Dietary preferences can be indicated on the registration form.

Confirmation
Confirmation of registration will be forwarded to participants on receipt of the completed online registration form.

Payment
Prior payment is a condition for participation.

Cancellation policy
For administrative reasons you will be charged €150 for cancellations received within 15 days before the activity begins. There is no charge for qualified substitute participants.

EIPA reserves the right to cancel the activity up to 2 weeks before the starting date. In that case, registration fees received will be fully reimbursed. EIPA accepts no responsibility for any costs incurred (travel, accommodation, etc.).

A few days before the start of the course you will receive the log-in details for accessing the course materials. You can log in here.