Since 2020, the German development cooperation has been supporting the work of the INTOSAI Development Initiative (IDI) to strengthen the capacities of SAIs in auditing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As a body of the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), an intergovernmental umbrella organisation, IDI supports the capacity development of SAIs in developing countries. IDI has started to pilot its SDG Audit Model (ISAM), which provides practical guidance aimed at supporting performance audits that focus on the achievement of nationally agreed SDG targets. The model emphasises the interweaving of key principles of the 2030 Agenda (coherence, integration, leave no one behind, multi-stakeholder engagement).

SAIs specifically can play an important role in fostering Recover Forward by supporting SDG audits that consider effects of current crises. The situation related to COVID-19 is explicitly reflected in the choice of audit topics and audit questions of the ISAM pilot. As part of the cooperation with the GDC, IDI supported more than 40 SAIs which conducted individual or coordinated audits using ISAM, focussing on the SDG targets 5.2 (Elimination of Gender-Based Violence), SDG 3.d (Resilient Health Systems), and 12.7 (Sustainable Public Procurement).