ABSTRACT:

It is unarguable that Nigeria has not been able to achieve sustainable development and national security despite its enormous resources. It is against this backdrop that this paper examines the issue of sustainable development and national security in Nigeria from the perspective of public sector audit with particular reference to external audit. The paper draws from secondary data and extensive literature. It was revealed that statutory provisions on public sector audit in Nigeria are inadequate, some are inactive, and the practice as demonstrated by the operators leaves much to be desired. It is, therefore, recommended that the Audit Bill before the National Assembly should be passed into law without further delay, operators that violate statutory provisions on time frame for submission of accounting and audit reports and other aspects of audit statues should be duly and appropriately punished. Audit report should be well publicized, and relevant institutions such as the presidency, legislature, judiciary, the media, professional accountancy bodies, masses, etc must support the supreme audit institutions to stem the tide of corruption if Nigeria is to make any sustainable progress.