Audit Office Upholds Top Transparency Ranking Following Evaluation in ITA 2025
Thailand's State Audit Office Tops Integrity and Transparency Assessment Amid Controversy
The State Audit Office (SAO) of Thailand has been awarded the highest transparency ranking among independent agencies in the 2025 Integrity and Transparency Assessment (ITA), despite controversies surrounding the involvement of a Chinese state-owned firm in the construction of its new headquarters.
In the aftermath of a powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake in March 2025, the partially constructed SAO building collapsed, resulting in the deaths of at least 89-95 people. The incident led to indictments of 23 suspects, including executives from both Italian-Thai Development and China Railway Number 10, the Chinese state-owned firm that formed a joint venture with Italian-Thai Development to build the 33-story tower. The suspects were accused of negligence in design, construction, supervision, and document forgery related to the collapse.
Despite these controversies, the SAO managed to secure a top spot in the 2025 ITA, with a score of 94.64. The assessment acknowledged the public scrutiny from the building collapse but maintained the office’s strong transparency credentials for that year. The Election Commission (EC) came in second place with a score of 93.47, while the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) came fifth with a score of 90.27.
The ITA, which assessed 8,317 government agencies, collected data through a comprehensive, multi-dimensional approach and employed statistical and academic methodologies. The SAO collected data in three key areas: Internal and Transparency Assessment, External Integrity and Transparency Assessment, and Open Data Integrity and Transparency Assessment.
For the Internal and Transparency Assessment, 693 personnel responded to a survey via the SAO intranet. For the External Integrity and Transparency Assessment, the SAO invited 501 participants to respond via its website. The Open Data Integrity and Transparency Assessment included 28 questions requiring respondents to provide documentary evidence.
The SAO emphasized that the ITA is a strategic tool for combating corruption. However, the office acknowledged that system improvement under the External Integrity and Transparency Assessment would be a key area for further development and reform. The SAO achieved first place among independent agencies in the 2025 ITA, but one indicator, system improvement under EIT, scored below the 85-point benchmark.
The nationwide average score for the 2025 ITA was 93.82 points, an increase of 0.77 points from the previous year. A total of 7,832 government agencies passed the evaluation criteria in the 2025 ITA, representing 94.17% of the total, up 1.73% from the previous year. Eight out of ten performance indicators in the 2025 ITA recorded higher averages than the previous year.
The highest-scoring indicator in the 2025 ITA was "Use of authority", which achieved 99.45 points. The SAO addressed public criticism after being ranked first in the 2025 ITA, stating that the ITA is an ongoing process and that they are committed to continuous improvement. The Office of the Ombudsman ranked fourth in the 2025 ITA with a score of 90.51. The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) ranked third in the 2025 ITA with a score of 93.18.
In summary, the State Audit Office of Thailand has been awarded the highest transparency ranking among independent agencies in the 2025 Integrity and Transparency Assessment, despite controversies surrounding the involvement of a Chinese state-owned firm in the construction of its new headquarters. The office acknowledges the need for improvement in certain areas, particularly in the External Integrity and Transparency Assessment, and is committed to continuous improvement in its fight against corruption.
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