Public Health Agency of Canada - 2023-2024 financial statements

Table of contents

• Statement of management responsibility including internal control over financial reporting
• Statement of financial position (unaudited)
• Statement of operations and agency net financial position (unaudited)
• Statement of change in agency net debt (unaudited)
• Statement of cash flows (unaudited)
• Notes to the financial statements (unaudited)
• Annex to the statement of management responsibility including internal control over financial reporting

Statement of management responsibility including internal control over financial reporting

Responsibility for the integrity and objectivity of the accompanying financial statements for the year ended March 31, 2024, and all information contained in these financial statements rests with the management of the Public Health Agency of Canada (the Agency). These financial statements have been prepared by management using the Government of Canada's accounting policies, which are based on Canadian public sector accounting standards.

Management is responsible for the integrity and objectivity of the information in these financial statements. Some of the information in the financial statements is based on management's best estimates and judgment and gives due consideration to materiality. To fulfill its accounting and reporting responsibilities, management maintains a set of accounts that provides a centralized record of the Agency's financial transactions. Financial information submitted in the preparation of the Public Accounts of Canada and included in the Agency's Departmental Results Report, is consistent with these financial statements.

Management is also responsible for maintaining an effective system of internal control over financial reporting (ICFR) designed to provide reasonable assurance that financial information is reliable, that assets are safeguarded and that transactions are properly authorized and recorded in accordance with the Financial Administration Act and other applicable legislation, regulations, authorities, and policies.

Management seeks to ensure the objectivity and integrity of data in its financial statements through careful selection, training and development of qualified staff; through organizational arrangements that provide appropriate divisions of responsibility; through communication programs aimed at ensuring that regulations, policies, standards, and managerial authorities are understood throughout the Agency and through conducting an annual risk-based assessment of the effectiveness of the system of ICFR.

The system of ICFR is designed to mitigate risks to a reasonable level based on an ongoing process to identify key risks, to assess effectiveness of associated key controls, and to make any necessary adjustments. A risk-based assessment of the system of ICFR for the year ended March 31, 2024 was completed in accordance with the Treasury Board Policy on Financial Management and the results and action plans are summarized in the annex.

The effectiveness and adequacy of the Agency's system of internal control is reviewed by the work of internal audit staff, who conduct periodic audits of different areas of the Agency's operations, and by the Departmental Audit Committee, which oversees management's responsibilities for maintaining adequate control systems and the quality of financial reporting.

The financial statements of the Agency have not been audited.

Original signed by Heather Jeffrey
Heather Jeffrey
President
Ottawa, Canada
Date: September 12, 2024

Original signed by Stuart Parley
Stuart Parley
Acting Chief Financial Officer
Ottawa, Canada
Date: September 6, 2024

Statement of financial position (unaudited)

Contractual obligations (note 11)
Contingent liabilities (note 12)

The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements.

Original signed by Heather Jeffrey
Heather Jeffrey
President
Ottawa, Canada
Date: September 12, 2024

Original signed by Stuart Parley
Stuart Parley
Acting Chief Financial Officer
Ottawa, Canada
Date: September 12, 2024

Statement of operations and agency net financial position (unaudited)

Segmented information (note 15)

The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements.

Statement of change in agency net debt (unaudited)

The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements.

Statement of cash flows (unaudited)

The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements.

Notes to the financial statements (unaudited)

For the year ended March 31, 2024

1. Authority and objectives

The Public Health Agency of Canada (the Agency) was created by Orders In Council on September 24, 2004. The Public Health Agency of Canada Act, assented to December 12, 2006, provides a statutory foundation for the Agency.

The Agency has the responsibility to:

• Contribute to the prevention of disease and injury, and to the promotion of health;
• Enhance surveillance information and expand the knowledge of disease and injury in Canada;
• Provide federal leadership and accountability in managing national public health events;
• Strengthen intergovernmental collaboration on public health and facilitate national approaches to public health policy and planning; and,
• Serve as a central point for sharing Canada's public health expertise with international partners, and to translate international knowledge and approaches to inform and support Canada's public health priorities and programs—for example, by participating in international working groups to develop new public health tools to protect, mitigate and respond to emerging public health threats.

The Agency's core responsibilities, as part of the Departmental Results Framework, are described as follows:

Core responsibility 1: Health promotion and chronic disease prevention

Promote the health and well-being of Canadians of all ages by conducting public health research and supporting community-based projects which address the root causes of health inequities and the common risk and protective factors that are important to promoting better health and preventing chronic disease.

Core responsibility 2: Infectious disease prevention and control

Protect Canadians from infectious diseases by predicting, detecting, assessing, and responding to outbreaks and new threats; and contribute to the prevention, control and reduction of the spread of infectious disease among Canadians.

Core responsibility 3: Health security

Prepare for and respond to public health events and emergencies (for example, floods, forest fires, and outbreaks such as COVID-19); address health and safety risks associated with the use of pathogens and toxins; and, address travel-related public health risks.

Internal services

Internal services are the services that are provided within a department so that it can meet its corporate obligations and deliver its programs. There are 10 categories of internal services: management and oversight services; communications services; legal services; human resources management services; financial management services; information management services; information technology services; real property management services; materiel management services; and acquisition management services.

2. Summary of significant accounting policies

These financial statements are prepared using the Agency's accounting policies stated below, which are based on Canadian public sector accounting standards. The presentation and results using the stated accounting policies do not result in any significant differences from Canadian public sector accounting standards.

Significant accounting policies are as follows:

(a) Parliamentary authorities

The Agency is financed by the Government of Canada through Parliamentary authorities. Financial reporting of authorities provided to the Agency do not parallel financial reporting according to generally accepted accounting principles since authorities are primarily based on cash flow requirements. Consequently, items recognized in the Statement of financial position and in the Statement of operations and agency net financial position are not necessarily the same as those provided through authorities from Parliament. Note 3 provides a reconciliation between the bases of reporting. The planned results amounts in the "Expenses" and "Revenues" sections of the Statement of operations and agency net financial position are the amounts reported in the Future-oriented statement of operations included in the 2023-24 Departmental Plan. Planned results are not presented in the "Government funding and transfers" section of the Statement of operations and agency net financial position and in the Statement of change in agency net debt because these amounts were not included in the 2023-24 Departmental Plan.

(b) Net cash provided by Government

The Agency operates within the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF), which is administered by the Receiver General for Canada. All cash received by the Agency is deposited to the CRF, and all cash disbursements made by the Agency are paid from the CRF. The net cash provided by the Government is the difference between all cash receipts and all cash disbursements, including transactions between departments of the Government.

(c) Amounts due from the Consolidated Revenue Fund

Amounts due from the CRF are the result of timing differences at year-end between when a transaction affects authorities and when it is processed through the CRF. Amounts due from the CRF represent the net amount of cash that the Agency is entitled to draw from the CRF without further authorities to discharge its liabilities.

(d) Revenues and deferred revenues

Revenues are comprised of revenues earned from non-tax sources. They include exchange transactions where goods or services are provided for consideration where a performance obligation exists, and non-exchange transactions where no performance obligations exist to provide a good or service. These transactions can be recurring or non-recurring in nature. Recurring transactions are viewed as ongoing, routine activities that form part of the normal course of operations and can be used to indicate if they can be reasonably expected to be earned again in future years.

Deferred revenue consists of amounts received in advance of the delivery of goods and rendering of services that will be recognized as revenue in a subsequent fiscal year as it is earned. Other revenues are recognized in the period the event giving rise to the revenues occurred.

Revenues that are non-respendable are not available to discharge the Agency's liabilities. While the Agency Deputy Head is expected to maintain accounting control, she has no authority regarding the disposition of non-respendable revenues. As a result, non-respendable revenues are earned on behalf of the Government of Canada and are therefore presented as a reduction of the entity's gross revenues. Revenues earned on behalf of Government consist of the sale of services and gains on the sale of assets. These are recognized when earned.

(e) Expenses

Transfer payments are recorded as an expense in the year the transfer is authorized, and all eligibility criteria have been met by the recipient.

Vacation pay and compensatory leave are accrued as the benefits are earned by employees under their respective terms of employment.

Services provided without charge by other government departments for accommodation, employer contributions to the health and dental insurance plans and legal services are recorded as operating expenses at their carrying value.

(f) Employee future benefits

1. Pension benefits: Eligible employees participate in the Public Service Pension Plan (the "Plan"), a multiemployer pension plan administered by the Government. The Agency's contributions to the Plan are charged to expenses in the year incurred and represent the total agency obligation to the Plan. The Agency's responsibility with regard to the Plan is limited to its contributions. Actuarial surpluses or deficiencies are recognized in the financial statements of the Government of Canada, as the Plan's sponsor.
2. Severance benefits: The accumulation of severance benefits for voluntary departures ceased for applicable employee groups. The remaining obligation for employees who did not withdraw benefits is calculated using information derived from the results of the actuarially determined liability for employee severance benefits for the Government as a whole.

(g) Financial instruments

A contract establishing a financial instrument creates, at its inception, rights, and obligations to receive or deliver economic benefits. The financial assets and financial liabilities portray these rights and obligations in the financial statements. The Agency recognizes a financial instrument when it becomes a party to a financial instrument contract.

Financial instruments consist of accounts receivable, and accounts payable and accrued liabilities.

All financial assets and liabilities are recorded at cost or amortized cost. Any associated transaction costs are added to the carrying value upon initial recognition. For financial instruments measured at amortized cost, the effective interest method is used to determine interest revenue or expense.

Accounts receivable are initially recorded at cost and, where necessary, are discounted to reflect their concessionary terms. When necessary, an allowance for valuation is recorded to reduce the carrying value of accounts receivable to amounts that approximate their net recoverable value.

(h) Non-financial assets

Prepaid expenses are disbursements made, pursuant to a contract, before delivery of the goods or rendering of the service.

Inventories are valued at cost and are comprised of supplies and equipment held for future program delivery and are not primarily intended for resale. A provision is recorded for inventories that no longer have service potential or have service potential that extends over a period of time beyond one year, and are valued at the lower of cost or net realizable value.

The costs of acquiring land, buildings, equipment and other capital property are capitalized as tangible capital assets and, except for land, are amortized to expense over the estimated useful lives of the assets, as described in note 10. All tangible capital assets and leasehold improvements having an initial cost of $10,000 or more are recorded at their acquisition cost. Tangible capital assets do not include immovable assets located on reserves as defined in the Indian Act, works of art, museum collection and Crown land to which no acquisition cost is attributable, and intangible assets.

(i) Contingent liabilities

Contingent liabilities are potential liabilities which may become actual liabilities when one or more future events occur or fail to occur. If the future event is likely to occur or fail to occur, and a reasonable estimate of the loss can be made, a provision is accrued, and an expense recorded to other expenses. If the likelihood is not determinable or an amount cannot be reasonably estimated, the contingency is disclosed in the notes to the financial statements.

(j) Contingent assets

Contingent assets are possible assets which may become actual assets when one or more future events occur or fail to occur. If the future event is likely to occur or fail to occur, the contingent asset is disclosed in the notes to the financial statements.

(k) Asset retirement obligations

An asset retirement obligation is recognized when all of the following criteria are satisfied: there is a legal obligation to incur retirement costs in relation to a tangible capital asset, the past event or transaction giving rise to the retirement liability has occurred, it is expected that future economic benefits will be given up and a reasonable estimate of the amount can be made. The costs to retire an asset are normally capitalized and amortized over the asset's estimated remaining useful life. An asset retirement obligation may arise in connection with a tangible capital asset that is not recognized or no longer in productive use. In this case, the asset retirement cost would be expensed. The measurement of the liability is the Agency's best estimate of the amount required to retire a tangible capital asset.

When the future cash flows required to settle or otherwise extinguish a liability are estimable, predictable, and expected to occur over extended future periods, a present value technique is used. The discount rate used reflects the government's cost of borrowing, associated with the estimated number of years to complete remediation.

The recorded liabilities are adjusted each year, as required, for present value adjustments, inflation, new obligations, changes in management estimates and actual costs incurred.

(l) Measurement uncertainty

The preparation of these financial statements requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported and disclosed amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses reported in the financial statements and accompanying notes at March 31. The estimates are based on facts and circumstances, historical experience, general economic conditions and reflect the Agency's best estimate of the related amount at the end of the reporting period. The most significant items where estimates are used are contingent liabilities, asset retirement obligations, the liability for employee future benefits, allowance for doubtful accounts and the useful life of tangible capital assets.

Actual results could significantly differ from those estimated. Management's estimates are reviewed periodically and, as adjustments become necessary, they are recorded in the financial statements in the year they become known.

Asset retirement obligations are subject to measurement uncertainty as discussed in note 5 due to the evolving technologies used in the estimation of the costs for asset retirements, the use of discounted present value of future estimated costs, inflation, interest rates and the fact that not all sites have had a complete assessment of the extent and nature of asset retirement costs. Changes to underlying assumptions, the timing of the expenditures, the technology employed, or the revisions to environmental standards or changes in regulatory requirements could result in significant changes to the liabilities recorded.

(m) Related party transactions

Related party transactions, other than inter-entity transactions, are recorded at the exchange amount.

Inter-entity transactions are transactions between commonly controlled entities. Inter-entity transactions, other than restructuring transactions, are recorded on a gross basis, and are measured at the carrying amount, except for the following:

1. Services provided on a recovery basis are recognized as revenues and expenses on a gross basis and measured at the exchange amount.
2. Certain services received on a without charge basis are recorded for departmental financial statement purposes at the carrying amount.

3. Parliamentary authorities

The Agency receives most of its funding through annual parliamentary authorities. Items recognized in the Statement of financial position and the Statement of operations and agency net financial position in one year may be funded through parliamentary authorities in prior, current or future years. Accordingly, the Agency has different net results of operations for the year on a government funding basis than on an accrual accounting basis. The differences are reconciled in the following tables:

4. Accounts payable and accrued liabilities

The following table presents details of the Agency's accounts payable and accrued liabilities:

5. Asset retirement obligations

The Agency has recorded asset retirement obligations for retirement activities linked to machinery and equipment, and other asset retirement obligations.

The changes in asset retirement obligations during the year are as follows:

Accretion expense is the increase in the carrying amount of an asset retirement obligation due to the passage of time.

The undiscounted future expenditures, adjusted for inflation, for the planned projects comprising the liability are $492.0 thousand ($346.8 thousand as at March 31, 2023).

Key assumptions used in determining the provision are as follows:

The Agency's ongoing efforts to assess asset retirement obligations may result in additional asset retirement obligations.

6. Revenues

The Agency has the following major types of revenues: sales of goods and services, miscellaneous revenues and revenues earned on behalf of the Government. Sales of goods and services are recorded when they are earned. Miscellaneous revenues include lease and use of public property, interest, gain on foreign currency transactions and other fees and charges. These are recorded when performance obligations are satisfied.

7. Employee future benefits

(a) Pension benefits

The Agency's employees participate in the Public Service Pension Plan (the "Plan"), which is sponsored and administered by the Government of Canada. Pension benefits accrue up to a maximum period of 35 years at a rate of 2 percent per year of pensionable service, times the average of the best five consecutive years of earnings. The benefits are integrated with Canada/Québec Pension Plan benefits and they are indexed to inflation.

Both the employees and the Agency contribute to the cost of the Plan. Due to the amendment of the Public Service Superannuation Act following the implementation of provisions related to Economic Action Plan 2012, employee contributors have been divided into two groups - Group 1 relates to existing plan members as of December 31, 2012, and Group 2 relates to members joining the Plan as of January 1, 2013. Each group has a distinct contribution rate.

For Group 1 members, the expense represents approximately 1.02 times (1.02 times in 2022-23) the employee contributions and, for Group 2 members, approximately 1.00 times (1.00 times in 2022-23) the employee contributions.

The Agency's responsibility with regard to the Plan is limited to its contributions. Actuarial surpluses or deficiencies are recognized in the Consolidated Financial Statements of the Government of Canada, as the Plan's sponsor.

(b) Severance benefits

Severance benefits provided to the Agency's employees were previously based on an employee's eligibility, years of service and salary at termination of employment. However, since 2011, the accumulation of severance benefits for voluntary departures progressively ceased for substantially all employees. Employees subject to these changes were given the option to be paid the full or partial value of benefits earned to date or collect the full or remaining value of benefits upon departure from the public service. By March 31, 2024, substantially all settlements for immediate cash out were completed. Severance benefits are unfunded and, consequently, the outstanding obligation will be paid from future authorities.

The changes in the obligations during the year were as follows:

8. Accounts receivable and advances

The following table presents details of the Agency's accounts receivable and advances balances:

The following table provides an aging analysis of accounts receivable from external parties and the associated valuation allowances used to reflect their net recoverable value.

9. Inventory

The following table presents details of the Agency's inventory:

The cost of distributed inventory recognized as an expense in the Statement of operations and agency net financial position is $3,046.5 million in 2023-24 ($2,254.8 million in 2022-23).

10. Tangible capital assets

Amortization of tangible capital assets is done on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful life of the asset as follows:

Adjustments include assets under construction of $4,798 thousand that were transferred to other categories upon completion of the assets.

11. Contractual obligations

The nature of the Agency's activities may result in some large multi-year contracts and obligations whereby the Agency will be obligated to make future payments in order to carry out its transfer payment programs or when the services/goods are received. Significant contractual obligations that can be reasonably estimated are summarized as follows:

12. Contingent liabilities

Contingent liabilities arise in the normal course of operations and their ultimate disposition is unknown.

Claims and litigations:

Claims have been made against the Agency in the normal course of operations. These claims include items with pleading amounts and other items for which no amount is specified. While the total amount claimed in these actions is significant, their outcomes are not determinable. The Agency has recorded an allowance for claims and litigations where it is likely that there will be a future payment and a reasonable estimate of the loss can be made. Claims and litigations for which the outcome is not determinable and a reasonable estimate can be made by management amount to approximately $105.7 million ($105.3 million in 2022-23) at March 31, 2024.

13. Related party transactions

The Agency is related as a result of common ownership to all government departments, agencies, and Crown corporations. Related parties also include individuals who are members of key management personnel or close family members of those individuals, and entities controlled by, or under shared control of, a member of key management personnel or a close family member of that individual.

The Agency enters into transactions with these entities in the normal course of business and on normal trade terms. In addition, the Agency has agreements with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Health Canada and Indigenous Services Canada related to the provision of various finance and administrative services.

(a) Common services provided without charge by other government departments

During the year, the Agency received services without charge from certain common service organizations, related to the employer's contribution to the health and dental insurance plans, accommodation, legal services. These services provided without charge have been recorded at the carrying value in the Agency's Statement of operations and agency net financial position as follows:

The Government has centralized some of its administrative activities for efficiency, cost-effectiveness purposes and economic delivery of programs to the public. As a result, the Government uses central agencies and common service organizations so that one department performs services for all other departments and agencies without charge. The costs of these services, such as the payroll and cheque issuance services provided by Public Services and Procurement Canada and audit services provided by the Office of the Auditor General are not included in the Agency's Statement of operations and agency net financial position.

(b) Other transactions with other government departments and agencies

Expenses and revenues disclosed in (b) exclude common services provided without charge, which are already disclosed in (a).

14. Transfers from other government departments

Effective February 19, 2024, the Agency was transferred the responsibility, care and custody of COVID-19 rapid testing devices from Health Canada in accordance with a memorandum of understanding, including the stewardship responsibility for the related assets and liabilities. Accordingly, the Agency received the following assets and liabilities related to COVID-19 rapid testing devices from Health Canada on February 19, 2024:

15. Segmented information

Presentation by segment is based on the Agency's core responsibility. The presentation by segment is based on the same accounting policies as described in the Summary of significant accounting policies in note 2. The following table presents the expenses incurred and revenues generated for the main core responsibilities, by major object of expense and by major type of revenue. The segment results for the period are as follows:

16. Adjustment to prior year's results

In 2023-24, the Agency corrected an understatement of inventory that was acquired in 2021-22. The correction has been applied retroactively and comparative information for 2022-23 has been restated. The effect of this adjustment is presented in the table below.

A reconciliation of the restatement for the significant financial statement line items follows:

17. Comparative information

Certain comparative figures have been reclassified to conform to the current year's presentation.

Annex to the statement of management responsibility including internal control over financial reporting

Fiscal year 2023-24

1. Introduction

This document provides summary information on the measures taken by the Public Health Agency of Canada (the Agency) to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, including information on internal control management, assessment results, and related action plans.

Detailed information on the Agency's authority, mandate, and core responsibilities can be found in the Agency's Departmental Plan and Departmental Results Report.

2. Agency's system of internal control over financial reporting

2.1 Internal control management

The Agency has a well-established governance and accountability structure to support departmental assessment efforts and oversight of its system of internal control. A departmental Internal Control Management Framework, approved by the Deputy Head, is in place and includes:

• Organizational accountability structures, as they relate to internal control management and support sound financial management, including roles, responsibilities, accountabilities, and authorities;
• Agency adherence to the Values and Ethics Code for the public service, and implementation of its internal Code of Conduct, which includes mechanisms such as Agency-wide training on values and ethics and an Agency Enterprise Risk Management Framework and Guideline; and
• Ongoing communication and training on statutory requirements, policies and procedures for sound financial management and control.

The Internal Control over Financial Management Framework is also supported by:

• A dedicated Internal Controls team within the Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Management Branch responsible for the ongoing monitoring and reporting of the effectiveness of internal controls over financial management.
• A Financial Accountability Framework which clarifies accountabilities and responsibilities of all employees with delegated authorities. It is designed to ensure that a robust financial and investment management accountability structure exists that clearly articulates policy requirements, governance structures, and standard processes and enablers.
• A Departmental Audit Committee and Chief Audit Executive that provide independent and objective advice to the President on the adequacy and functioning of the Agency's risk management, internal controls, and governance frameworks and processes.

2.2 Service arrangements relevant to financial statements

The Agency relies on other organizations for processing certain transactions that are recorded in its financial statements.

2.2.1 Common service arrangements

• Public Services and Procurement Canada provides real property and accommodation services, centrally administers the payment of salaries, and serves as a common service provider for the procurement of goods and services beyond the Agency's delegated authorities outlined in the Agency Delegation of Spending and Financial Authorities.
• Shared Services Canada provides information technology infrastructure services to the Agency, such as data centres and network services;
• The Department of Justice Canada provides legal services to the Agency; and
• Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat provides services related to public service insurance plans for federal public service employees and centrally administers payments of the employer's share of contributions toward statutory employee benefit plans (the Public Service Pension Plan, Employment Insurance Plan, Canada Pension Plan or Quebec Pension Plan, and the Supplementary Death Benefit Plan on behalf of departments and agencies).

2.2.2 Specific arrangements

• Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada provides platform access to its human resources management system of record (PeopleSoft);
• Indigenous Services Canada provides host services to the Agency for the Grants and Contributions Information Management System;
• Through a Shared Services Partnership Agreement, Health Canada provides the Agency with services including: human resources (classification, staffing, and compensation), real property and security, information technology, financial management (financial operations and policies), and procurement and materiel management (including contracting). Assessment results and action plan on the controls of these shared services are provided through this Annex. Under this agreement, the Chief Audit Executive provides Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada with internal audit services, which encompass audits related to financial management and controls; and
• Health Canada provides the Agency with a financial system platform (SAP) to capture and report all financial transactions.

Readers of this annex may refer to the annexes of the above-noted departments for a greater understanding of the systems of internal controls over financial reporting related to these specific services.

3. Agency assessment results for the 2023-24 fiscal year

The following table summarizes the status of the ongoing monitoring activities, as per the results of the 2023-24 Ongoing Monitoring and Assessment Plan.

3.1 New or significantly amended key controls

Corrective actions identified as a result of the execution of the 2023-24 Ongoing Monitoring Plan, and those identified in an earlier entity-level controls assessment (2022-23) have been implemented as of March 31, 2024, and are described below.

• An Agency Risk Register was developed and fully implemented. It is a significant component of the Agency's wider Enterprise Risk Management strategy that improves its ability to proactively recognize risks and respond effectively to them at all organizational levels, ultimately increasing its capacity to achieve objectives. All branches of the Agency also conducted fraud risk assessments, supported by detailed guidance and tools, resulting in the comprehensive documentation and analysis of fraud risks and related mitigation measures across the organization.
• The National Microbiology Laboratory took various measures to strengthen the internal controls related to their inventory management. They further specified the documentation requirements related to the application of certain controls, established a better defined schedule for their inventory counts, and developed a quality assurance process on user access restrictions and the data recorded in their inventory system.
• The National Emergency Strategic Stockpile (NESS) also enhanced their inventory management controls. They completed the onboarding of all regional warehouses and continued the onboarding of National Capital Region warehouses in their new inventory management system, which possesses stronger automated controls to prevent and detect erroneous data and enables more efficient consolidated reporting on inventory. As well, the NESS established a better defined schedule for their future inventory counts.
• Salary Management controls were also strengthened during the year, notably by further specifying the documentation requirements related to the application of certain controls and developing a quality assurance process on the data recorded in the Salary Forecasting Tool.

3.2 Ongoing monitoring program

In the second semester of 2023-24, the Agency performed a risk environmental scan for its entity-level controls and for all financial management and reporting processes under its purview. This risk assessment was critical to inform the development of the 2024-25 to 2027-28 Internal Controls Ongoing Monitoring Plan, shown in Section 4, and reflects a balance of process risk, availability of resources, timing of overlapping assurance activities, and the requirements of the Management Accountability Framework.

In advancing its Ongoing Monitoring of Internal Controls program, the Agency completed a controls design and operating effectiveness assessment of the Inventory Management process, both for the National Microbiology Laboratory and the National Emergency Strategic Stockpile. It also completed a design and operating effectiveness assessment of the controls embedded within the Salary Management process, as a subset of its Budgeting and Forecasting business process. Furthermore, it finalized the operating effectiveness assessment of the controls related to the investment planning business process. This enabled the Agency to achieve the ongoing monitoring status for all business processes under its purview by March 31, 2024, as required under the Management Accountability Framework.

Additionally, the Agency substantially advanced the update of its current business process and controls documentation for Grants and Contributions. The controls of this business process will be re-assessed for proper design and operating effectiveness during fiscal year 2024-25.

Readers may refer to Health Canada's annex for a greater understanding of the changes to key controls, and for details of the status of their ongoing monitoring program for internal controls over financial reporting related to the specific services outlined in Section 2.2.2.

4. Agency's action plan for the next fiscal year and subsequent fiscal years

The Agency's ongoing monitoring plan over the next few years is shown in the table below. The ongoing monitoring plan is based on:

• An annual validation of risk;
• The availability of resources;
• The timing of overlapping assurance activities;
• The requirements of the Management Accountability Framework; and
• Related adjustments to the ongoing monitoring plan as required.

In addition to its ongoing monitoring rotational plan, the Agency will continue addressing any outstanding remediation resulting from its previous internal controls assessments.

5. Agency's achievement of ongoing monitoring status

Building on progress to-date, the Agency has completed the full assessment of its system of internal controls over financial management during the 2023-24 fiscal year and has therefore achieved the ongoing monitoring status for all business processes under its purview. In the future, the Agency will be applying the ongoing monitoring plan shown in Section 4 to reassess control performance on a risk basis across key control areas.