Internal Resources Committee

General Description of Internal Resources Committee Working Group

The Internal Resources Committee (IRC) serves as an oversight body within the CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat, ensuring the effective management of the organization’s internal financial and asset resources. As an independent advisory committee, it provides recommendations to the CTI Council of Senior Officers (CSO) on key financial matters, including the annual budget, internal audits, and financial policies. Its primary function is to review financial management processes and ensure that internal resources are allocated efficiently and transparently.

The committee is responsible for evaluating the Regional Secretariat’s budget proposals, monitoring financial performance, and assessing resource allocation strategies. It reviews financial reports and cost structures to ensure expenditures align with program priorities and strategic decisions made by the Council of Ministers (COM) and CSO. Additionally, the IRC ensures financial operations comply with established policies and best practices, offering recommendations for improvements where necessary. It also reviews the Regional Secretariat’s annual audit reports and assesses the financial implications of new initiatives, major projects, and organizational changes, helping to identify and address potential financial risks while safeguarding the organization’s long-term stability and sustainability.

Chair: Timor Leste

The CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat was formally established in April 2015 following a set of proposed Operational Plan and Budget approved by the Committee of Senior Officials in Special SOM 2014. The proposed Operational Plan and Budget for 2015 through to 2017 was prepared and deliberated in the Coordination Mechanism Working Group (CMWG) responsible for the planning of the establishment of a permanent Regional Secretariat. The roles of internal financial management are then taken over by the Regional Secretariat in 2015 and was the responsibility of the Executive Director who reports to the Chair of Council of Senior Officials (CTI CSO). However, it was found that there is a need for an oversight committee to review the internal financial management process and mechanism and therefore this Internal Resource Committee (IRC) is established independent of the Financial Resources Working Group (FRWG) which focuses on sourcing external funding for CTI programs.

Role and Functions

The primary role of the Internal Resource Committee (IRC) is to provide an independent review of the internal resources of the Regional Secretariat and to recommend to the CTI Council of Senior Officers (CTI CSO) the following:

1. Annual Budget;
2. Internal Audit & Acceptance of Annual Audit Report;
3. Policy Directions pertaining to financial and asset management.

The IRC members are as follows:

Country	Name
Chair Timor-Leste	Mr. Celestino da Cunha Barreto
	Director of National Fisheries and Marine Resource Management
	Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries
Co-Chair Indonesia	Dr. Hendra Yusran Siry
	Secretary, Directorate General for Marine Spatial Management
	Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries
Malaysia	Mme. Madam Roslinda binti Ulang
	Undersecretary
	Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Sustainability
Papua New Guinea	Ms Yvonne Tio
	Executive Manager, Conservation Environment Protection Authority
	Department of Treasury
Philippines	Marcial C. Amaro
	Jr, Assistant Secretary for Biodiversity in concurrent capacity as Director
	Department of Environment and Natural Resources
Solomon Islands	Ms Ronnelle Panda
	Assistant Secretary, Policy and Planning Division
	Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources