(h)"higher education qualifications" means any diploma, certificate or other evidence of formal qualifications issued by a competent authority attesting the successful completion of a post-secondary higher education or equivalent tertiary education programme, namely a set of courses provided by an educational establishment recognised as a higher education institution or equivalent tertiary educational institution by the State in which it is situated, where the studies needed to acquire those qualifications lasted at least three years and correspond at least to ISCED 2011 level 6 or to EQF level 6, according to national law.

A. whereas the Lima and Mexico Declarations of the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions lays down the main pillars of an independent audit institution and affirms that national supreme audit institutions (SAIs) may interpret the declaration principles with considerable freedom;

26. Underlines that the World Bank estimates that each year, US$ 20 to US$ 40 billion, corresponding to 20% to 40% of official development assistance, is stolen through high-level corruption from public budgets in developing countries and hidden overseas ; given the European Union's position as the world’s leading donor, calls on the European Commission to consolidate the cooperation with other donors and the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions to develop capacities of Supreme Audit Institutions in aid recipient countries, in order to implement the International Standards for Supreme Audit Institutions and ensure th ...[+++]at the EU financial assistance serves its intended purposes instead of being diverted;

24. Underlines that the World Bank estimates that each year, US$ 20 to US$ 40 billion, corresponding to 20% to 40% of official development assistance, is stolen through high-level corruption from public budgets in developing countries and hidden overseas; given the European Union's position as the world’s leading donor, calls on the European Commission to consolidate the cooperation with other donors and the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions to develop capacities of Supreme Audit Institutions in aid recipient countries, in order to implement the International Standards for Supreme Audit Institutions and ensure tha ...[+++]t the EU financial assistance serves its intended purposes instead of being diverted;

31. Calls on the Commission to consolidate the cooperation pursued with other donors, and with the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions, to develop capacities of Supreme Audit Institutions in aid recipient countries, in order to implement the International Standards for Supreme Audit Institutions in developing countries;

carry out and report on a comprehensive independent audit of the public accounts of all subsectors of the general government conducted preferably in coordination with national supreme audit institutions, aiming to assess the reliability, completeness and accuracy of those public accounts for the purposes of the excessive deficit procedure.