Report Contents
What OIG Inspected
OIG inspected the executive direction, policy and program implementation, resource management, and information management operations of Embassy Doha.
What OIG Recommends
OIG made 18 recommendations to Embassy Doha. In its comments on the draft report, the embassy concurred with 15 recommendations and neither agreed nor disagreed with 3 recommendations. OIG considers all 18 recommendations resolved. The embassy’s response to each recommendation, and OIG’s reply, can be found in the Recommendations section of this report. The embassy’s formal response is reprinted in its entirety in Appendix B.
What OIG Found
• The Ambassador modeled some but not all the Department of State’s leadership and management principles.
• Embassy Doha’s Political, Economic, and Public Diplomacy Sections advanced Integrated Country Strategy and Department of State priorities.
• The embassy had consular issues related to visa advocacy, access to the Consular Section workspace, and controlled item inventories.
• Embassy Doha had internal control issues in general services, facility management, human resources, and financial management programs.
• The embassy had information management internal control deficiencies related to training, records management, and the development of a mobile application.
Report Terms
Report Recommendations
Embassy Doha should bring visa advocacy and Consular Section access procedures into compliance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha should bring inventory audits of controlled consular supplies into compliance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha should perform regular reviews of locally employed staff contracting officers’ transactions, in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha should bring its contracting officer’s representative program into compliance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha should enforce the requirement for vendors to register in the System for Award Management.
Embassy Doha should close out procurement files in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha should bring its practices for procurement of cellular phone services into compliance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha, in coordination with the Bureau of the Comptroller and Global Financial Services, should implement a plan to bring its furniture and appliance pool into compliance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha, in coordination with the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations, should implement a standard operating procedure to identify potential landlord-provided costs of a personal nature, document those that may be recovered, and implement a plan, where appropriate, to recover the costs of landlord-provided services of a personal nature.
Embassy Doha should conduct a review of all structures on the embassy compound and ensure that they are reported in the Real Property Application.
Embassy Doha, in coordination with the Bureau of Global Talent Management, should update the embassy’s local compensation plan in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha should update the locally employed staff handbook in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha should require supervisors to approve locally employed staff requests for overtime in advance and maintain written documentation of prior approval with requests, in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha should manage locally employed staff official personnel folders in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha should manage representation funds in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha should require all Diplomatic Technology staff to complete required information assurance training in accordance with Department standards.
Embassy Doha should implement a records management program that complies with Department standards.
Embassy Doha should complete a privacy impact and a risk assessment for its Doha Lebanon Evacuation application in accordance with Department standards.