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Mark Campbell, Head of International Capacity Building

2nd Africa Congress of Accountants (ACOA), Ghana

May 2013

Shaping the accountancy profession on the continent

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Shaping the accountancy profession on the continent

1. The journey & vision

2. Working with partners & stakeholders

3. Building strong national institutes

4. Thinking and working regionally

Agenda:

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Strengthening the accountancy profession – the journey & vision

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 Good and effective governance

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Standards, codes and procedures

A high quality professional qualification

Services to members, the nation and the public

Vision

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The critical argument

• A strong economy needs a strong accountancy profession.

• A strong profession needs a strong national professional body.

• A strong professional body should lead the profession with:

Good and effective governance. Standards, codes and procedures. A high quality professional qualification. Services to members, the nation and the public.

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Shaping the accountancy profession on the continent

1. The journey & vision

2. Working with partners & stakeholders

3. Building strong national institutes

4. Thinking and working regionally

Agenda:

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© ICAEW 2013

2. Working with partners and stakeholders

• ICAEW advocates partnering and mentoring (twinning).

• Twinning strengthens the profession as a whole.

• We involve key stakeholders: • Public sector• Regulators• Employers • Education & training

• We identify strategic priorities with partner and deliver these.

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2. Working with partners and stakeholders

• Delivering key reforms involves a balance between deep technical expertise and change management skills.

• To be successful, projects typically involve multiple interventions and steps to achieve the desired outcomes.

• ICAEW projects are managed on a break-even basis.

• ICAEW has worked closely with national professional bodies around the world including 5 in Africa (2009-13).

• We wish to see a model emerge where some ICAEW partners mentor/twin with other bodies on the continent.

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Shaping the accountancy profession on the continent

1. The journey & vision

2. Working with partners & stakeholders

3. Building strong national institutes

4. Thinking and working regionally

Agenda:

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Building strong national institutes

There are FOUR key areas of activity to strengthen a national body:

A.Governance and capacity

B.Standards, codes and procedures

C.Professional qualification

D.Services to members

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A. Governance and capacity: goals

1. Strong national legislative authority.

2. Bye-laws that are up-to-date and practical.

3. High quality strategic plan for strengthening capacity.

4. Realistic business plans that are followed through.

5. A highly effective organisational structure and culture.

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B. Standards codes and procedures: goals

1. Champion implementation of international standards.

2. Strengthen audit quality and the regulation of audit:

• Audit practice manuals.• Audit quality monitoring.• Technical services.• Disciplinary procedures.

3. Strengthen the regulatory sector, sharing best practice.

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C. Professional qualification: goals

1. A progressive syllabus benchmarked against the best.

2. Flexible exam rules and regulations.

3. Internationally benchmarked practical training regime.

4. High quality education and training provision.

5. Internationally benchmarked learning materials.

6. Marketing and brand strengthening.

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D. Services to members & the nation: goals

• CPD and CPD monitoring.

• Support during transition.

• Advisory services.

• Technical materials.

• Events (forums etc).

• A public face.

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A note on the competitive environment

• Some national bodies feel threated by foreign bodies.

• These situations often involve market competition for students.

• The market for students covers:• The best and brightest.• The volume market.• Students attracted by

international brands.• Employers neutral towards the

national qualification.

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Some ways to address competition

• Embed legislative authority in the national body.

• Pursue a strategy that includes leading the profession.

• Work closely with key employers and other stakeholders.

• Modernise the syllabus and the overall qualification.

• Improve tuition provision and learning materials.

• Work across borders using mutual recognition.

• Engage professionals to strengthen marketing & brand.

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Shaping the accountancy profession on the continent

1. The journey & vision

2. Working with partners & stakeholders

3. Building strong national institutes

4. Thinking and working regionally

Agenda:

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Thinking and working regionally

• Leadership initiatives for CEOs and directors.

• Mentoring workshops in brand strengthening.

• Mutual recognition arrangements between bodies.

• Regional shared services perhaps through PAFA: Audit quality monitoring. Syllabuses, learning materials and perhaps exams. A public sector paper.

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