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AWARENESS OF THE CODE IN THE SUB-SAHARAN AFRICAN REGION. Presented to the IESBA Meeting of 4-6 December 2013, New York, by Chishala Kateka. The questionnaire by Chishala Kateka was kindly circulated by the Pan African Federation of Accountants (PAFA) to its Member bodies . - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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Presented to the IESBA Meeting of 4-6 December
2013, New York, by Chishala Kateka
AWARENESS OF THE CODE IN THE SUB-SAHARAN
AFRICAN REGION
The questionnaire by Chishala Kateka was kindly circulated by the Pan African Federation of Accountants (PAFA) to its Member bodies.
PAFA sent the survey to its 34 member nations of which 9 responses were received
Seeking to raise awareness of the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (the Code) amongst its members within the African Region, and
Seeking to understand the environment within which IFAC Member Institutes operate in relation to the Code.
The objective of the survey:
i) 8/9 PAFA Members have adopted the Code as their ethics
standards
ii) 5/8 Respondents using the Code use an earlier version than the
2012 one.
From the Survey Results it was observed that:
In 6/8 Countries using the Code, members are reasonably aware of the Code – members being given copies of the Code upon being admitted to membership
In the other two countries, awareness is low.
Awareness of Professional Accountants of the contents of the Code
Self-interest threats (failure to maintain objectivity and independence
Issues of Corporate Governance and Conflict of Interest - Independence
Close and or Immediate family relationships
Ethical issues topical in Members jurisdiction include inter alia
Public practice members provision of services even in areas where members are not very competent
Members in Practice signing accounts that they have not prepared nor reviewed
Members in Public Sector in Private Accounting Business. (Public Service Accountants setting up firms on the side in addition to their day jobs)
Ethical issues that are topical in your jurisdiction (cont’d)
This is done through:
Training Provision of materials (copy of the Code)
Competence Exams
Accountancy Magazines
At graduation ceremony, CPAs graduates take an oath to honour the provisions of the Code.
How Institutes implement the use of the Code
The lack of availability of quality trainers
Inability to punish culprits/non-adherents
Lack of resources (material and information) and staff not equipped to implement the Code
Challenges faced in implementing the use of the Code
Develop easy to read guidance material on the Code. The material code could, for instance, be based on different topics with the Code with adequate examples.
Have highlights - Perhaps a pocket guide.
IESBA can organize awareness workshops jointly with local associations in order to ensure a wider spread of contents of the Code.
How IESBA can help raise awareness amongst professional accountants in the jurisdictions
IESBA could provide their branded educational materials on the Code to member bodies from time to time to IFAC member bodies for distribution to Professional Accountants in the jurisdictions.
The regional trainings of trainers for PAO’s relevant staff
How IESBA can raise awareness amongst professional accountants in the jurisdictions (cont’d).
It is likely to impact other professionals in the Banking and Financial Services Sector.
The Society and Business Community will have trust in the Accountancy profession and place more reliance on Accountants and Auditors
The ethical behavior of Accountants will influence that of their clients towards building an ethical nation.
Impact that the Code becoming more pronounced can have outside of the Accountancy Profession
Awareness workshop to be jointly organized by IESBA with local Institutes
Perhaps exposure to the Code as early as the tertiary level would ensure that the Code is entrenched even before the student reaches the workplace.
IESBA should ask for slots whenever PAFA or Institute has CPD meetings
Publishing articles through the Institutes
Publication of standalone chapters of the Code
Suggested outreach awareness raising programs that IESBA could undertake
Other comments from PAFA members that in their opinion would be useful in assisting the IESBA to improve communication and mutual awareness with IFAC member Institutes in the Region
Any Other Comments A provision of information on how other institutes across the
world are implementing awareness of the Code, would be useful.
IESBA frequent communication with the Institutes will help to ensure compliance with the Ethics Code in the form of questions, Surveys and Annual Reports. This suggested interaction with the Institute will contribute to raising the Ethical stance of the Institute’s members.
IESBA to actively collaborate with PAFA and other sub-regional bodies to improve communication and raise awareness.
IESBA is not as visible as the other Boards and has taken a back seat – and yet it provides a framework in which we operate in and is thus important
It is not communicative
Any Other Comments
The responses constitute of 26% of the PAFA Members and would thus be representative
Members have an awareness but not necessarily a detailed knowledge of the Code, particularly those in industry
There is room for improvement with regards to communication between IESBA and member bodies of IFAC and their members
My own Conclusions from this
Sub-Saharan Africa comprises economies that are ‘emerging’ with growth rates above the global economic growth rates and is currently attracting a lot of FDIs. This is projected to grow further in the next few years.
As we pursue to attain convergence, I think that it is a soft target for the IESBA to help entrench the Code..
A cost effective plan for reaching out needs to therefore be made and systematically followed.
My own Conclusions from this
Sub-Saharan Africa comprises economies that are ‘emerging’ with growth rates above the global economic growth rates and is currently attracting a lot of FDIs. This is projected to grow further in the next few years.
As we pursue to attain convergence, I think that it is a soft target for the IESBA to help entrench the Code..
A cost effective plan for reaching out needs to therefore be made and systematically followed.
My own Conclusions from this
The End