Musings on the amendments of the Accountancy Law

the most fulfilling experiences I had as Chairman of the Professional Regulatory Board of Accountancy from 2014 to 2018 include the engagements I had with the various accountancy regulators, experts and thought leaders here and abroad. these interactions brought in a lot of insights on current developments and future directions of the profession that immensely helped define the regulatory and legislative agenda that I pursued during my term as BOA Chairman.

The other landmark occasions where I proudly represented the Philippines include several events of the World Bank and the Center for Financial Reporting Reform in Austria from 2016 to 2018. The CFRR is part of the WB Group that is tasked to provide a broad range of knowledge, convening and capacity development services in support of financial reporting reform, institutional strengthening and the dissemination of good practice in the area of financial reporting and auditing.

It was a learning experience for me to participate in the meetings of the International Academic Education Standards Board (IAESB) and International Ethics Standards Board (IESB) of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). I attended at least four meetings of the Consultative Advisory Group of IAESB and IESB in New York City and Paris in 2017 and 2018. I observed the protocols and procedures for conducting meetings with participants coming from various sectors and countries. I participated in the deliberations of the priority and emerging issues of the accountancy profession, including some matters as the strategy and work plans, Continuing Professional Development, application of professional skepticism, impact on independence of engaging on non-assurance services, the development of skills and competencies in the area of Information and Communications Technology, formulation of the ecode of Ethics, and several initiatives in developing standards on accounting academic and ethical guidance. In one of these meetings, I chanced upon a Filipina CPA colleague, Dr. Conchita Manabat, who was representing the International Association of Financial Executives Institutes. It is always a feather in the cap of the Filipino CPAS when our fellow Filipinos are able to represent the country or their institutions in these global marketplace of ideas.

The other landmark occasions where I proudly represented the Philippines include several events of the World Bank (WB) and the Center for Financial Reporting Reform (CFRR) in Austria from 2016 to 2018. The CFRR is part of the WB Group that is tasked to provide a broad range of knowledge, convening and capacity development services in support of financial reporting reform, institutional strengthening and the dissemination of good practice in the area of financial reporting and auditing. It is based in Vienna, Austria and is presently headed by a good friend, Jarett Decker. The CFRR and WB invited me to participate in several events, including the IFAC-CFRR Regional Education Community of Practice conference, the Audit Training of Trainers (TOT) Workshop, the IFAC Regional Small and Medium Practices Forum, a conference on “Achieving Excellence in Accountancy Education: Sharing Good Practices and Opportunities for Reform,” and the World Bank-hosted Ministerial

Conference on “Financial Information: Catalyst for Growth.” In the process of participating in these international events in Vienna, I, as representative of the Philippines, was able to wave our flag and share our insights and experiences that my foreign counterparts apparently appreciated very much, and learned from them. In fact, Kalina Sukarov, project manager of one of the TOT training courses, included an article that I wrote in Businessmirror in the WB brochure that they printed in 2017. In addition, I was able to establish a professional and personal relationship with the kind staff of the CFRR, including Bonnie Ann Sirois, Piotr Pyziak, and Elena-cornelia Salcher. It would have been good if I was given the opportunity to transition this network of professional contacts and initiatives to my BOA Chairman successor, but circumstances did not allow it.

Instead, I now continuously share these insights and experiences with the accounting community and the various stakeholders toward achieving reform and transformation of our accounting profession.

To be continued.

Joel L. Tan-torres is the Dean of the University of the Philippines Virata School of Business. Previously, he was the Commissioner of the Bureau of Internal Revenue, the chairman of the Professional Regulatory Board of Accountancy and partner of Reyes Tacandong & Co. and the Sycip Gorres and Velayo & Co. He is a Certified Public Accountant who garnered No. 1 in the CPA Board Examination of May 1979.

This column accepts articles for publication from the business and academic community. Articles not exceeding 600 words can be e-mailed to jltantorres@up.edu.ph.