New global organisation a boost for accountancy
New association will cement global credibility for accounting professionals
The new global accounting organisation the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants (the Association) is the most influential body of professional accountants in the world, combining the strengths of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA).
The launch of the Association is an extraordinary milestone in the evolution of the accounting profession, with a commitment to driving quality and value for businesses and economies around the world, according to Badibanga Promesse, regional vice-president: Africa.
He says the Association was launched on January 1 2017 after members of AICPA and CIMA last year overwhelmingly endorsed its creation to advance management and public accounting across the world and strengthen opportunity, trust and prosperity for people, businesses and economies worldwide.
The two organisations’ member bodies voted to endorse the move, with 89.7% of CIMA members voting to endorse the resolution and 86.5% of AICPA members voting in favour.
Promesse says the formation of the Association represents a deepening of the joint venture between CIMA and the AICPA, operating since 2011, which has expanded management accounting within the US and created a new global designation, the Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA).
The Association represents more than 650 000 Certified Public Accountants (CPAs), Chartered Global Management Accountants (CGMAs), and students studying to earn those designations in public and management accounting, and advocates for the public interest and business sustainability in current and emerging issues.
With broad reach, rigour and resources, the Association advances the reputation, employability and quality of CPAs, CGMAs and accounting and finance professionals globally.
Promesse says AICPA and CIMA will continue to serve members and will integrate management, strategy and operations through the Association to strengthen advocacy, enhance member employability and expand market insights and member resources.
“The Association is governed by a board of directors composed of CPAs and CGMAs responsible for overseeing strategies that advance the organisation’s objectives.
“These are exciting days for our profession. Technological changes are transforming business models and creating new ways of working, meaning that the world of finance and accounting contains new challenges and vast opportunities,” says Promesse.
“The Association will keep our members on the forefront of market need by providing the insight, skills and knowledge necessary to continue adapting and thriving.
“The Association has been formed with the aim of overcoming the gaps that were being overlooked in the global accountancy profession and needed to be addressed as a result of the ever-changing world in which the clients’ demands and the manner in which value is produced are changing.
“Through the Association we plan to create a dynamic and sustainable accounting profession that adds to the prosperity of the economies in which we operate.”
Promesse says the reaction that the Association has received in South Africa and the rest of the continent is extremely positive.
“Accountancy qualification, education and skills development is the single biggest driver of the Association.
“One sure reality is that universities are producing graduates who cannot be utilised by businesses without further training, so there is a gap between what academia is producing and what businesses need.
“This creates a huge production problem, as the gap is widening.
“The Association provides the mechanism to bridge this gap by linking the worlds of academia and business. Our professional qualifications have curriculums that provide an in-depth and practical knowledge of which skills are needed for specific purposes in distinct industries.
“A typical example is that in South Africa we have trained many previously disadvantaged people who are now qualified accountants and key decision-makers within companies.
“We educate with the aim of fulfilling the mandate of the societies we operate in,” says Promesse.