ASSOCIATION OF ACCOUNTNACY BODIES IN WEST AFRICA ABWA

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ASSOCIATION OF ACCOUNTNACY BODIES IN WEST AFRICA
(ABWA)
TOPIC The Role of The Accounting Profession in
Economic Development
Speaker Henri Williams ABWA President

• ABWA Was Inaugurated 10th August 1982 In Lagos
  Nigeria, As A Sub-regional Organization Which
  Has The Recognition Of The International
  Federation Of Accountants (IFAC)

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OBJECTIVES OF ABWA

• FOREMOST IS THE STRENTHENING AND CONSOLIDATION
  OF PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTING AND AUDITING STANDARDS
  AND PRACTICES IN WEST AFRICA.
• PROVIDE A FORUM FOR THE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
  OF MEMBER BODIES IN WEST AFRICA THROUGH SEMINARS,
  SYMPOSIA, CONFERENCES AND INTERCHANGE OF IDEAS
  AND EXPERIENCES.

ABWA Believes That Economic Development Within
The Sub-region Can Be Strengthened By
Improvements In Quality Of Financial Reporting By
Its Members
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MEMBERSHIP OF ABWA

• Membership opened to accountancy bodies
  recognized by law and general consensus in the
  seventeen (17) countries in West Africa - as
  substantial national organizations of good
  standing within the profession and comply with
  the conditions and bye-laws laid down by ABWA and
  IFAC.
• Currently, There are Ten (10) member bodies on
  board ABWA of which Five (5) are from the
  Anglophone speaking countries namely Ghana,
  Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and The Gambia.
• Also, there are Five (5) member bodies from
  Francophone speaking countries namely Cameroon
  (Bi-Lingual), Cote d Ivoire, Niger, Republic of
  Benin and Togo.

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ABWA Current Membership
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ABWA GOVERNING BODIES

• The General Assembly
• The Council
• Funding is from annual subscriptions paid by its
  members
• Member bodies have the right
• To be represented
• To present business
• To participate at Council and General Assembly of
  the Association
• To vote at meetings

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MANAGEMENT OF THE AFFAIRS BUSINESS OF THE
ASSOCIATION VESTED IN COUNCIL
Council Works With The ABWA Secretariat To
Oversee To The Management, Implementation And
Monitoring Of Projects .
ABWA Council Provides Co-ordination And Quality
Assurance At The Regional Level.
At The National And Member-body Levels, Council
Provides Back-stopping Support, Facilitates
Monitoring, Implementation, Compliance And
Quality Assurance.
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CHALLENGES

• Recent report on observance of standards of
  Accounting and Auditing (ROSCs) Ghana, Nigeria,
  Senegal and Sierra Leone reveals that gaps
  between local accounting and Auditing standards
  and International standards.
• Absence of rigorous, transparent set of norms and
  standards in Accounting, Auditing and Financial
  reporting in some countries within the
  sub-region.
• Except for Nigeria and Ghana, other national
  bodies do not have local examination and
  certification facilities.
• Council and members of the national institutes
  are concerned about these scathing observations,
  remarks and developments.

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NUMBER OF ACCOUNTANTS PER MILLION PEOPLE - 2005

• All ECOWAS countries population 245 million
• Average of About 85 qualified accountants per
  million
• Compared with South Africa population
  43million
• Average of about 544 qualified accountants per
  million

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MEETING THE CHALLENGES

• Regional harmonization is paramount to
  strengthening Accounting professionals in line
  with international standards and exerting peer
  pressures to improve the standards and practices
  in each country.
• Helps to share knowledge and keep each member
  country updated on new and emerging developments.
• The synergic effects of working together would
  have the potential of raising the profile of the
  profession in the region as well as in individual
  member countries.

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ABWA RESTRUCTURING OBJECTIVES

• As part of its effort to meet its challenges and
  achieve its objectives, ABWA applied for and has
  been granted an IDF (World Bank) grant.
• Simultaneous IDF grant processed for the Forum of
  Accountants General and Auditors General in West
  Africa (FAAGWA).
• Some National bodies such as
• ICAN (Institute of Chartered Accountants of
  Nigeria)
• ICASL (Institute of Chartered Accountants of
  Sierra Leone) have also successfully applied for
  similar grants.

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ABWA RESTRUCTURING OBJECTIVES

• Main Categories of Activities
• Ensuring compliance with international standards
  in Accounting, Auditing and Education.
• Development of harmonized framework for
  professional Accounting education and practice
• Knowledge Management

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LIKELY OUTCOMES

• The Expected Outcomes Of The World Bank Project
  And Complementary ABWA Activities Include
• International Accounting, Auditing, Education And
  Code Of Ethics Standards Are Accessible To
  Members Via ABWA Website And All Member
  Institutes' Libraries.
• Professional Accountants And Auditors In Member
  Countries Have Access To Training In
  International Accounting And Auditing Standards.
• The Capacity Of ABWA To Facilitate The
  Development Of Harmonized Accountancy Profession
  And Practice In The Ecowas Countries Is Enhanced.
• Increased Female Membership And Balanced Gender
  Participation In The Profession.

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CONCLUSION

• The key monitoring indicators include
• A specified number of copies of a set of
  International Standards to be made available to
  professional Accountants and Auditors in member
  countries through member institutes libraries.
• Training in International Standards provided to a
  number of trainers from member institutes.
• Number of member institutes complying fully with
  IFAC membership obligations increasing from zero
  to three by the end of the implementation period.
• ABWA Is Fully Committed To Ensuring That Expected
  Output And Outcomes Of The Restructuring Exercise
  For The Accounting Profession Are Fully Achieved.