Continuing to Develop a Successful & Vibrant Profession

In addressing previous and current adversity, the global accountancy profession has not only remained steadfast and committed, it has also quickly adapted for members’ and society’s benefit. And we must continue to champion adaptability to identify and seize opportunities as we discover them. Although this pandemic presents unprecedented challenges for professional accountancy organizations (PAOs), it has not stopped our efforts to serve members and stakeholders in the public interest and the greater good.

For all of us at the Advisory Group, our work also continues to go on, even if done virtually. The pandemic has especially highlighted the importance of strong collaboration among our profession.

IFAC PAO Development & Advisory Group’s Role

The Advisory Group has significantly evolved since it was first established in 2005. Today, we help IFAC support strong, sustainable PAOs—the most effective, efficient, and sustainable source for advancing the accountancy profession—around the world.

We actively contribute to IFAC’s strategic objectives, especially in preparing a future-ready profession in four key areas:

Advisory Group members are from both developed and emerging economies and represent a variety of different sectors—private and public sector, academia, firms, PAOs, and small businesses. This diversity means we have a breadth of experiences and knowledge to call on to shape our advice and assistance.

Despite going virtual in 2020, the Advisory Group accomplished a great deal thanks to members’ commitment to keep carrying out our responsibilities.

The Advisory Group helps IFAC support strong, sustainable professional accountancy organizations—the most effective, efficient, and sustainable source for advancing the accountancy profession. The Advisory Group actively contributes to IFAC’s strategic objectives, especially in preparing a future-ready profession, and its remit includes 4 specific responsibilities:

2021 Priorities

We know a crucial issue for IFAC’s member organizations, including the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, is remaining relevant and sustainable for the long term—and ensuring all stakeholders understand our relevance and sustainability. That is why this year we have built upon the lessons from 2020 and are focusing on PAO resiliency and continuing our work to strengthen membership quality. We are working to help PAOs thrive by addressing topics such as digital transformation, mental wellbeing, and stakeholder engagement, to name a few.

In focusing on strengthening membership quality, we will continue raising awareness of the international standards—especially the International Education Standards, new audit quality management standards, and the International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants—as well as investigation & discipline systems and support developing PAOs with resources and best practices. Our Advisory Group works with IFAC staff to connect directly with PAOs to provide guidance, advise and resources.

Examples of the Advisory Group’s activities either completed or ongoing in 2021 include:

• Supporting PAOs to navigate and complete IFAC’s PAO Digital Readiness Assessment Tool;
• Contributing to articles and videos for IFAC’s Knowledge Gateway;
• Forming a dedicated PAO Sustainability Working Group to address strategies for PAO development and recovery;
• Representing IFAC at various webinars and events;
• Publishing a new article: New Quality Management Standards: A Tremendous Opportunity for PAOs;
• Supporting PAOs with technical assistance and sharing of best practices for international standards’ adoption and implementation; and
• Mentoring and answering questions for organizations interested in IFAC membership.

The Advisory Group’s ultimate purpose is to be of service to PAOs and ensure wide ranging support for the global accountancy profession, which in turn serves and supports national, regional, and the global economy. Each of our volunteer members are passionate about our work, and we look forward to advancing our plans for 2021.

Accountants’ Role in Economic Development

IFAC has recently published new data linking the accountancy profession and economic development. The analysis reviewed the accountancy profession in the G20 countries (including each individual country of the European Union), and the results highlight how professional accountants make a significant contribution to the different economies at the local, national, and global levels.

In each measure reviewed, a greater number of accountants correlates to better economic performance. Moreover, professional accountants who are members of an IFAC PAO correlate to even stronger performance on the economic indicators. It is because of dedicated and committed IFAC member organizations such as ICAI that such an impact is felt.

Based on this data and our experience working with PAOs, we not only want to recognize the impact of ICAI and the other PAOs globally, but we also want to acknowledge the volunteers and practitioners that make this profession vibrant and successful. If you are reading this and want to get involved with the profession, I encourage you to contact ICAI to seek out further opportunities!

Building Relationships & Partnership

IFAC Network Partners play an important role in sharing views and trends from across the world. One such Network Partner is the South Asian Federation of Accountants (SAFA) and on behalf of IFAC and the Advisory Group, we would like to thank them and other Network Partners, such as the Confederation of Asian and Pacific Accountants (CAPA) and the ASEAN Federation of Accountants (AFA), for supporting our work and regularly attending our meetings as observers.

I would like to make special mention of current Advisory Group members, such as Mr. Prafulla Chhajed, nominated by ICAI, along with his technical advisor Mr. Rajendra Kumar; and Mr. Naeem Akhtar Sheikh, nominated by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan, along with his technical advisor, Mr. Farrukh Rehman, for their active contributions to the Advisory Group’s work. I would also like to acknowledge my predecessor Mr. Arjuna Herath, from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka, for his enthusiasm, energy, and commitment to stewarding the Group to where it is now.

In closing, it is quite positive that the profession continues to progress onward and upward. I know that our Advisory Group stands ready to support and advance the profession. We look forward to engaging further with PAOs, our members, and our IFAC Network Partners.

Readers interested to know more about IFAC’s work and the Advisory Group’s activities may visit the IFAC website (www.ifac.org), including the Global Knowledge Gateway (www.ifac.org/gateway).