Over 1000 accountants from across the continent are set to convene in Kigali from December 9 to, among other things, look into trends of evolution of the financial sector in disruptive times. The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) Africa Members’ Convention, seeks to ignite new business opportunities through thought leadership, defining best practice, anticipating risks, re-thinking business models and turning ideas into solutions. Jamil Ampomah, director of ACCA Sub-Saharan Africa, said that the current trends of rapid global changes require regional professional bodies to create synergies, share experiences and best practices to remain relevant. “In times of change, globally, which we are certainly seeing now, it is important for local and regional communities to come together and forge a positive and sustainable future. By addressing the future role and relevance of accountancy and finance in Africa, this event will enable accountants to demonstrate their capacity, strength and expansive network across Africa and globally,” he said. “This conference is a fantastic opportunity for finance professionals to share their insights and discuss the topical issues they face,” he added. The summit will host up to 1,000 delegates from 33 countries across Africa from accounting and finance professions - both in the public and private sectors. The summit also comes at a time when there is still a shortage of accountants in Rwanda which could jeopardise financial management. A 2018 Public Finance Management Learning and Development Strategy by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning showed that over 7,000 public employees working in different services including budgeting, procurement, accounting, economics and other positions related to finance, lacked professional skills. In Mauritius, for every 525 people in the country, one is a professional accountant; in the UK, for every 222 people one is an accountant; in Australia, it is one in every 160 people; in Singapore it is one in 190 people. In Rwanda as of 2017, Institute of Certified Public Accountants (ICPAR) statistics showed that for every 30,250, people one is a professional accountant. The target is to have at least one the 5000 in a decade or so.
