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Thursday, 27 March 2014 00:05 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Shabiya Ali Ahlam
Q: What is the purpose of your visit to Sri Lanka?
A: I am here for three reasons particularly. First of all I am here to see our members and students and find out more about what they are doing so we can improve the way we deliver. The second is to meet with our stakeholders. The third is to meet with the Sri Lankan Government officials to see how we can improve our working relationship and to explore ways in which we can help each other to move forward.
Q: Who are the Government officials that you met?
A: I met with the Minister of Higher Education S.B. Dissanayake. We discussed how ACCA can fit into the program of education within the country. I learnt about the five hubs concept, a strategy for the nation’s further development, and in that we looked at ways where the ACCA could work alongside the Government through a professional approach. It was about how people could get the academic qualification along with the professional qualification.
Q: Could you elaborate how ACCA plans to support the five hubs concept?
A: ACCA is a provider of professional qualifications. It is about flexibility in pursuing the qualification. For example the students of the Sri Jayewardenepura University are offered nine exemptions of the 13 exams. That allows the students to quickly move into the professional aspects of the exams. The Minister was also talking about how ACCA can fit into other educational organisations.
Q: So ACCA is looking at being a fast-track to professional qualifications?
A: Yes. We are basically looking at partnering from that viewpoint. We are looking at reducing the cost as much as possible for the students and to allow them to have greater access to professional qualifications. In this part of the world we run a program called ‘Accelerate’, which means that students in their fourth year can join ACCA and get waiver exemption in their subscription fee, saving about £ 700.
Q: Other than what you mentioned, are there any other specific plans for Sri Lanka this year?
A: For Sri Lanka the Accelerate program is new, and we are working on ways to take it forward. We worked with some of the BPO organisation and we met up with SLASSCOM where we looking at working with them to develop the local IT/BPO industry.
I understand that in Sri Lanka people do not see that industry as one that allows career progression and also many do not find it prestigious enough to be in. It is about changing the mindset in that regard. It is actually a very challenging environment to get into.
Q: This mindset where certain industries are not prestigious enough to be in, is it prevalent in the West as well?
A: I think there is a cultural mindset. The West has had shared services and it is seen as an attractive option to go into for qualified accountants. It is not about a call centre; it is about value adding and developing the industry to take it forward.
I have learnt that in Sri Lanka the careers are decided by the parents, and they want their children to be in the very best and challenging organisation that they can get into. It is about status and position and somehow people have displaced the BPOs and the SSOs. Such have been downgraded while in fact they are potential avenues to a great career.
Q: How would you look at ACCA in Sri Lanka in comparison to the rest of the region?
A: Our numbers are growing here and we are trying to build good relationships with other stakeholders. The thing about Sri Lanka is that it has a very good education system. It is really a hub in that regard. A lot of students qualify and they move out. ACCA is recognised worldwide so it helps those having our qualifications to get jobs in other countries easily.
Q: You delivered a keynote address at the fifth international public sector event in December 2013 on accountability and transparency in the public sector. What was that about?
A: One of the things we were trying to explain is the footprint that we have in the public sector. Globally we have 15,000 members servicing the public sector. It can be said that ACCA does have a significant impact on that sector. It was about the challenges the public sector faces.
In the West the governments do not have much money for public service so it is about doing more for less. So we have to find ways in which we can work with the governments to enable them to prioritise what they need in order to increase effectiveness and value for money. It is about delivering the public values and drive the profession forward.
The developing economies are still achieving 6-7% growth rate per annum so they are not in the negative growth area unlike certain developed countries. However, in the developing world there is greater demand from the government since people expect more. The thing is that the governments don’t have those monies and they can’t print it. It has to come from somewhere, which then increases the tax burden.
These aspects are pressuring the governments. A lot of the developing countries do not have accountants within the public sector. There is no real sound financial underpinning of the policies and projects that are going forward. This is a challenge.
Also in certain areas there are problems with corruptions and ethics. For this the ACCA is trying to promote good governance, ethics, and risk management.
Q: Do these challenges differ from region to region?
A: There are themes that cut across all regions. Corruption and ethics are the greater issues in Africa. When you look at UK and Ireland, corruption is a lot less evident but the issue there is about peer and risk management. So to some extent they do differ.
Q: Would you be able to comment on the status of Sri Lanka in this regard?
A: Based on the discussions that I had with the people here, I understand that there is very little evidence of any real corruption in Sri Lanka. It is not an issue here. The nation has a very strong healthcare and education system and they are both free at the point of access, similar to the UK. However, this must put a great strain on the local organisations.
I learn that the President plans on improving the road network, so here the problems are more on infrastructure and trying to develop that. In some countries the development would go to a senior minister’s or a politician’s region instead of a region that needs the infrastructure the most. I haven’t seen this in Sri Lanka. I see a lot emphasis on island-wide infrastructure.
I must say that the greatest asset for Sri Lanka is its people. I cannot speak highly enough of the education system here. What shocks me is the level of qualifications that people have in this country. Nobody has just one degree, they have about four or five. So education is instilled in Sri Lanka as a culture in the people and that puts Sri Lanka in a great position to move forward.
Q: Regarding accountability and transparency on public funds, how can the issues within that be addressed?
A: Integrated reporting. This combines financial reports with corporate sustainability reports. ACCA has been running corporate sustainability awards in Sri Lanka for over 10 years and in the first year there were about 14 organisations and in the current year there are about 64. The participation has gone up about four times. We would have liked to see that develop more. We see that most listed companies do not make it to the sustainability awards and we would like to see that develop.
It is about the transparency, both in the private sector as well as the public sector. It is about providing information that is more than the numbers. Transparency and openness is about looking at both sides of the coin, and that gives people the ability to make the right decision.
Q: So how exactly is ACCA helping in this regard?
A: We fit into this by promoting ethical standards through our membership. Our philosophy comes down to three Es – Exams, Ethics, and Experience. So everyone manages to pass the exams, but experience is important. One cannot become a member of the ACCA without three years’ experience. Within the first two Es we like to see ethics built in, which we include in our technical papers.
Q: What is the challenge you see for Sri Lanka?
A: The Government has a lack of accountants and that is a challenge for financial management. What’s happening is Sri Lanka is that the accountants are going into the private sector more because the salaries and the opportunities are better. I will be quite worried about a brain drain. The other aspect is that the people here are highly educated and people will go out of the country for better opportunities. For this it is essential that the organisations develop within the environment so the best people can be retained.
Q: Do you mean to say that Sri Lanka will be heading towards a brain drain if its organisations do not create challenging roles for its workforce?
A: It is about having challenging roles, workload, growth and stimulating work. It is not just about money. People leave for much more than money.
