The Institute of Chartered Accountants, Ghana (ICAG), the regulatory body of the accountancy profession, has urged the government to ensure proper fiscal discipline to manage the current economic hardships in the country.
Speaking at a press conference in Accra last Monday as part of the 2022 Accountants’ Week celebration, the President of the ICAG, Professor Williams Abayaawien Atuilik, said the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with the war between Russia and Ukraine, had contributed to increases in prices and high interest and inflation rates across the world.
However, he said the government could manage the situation by implementing the right fiscal policies and also ensuring that the country lived within its means.
Event
The 2022 Accountants’ Week, which is on the theme: “Accountancy and accountability: Transforming Africa’s economies”, commenced last Saturday with a health walk and it is expected to end on Friday, May 27, 2022.
The highlight of the celebration is a two-day conference slated for today and tomorrow, during which members of the ICAG across the country will deliberate on pertinent issues relating to the accountancy profession and the economy and also make suggestions and recommendations to the government.
The special guest of honour is the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Dr. George Akuffo Dampare, a member of the ICAG, while the Minister of Education, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, will be the guest speaker.
Members will also vote during an annual general meeting (AGM) on Friday to elect new council members who will provide policy direction and steer the affairs of the association for the next two years.
Prof. Atuilik said the ICAG decided to focus on discussions on how African countries could be accountable to help propel economic growth.
New Act
Prof. Atuilik said in December 2020, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo signed the Institute of Chartered Accountants, Ghana Act, 2020 (Act 1058) into law, repealing the Chartered Accountants Act, 1960 (Act 170).
The new law, he said, had strengthened the association and the profession, ensuring that it was well regulated, positioned and enhanced to support national development.
According to him, the ICAG, after extensive consultations, had presented a draft regulation to the Ministry of Education, the Office of the Attorney-General and Parliament for consideration in order to operationalise Act 1058.
Prof Atuilik also said the association would expand its operations to other parts of the country, and that it had already initiated moves to establish two new secretariats in Kumasi and Tamale in the Ashanti and the Northern regions, respectively.
