The accounting profession today goes beyond numbers and balance sheets to a more holistic experience with COVID-19 accelerating change in the transformation of organizations, the agility of business and its resilience. This therefore is a critical moment for the profession using digital technology to nurture and attract new talent, where progress must be achieved with those leading the profession, collaborating to help businesses navigate the new normal successfully.
As such, The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), recently strengthened their MOU with the Institute of Certified Management Accountants (CMA) Sri Lanka to work in partnership to develop the management accounting and finance professions in Sri Lanka.
The MOU was signed virtually by Stuart Dunlop, Regional Director, MESA with Prof. Lakshman R. Watawala, President CMA Sri Lanka. Also present was and Mr H.M. Hennayake Bandara, Vice President CMA Sri Lanka and Ms Nilusha Ranasinghe , Head of South Asia Cluster ACCA .
The MOU will see both the bodies collaborating and exchanging views and implementing strategies relating to the enhancement of the profession, attracting new finance and accounting talent, harnessing continuing professional development (CPD) which is seen by both bodies as a key requirement of professional advancement, motivating ethics, and professionalism and exploring common areas of interest and research study.
Ms.Ranasinghe said, “ We are committed to the development of students, who are the future finance professionals of our country and are confident that the resources, competency and services that both we and CMA collectively have at our disposal, will significantly provide the pathway for young people with an interest in business and finance.”
Prof. Watawala’s endorsed that the MoU presented an opportunity for both bodies to align and leverage their resources, collateral and network to promote collaborative efforts on key areas of mutual interest, particularly the development of well-rounded management accountants and finance professionals in the country.
With ACCA and CMA both members of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) sharing the same values in uplifting the standards of the profession in the country , this MoU signals the opportunity in enabling more finance professionals to have access to global qualifications and CPD which will equip them to guide businesses through the challenging developments of the new normal , by utilizing the best of global standards applied in management accountancy and financial management .