The 20th Conference of the Confederation of Asian and Pacific Accountants (CAPA) and the 42nd National Conference of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka) will be ceremoniously inaugurated in Colombo on Wednesday, 06th October 2021 by Mr. Alan Johnson, President of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and Prof. Mohan Munasinghe, 2021 Blue Planet Prize Laureate and Vice Chair of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, who shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize.
Dr. Iyad Abumoghli, Founder and Director of the United Nations Environment Programme Faith for Earth Initiative will set the tone of the three-day mega conference by delivering the keynote speech. The event which will conclude on 08th October 2021 will revolve around the theme ‘Heritage – Many Businesses, One Planet’ and is slated to be the largest regional hybrid accounting event ever to be hosted in Colombo by CA Sri Lanka.
Last held in South Asia more than a decade ago, the CAPA conference is the flagship event of the regional accounting body and is held every four years. This year, the conference returns to South Asia after a gap of over ten years, to be proudly hosted by CA Sri Lanka, alongside its very own 42nd National Conference, which is recognised as the biggest business summit held annually in the country.
The twin event will bring together over 40 speakers, panelists and moderators of international repute, who will deliberate contemporary and emerging issues impacting the accounting profession, and how accountants and finance professionals can effectively contribute towards ensuring a safer planet for future generations.
The twin event this year is expected to attract delegates from 30 countries, including Asia and Pacific as well as Sri Lanka. The conference will comprise of eight sessions, which will focus on best practices in stakeholder capitalism, increasing need to promote eco-investments & sustainable finance, ethical leadership & public trust, how to raise capital during challenging times, how businesses can harness artificial intelligence, employee’s mental wellbeing, increasing reliance on finance professionals to mitigate risks of fraud, and the integral role of SMEs in contributing further to the economy.
CAPA is the regional organisation representing 32 professional accountancy organisations (PAOs) from 23 jurisdictions in Asia Pacific. Collectively, these PAOs have a membership of over 2 million qualified accountants. CA Sri Lanka is a member of CAPA.