Association of Accountancy Bodies in West Africa

Association of Accountancy Bodies in West Africa
Formation10 August 1982
TypeProfessional association
PurposeEncourage professionalism in accountancy in West Africa
HeadquartersAbuja, Nigeria
Official language
English
Websitehttp://www.abwa-online.org/

The Association of Accountancy Bodies in West Africa (ABWA) is a regional organization of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). As of 2011 there were ten West African accounting institutes represented in ABWA.[1]

History

The association was established on 10 August 1982 in Lagos, Nigeria, and was registered as a corporation in 1994. ABWA was initially collocated with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (lCAN) in Lagos. In May 2002 the association's headquarters moved to the ICAN building in Abuja.[1] The purpose of the Association is to develop accountancy in the region. Recognized non-governmental accountancy bodies in West African countries are encouraged to join the association.[2]

Activities

ABWA initiated the Accounting Technicians Scheme, West Africa, which provides a recognized professional qualification for supporting staff of Chartered Accountants.[3] Examinations for this qualification are held on the same day each year in centers throughout the region.[4] In May 2011 The Gambia Association of Accountancy ran a three-day "Train the trainer" seminar on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) for trainers from The Gambia, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Cameroon. The seminar was supported by the World Bank under the umbrella of ABWA.[5]

In May 2011 Major General Sebastian Achulike Owuama (retired), the 46th President of ICAN and the 16th President of ABWA, was elected President of the newly created Pan-African Federation of Accountants (PAFA), or Fédération Panafricaine des Experts-Comptables (FEPEC). He was elected during the inaugural meeting of PAFA in Dakar, Senegal.[6]

Membership

As of 2011, ABWA had the following members:[7]

Country Acronym Name
Benin OECCA - BENIN Ordre des Experts Comptables at Comptables Agréés du Benin
Burkina Faso Ordre National des Experts Comptables et des Comptables Agrees du Burkina Faso
Cameroon ONECCA Ordre National des Experts Comptables du Cameroon Bilingual
Cote d’ Ivoire Ordre des Experts Comptables et Comptables Agréés de Cote d'Ivoire
Gambia GAA The Gambia Association of Accountants
Ghana ICAG The Institute of Chartered Accountants (Ghana)
Guinea OECAG Ordre des Experts Comptables Agréés de Guinee
Liberia LICPA Liberian Institute of Certified Public Accountants
Mali ONECAM Ordre National des Experts Comptables et des Comptables Agréés du Mali
Niger ONECCA-N Ordre National des Experts Comptables et Comptables Agréés du Niger
Nigeria ICAN Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria
Sierra Leone ICASL Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sierra Leone
Senegal ONECCA Ordre National des Experts Comptables et Comptables Agréés du Sénégal
Togo ONECCA-TOGO Association Togolaise des Experts Comptables Diplomas

As of March 2011, the Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN) had applied to become a member of ABWA.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b "About ABWA". ABWA. Retrieved 2011-06-21.
  2. ^ "Association of Accountancy Bodies in West Africa". ICAN. Archived from the original on 2011-05-19. Retrieved 2011-06-21.
  3. ^ "THE ACCOUNTANTS TECHNICIANS (ATSWA) SCHEME". ICASL. Archived from the original on 2012-03-25. Retrieved 2011-06-21.
  4. ^ "The Association of Accountancy Bodies in West Africa (ABWA)" (PDF). ICAN. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-09-29. Retrieved 2011-06-21.
  5. ^ Omar Wally (11 May 2011). "IFRS Training of Trainers Ends Today". The Daily Observer. Retrieved 2011-06-21.
  6. ^ "ICAN President elected pioneer President of Pan-African Federation of Accountants". WorldStage. May 9, 2011. Archived from the original on March 14, 2012. Retrieved 2011-05-31.
  7. ^ "ABWA Membership". ABWA. Retrieved 2011-06-21.
  8. ^ "progress towards professionalism" (PDF). CIPFA. March 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-09-28. Retrieved 2011-06-05.