Accountants Seek Higher Professionalism

 

Q: Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh, you met recently in London with seven of the council members of the new formed Arab Society of Certified Accountants, working out the constitution and the five points of the organization .Why was the decision made to set up this organization?

A: For a long time the Arab world has been badly in need for a professional body which would be able to accomplish examination and membership functions on the standards acceptable and recognized by world professionals. So ,like the situation in many developed countries of the world where there are such professional bodies - The United States, Britain ,Canada, Australia, Scotland – there will be recognized accountants in the Arab world ,As you know ,in the profession, it is the professional societies that regulate it,control its applicants and set standards .That function is lacking in the Arab world.

 

Q: There are already other professional accountants’ societies in the Middle East. How will the new society be different from these?

A: There are only two others societies. The Middle East Society of Associated Accountants ,which was establishes 20 years ago, and whose members has remained frozen since then, demonstrating that it has not been able to attract the large number of practitioners in the Arab world, simply because it does not give its members international recognition.
There is only one other society, which now is being created by the Federation of Arab Accountants called the Arab Institute of Accountants. That body wants to set up its own standards of examination and membership, completely different from what we’re trying to do. What we’re trying to do is linking up with the (British) Association of Certified Accountants and be recognized by that association.

Why did we choose the British association? Because it was the only logical partner. It is the only association in the world which permits examinations in centers abroad. And as an international organization a large number of Arabs are already members and students there.

Even if you were to say there are two other societies so why should we have a new one, I would say, we have two societies while in the UK, there are six. We are talking about 15 Arab countries .There is no harm in having more societies directed towards the service of the profession. It helps, and caters to a need which is there.

 

Q: Do you expect that the new society will improve the standard of accountancy in the Middle East?

A: Our main function is to provide our students (with the possibility) eventually to sit for exams that address a need. We should be preparing them in subjects which relate to their countries, as far as taxation laws or commercial laws are concerned, in Arabic for some subjects. But the basic accountancy subjects would be exactly the same as the British association. We are going to start from the point they have reached after long years of experience.

We are hoping to develop examination papers on Arab taxation and Arab commercial law, and in Arabic. One of the problems is that you have an accountant who is qualified in the UK, but when he comes home, he doesn’t know anything about the laws or local requirements. So, although he is highly qualified internationally, he is not equipped to handle work in the Arab world. There is a need to be filled.

 

Q: So rather than develop an organization in the Middle East and try to get it organized, your idea is to join with recognized organization and then build up your membership.

A: What we’re trying to say is that we’re setting up an association which will be as independent Arab association, but be recognized and patronized by an establishes international organization. Through that recognition we will get an international recognition. Otherwise, if we start on our own ,without this link, we may ,20 years from now, get the recognition ,or we may not .So, we started by asking what we have to do to meet the recognition criteria. We developed our articles, our membership criteria and our examination to the standards required by the British association so that we are on the same standards. Our members are qualified to become members if their association. 

 

Q: Are you a member of the Middle East Associated Accountants?

A: I am a founding member and I was a member of the council for several years.

 

Q: Was it your dissatisfaction with that society which prompted the forming of this new society?

A: It is not dissatisfaction, but simply because it has not been able to get the international recognition that it needs .It has not been able to do so in twenty years.

 

Q: What are some of the problems of not having a recognized society in the Middle East?

A: We are not worried about ourselves; all the members of the council have international recognition .This is precisely the strength of the council; it will give credibility and recognition to the ASCA.

The council members feel the need for developing this society for future generations and for other members of the profession in the Arab world. They have a right to be recognized by professionals worldwide.

 

Q: There are 28 founding members of the ASCA .How many members do you expect to join?

A: We expect that in the first year we will have several hundreds, easily .But our admissions criteria are very difficult. We are only looking for the best qualified rather than numbers .If one or two firms withdraw or have reservations, or boycott as is irrelevant and immaterial as far as the society us concerned .We are very keen and very keen and very interested in having as much support from everybody as we can. But, there is no firm which has a monopoly over the profession.

 

Q: Has there been opposition to the formation of this society?

A: We have had very minor opposition .Our estimate today, as we were analyzing the consensus of professional opinion in the Arab world, is that 19 out of 20 are in support .So, it is one out of 20, and that is withholding or having reservations. But overall the support is tremendous.

 

Q: How long will you be the president of the ASCA?

A: The articles provide for a period of five years for this first council, after which it has to resign .I look forward to the day when I can hand over the leadership to some other colleague.

 

 

Q: Turning again to the examination, you said they will be the same as those of the British association, and would include, sometimes in the future, Arab local laws and be administered in Arabic.

 A: Yes, we are hoping to develop examination papers on Arab taxation and Arab commercial laws, and in Arabic. One of the problems and one of the reasons we need this society, is that you have as accountant who is qualified in the United Kingdom, but when he comes home, he doesn’t know anything about the laws and he doesn’t know anything about the local requirements. So, although he’s highly qualified internationally, he’s not equipped to handle work in the Arab world .there is a need to be filled.

 

Q: Will the British or other international accountants’ body to join the ASCA?

A: We have no doubt that they will. We have provided for that .The only requirement is that they should have been in the Arab world for two years.

If they will still sit for the exam, then obviously that is another story. But we are addressing the chattered certified accountants who have a right to become members because we recognize their qualifications.

 

Q: So you’re reassuring that in two years they will come to know the Arabic law?

A: Well, we are assuming that they would have .We are also assuming that they will have a feeling for the Arab world and they will have a certain interest and commitment.

 

Q: How many foreign accountants are there in the Arab world this moment?

A: Hundreds. Unfortunately, there has never been a body which keeps organized statistics on all these subjects you’re asking. That in one of the functions, one of the resolutions, we were discussing today, is to have an organized approach to collecting information.

 

Q: Professor John R. Small, past president of the British association, was one of the catalysts in the forming of the Arab society, wasn’t he?

A: He was not only a catalyst; he was a very instrumental person. We owe a lot to him, because he had the vision to not only perceive the need, but  also to assist us in the developing and structuring and styling of the project. He was on the spot, he saw the need, and he talked to governments at the highest; ministers and leaders in government. He talked to leaders in the business community and to professionals.

 

Q: How is the response of governments?

A: We have the blessing of the Arab governments, and we have the blessing of the business community .We have the support of business as the professional community. We are very pleased and excited with the support we have received .It is far more than we expected.

As a matter of fact, we have a letter from the World Bank expressing support for the society .We have letters of support from leading institutions in the world, and from people all over the world, people we never met, and who are very happy to see that finally there is something being done.

 

Q: You have said that during the last 20 years that there has been a transfer of one trillion dollars in finance in the Middle East, and it is the accountants who have handled it.

Q: It is a fact that when there is wealth there is as accounting function. The Arab world has developed in 20 years at a tremendous speed, in construction, in infrastructure, and in industry. The accounting profession has been tagging behind, so our efforts are to cope and catch up with the developments in the Arab world in other sectors.