Will ACCAs get the right to perform audits?

[mazhar]

I want to ask a question to all people concerned with accounting field that (kia acca ko pakistan mein AUDIT ka haq mill sakta hai ya nahien?)

[Wandering Star]

Not any time soon.

Why?
<i>
Disclaimer Please note I am not criticizing the ACCA profession in Pakistan. I am attempting to repeat some facts I have already explained in another post so you can collectively work to develop the profession.</i>

Click here for an older thread of mine attempting to clear some misconceptions about ACCA...
http//www.accountancy.com.pk/forum/topic.asp?topic_id=4840

There are simply not enough qualified ACCA's in Pakistan who can have a collective majority to even get considered for practice rights over here.

There is a far, far lower number of fully qualified members of ACCA residing in Pakistan compared to ICAP.

Take the current ACCA member count, by ' ACCA member' I mean FULLY qualified ACCA's,...according to this official ACCA document http//www.accaglobal.com/reputation/performance/ the number of ACCA members in ALL of South Asia is only 551 out of nearly 20000+ students and Affiliates, which is unfortunately, very low...and an even lower amount is admitted to membership annually compared to ICAP.

Deduct from that...

The amount of members who have NOT chosen the local law and tax variant examinations.

The amount of members who have NOT chosen the advanced auditing and taxation exams.

The amount of members who have NOT trained in an audit practice.

Arrive at a ballpark figure. I'd say you'd be left with less than 10 ACCA members in Pakistan who satisfy hypothetical'practice' requirements, assuming that ACCA is their standalone qualification.

Now, compare that with 3800+ ICAP members.

I would not like to dwell on the reasons for the low member count over and over again but anyway I'd summarize some of them...

1) 21 year olds who have simply passed the examinations start calling themselves 'ACCA Qualified' and end up damaging their profession when they really arent qualified. Then they start suffering a 'complex' that they have no value while being 'qualified' and instead go on trying to collect other degrees or go abroad for greener pastures.

2) Teachers who have been selectively brainwashing students into gathering as many degrees in the minimum time possible. They have relegated ACCA into simply an interim platform to gain footing for supposedly 'higher' qualifications. In the UK, the case is completely opposite. The choice between CIMA, ACCA, and ICAEW is dictated by your future anticipations, employer needs and of course your personal requirements.

3) Abysmal industry awareness of the ACCA qualification. Its hilarious to see newspaper ads asking for fresh qualified ACA's or ACCA's "with 3.5 years experience", stipulating that the ACCA qualification has no training requirements. I wouldnt blame them however, since ACCA's flexibility allows people to clear the exams before they even start work, while in almost 90% of ICAP cases you have your articleship far in the past by the time you clear the exams.

Work hard for your profession. Prove your worth with elegance and dignity. Trust me on this. Theres nothing stopping you if you work hard.