Chartered accountants conference kicks off in Vic Falls President Mnangagwa is expected to officially open the conference this afternoon

Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter
ACCOUNTING professionals have been challenged to embrace technology and evolve with time so as to remain relevant to the new normal and contribute to the country’s economic development.

There is a need for the accounting field to recalibrate its training curriculum in schools to facilitate change as the profession evolves through automation.

This came out during discussions on the first day of the 50th anniversary and annual conference of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators in Zimbabwe (a division of the Chartered Governance Institute (CGI) Global), which opened in Victoria Falls yesterday.

President Mnangagwa is expected to officially open the conference this afternoon. The hybrid conference, which is also being beamed online, is being held under the theme: “Reset, Reignite and Refocus”, with discussions inclined towards aligning the profession to the country’s aspirations towards an upper middle-income society by 2030.

Speaking about convergence of sustainable goals and financial reporting, as the future, Professor Musa Mangena, who is based at the Nottingham University said there is a need to rethink about how to trade and develop skills in line with the changing world.

“We must be able to determine the relevance of information through valuation. We need to rethink about how accounting can understand risks involved in convergence and suitability goals,” he said. “Education should have curriculum that is relevant and what they teach should reflect today’s business environment.”

CGI president Mr Wisdom Ncube said accounting was a fast-developing area and a lot needs to be done in terms of training accountants in the new normal. “There are challenges of cherry-picking frameworks from interested organisations like pressure groups and accountants must come in and set controls on how information is captured,” he said.

Pan African Federation of Accountants (PAFA) chief executive, Ms Alta Prinsloo, said the future of the accounting was under threat from technology and automation hence the need for evolution.

She said the global Covid-19 pandemic had revolutionalised the profession as it had exposed it to the new normal.
As technology and automation grows, the role of accountants should evolve, said Ms Prinsloo.

Meanwhile, President Mnangagwa and Vice President General (Retired) Costantino Chiwenga arrived here yesterday evening ahead of today’s official opening.

Reserve Bank Governor Dr John Mangudya, Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission chairperson Justice Loice Matanda-Moyo and acting Zimbabwe Tourism Authority chief executive Mr Givemore Chidzidzi are among some of the high profile panelists on “Strong institutions for sustainable growth and development.”

There will also be discussion around embracing change, innovation and disruptive technologies” with experts in information communication technologies leading the discussion. — @ncubeleon.

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