Use effective approaches to attract accounting students — ICAG Council member

A COUNCIL member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, Ghana (ICAG), Belinda Dede Tandoh, has entreated educational institutions at various levels to adopt appropriate strategies to endear accounting to students.

This is because accountants are required in every area of national development, she explained.

Mrs Tandoh who is the Chief Executive Officer of Glico Pensions Trustee LTD, said accountants were vital materials in transforming the economy.

“They sit at the centre of financial accountability and governance and that made their role crucial in nation building, she added.

Mrs Tandoh said this in interview after the just-ended Accountants’ Conference held in Ho.

A Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), Mrs Tandoh, said it was important for students of accounting to focus beyond examinations and certificates, and connect with the relevance of accounting in various fields related to accounting and opportunities for personal development goals in the profession.

That, she said, highlighted the need for vigorous internships to acquire practical skills in accounting before leaving school.

“The internships will also help them to improve on their digital skills and work outcomes to enable them to fit into the era of sustainability,” Mrs Tandoh added.

Touching on gender, she said the accounting profession could help to create fairer opportunities for both men and women with fair recruitments for the job, fair remuneration for equal work by men and women and transparent progression systems as well as the inclusion of women in leadership and decisions making positions.

The week-long conference was on the theme: Building Strong and Sustainable Economies – Standards, Integrity and Accountability.

About 2,000 members of ICAG and partners from other African countries attended the conference.

President of ICAG

Earlier, the President of ICAG, Augustine Addo said the accountancy profession was changing rapidly, with Artificial Intelligence reshaping finance.

He said sustainability reporting was becoming mandatory globally, and public confidence in institutions was increasingly tied to transparency and ethical leadership.

VR Minister

The Volta Regional Minister, James Gunu, who was a special guest at the event hailed the accounting profession as a key partner in driving integrity and accountability.

He said in both the private and public sectors, the work of the accountant supported effective planning, prudent resource management and sound decision making.