Arab Society of Certified Accountants holds its Annual Meeting in Beirut

To address the repercussions of the current economic crisis, Abu-Ghazaleh announces the launch of the Arab Financial and Accounting Forum in Beirut

Beirut -22 December 2009 ? The Arab Society of Certified Accountants (ASCA) held its annual meeting yesterday in the Lebanese Capital, Beirut under the chairmanship of its Board Chairman, Mr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh.

Mr. Abu Ghazaleh opened the meeting with a speech in which he reviewed the achievements of ASCA over the past twenty-five years for the Arab accounting profession and accountants.

Discussing the global economic crisis and its repercussions on the Arab world, Abu-Ghazaleh announced that ASCA and Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization took the initiative and called for the Arab Financial and Accounting Forum to be held on 22-23 December in Beirut, in cooperation with the Banque de Liban, Union of Arab Banks, World Union of Arab Bankers and the Lebanese Association for Certified Public Accountants to discuss the repercussions of the global economic crisis and explore ways to address them.

On the achievements and aspirations of ASCA, Abu-Ghazaleh said, "Now, 25 years of hard and tireless labor have passed. The dream has not only come true; but ASCA?s role has been regionally and internationally consolidated. At the regional level, ASCA became the home for graduates of accounting, business and economics as well as accounting practitioners from the Arab world, who seek to improve, advance and develop their professional and academic skills in order to be qualified to obtain the Arab Certified Professional Accountant (ACPA) certificate, which enables them to practice accounting in most Arab countries."

"In my view, the role of ASCA does not end here. I believe that the management and members of ASCA have the determination and resolution to achieve more accomplishments for the Arab financial and economic sectors, and the practitioners in general." He added.

Abu-Ghazaleh then presented the Board of Directors? report on ASCA?s activities in 2009, which came as a continuation to the achievements of ASCA in its efforts over the past 25 years in pursuit of its objectives, notably Arab capacity building in the areas of the accountancy profession and all its branches. The profession, he noted, have experienced significant and rapid developments during the past two decades, and ASCA has kept abreast of such developments and thus became one of the top of international professional institutions and organizations.



The report stated that the Arab Certified Professional Accountant (ACPA) certificate issued by ASCA in cooperation with the International Examinations of the University of Cambridge has proven itself and managed to receive official recognition from most Arab countries as an accredited qualification for practitioners of accounting and auditing professions and for licensing accountants and auditors. ASCA has recently signed an agreement with the British Chartered Institute of Management Accountants to launch the first Arab certificate in Islamic trade and accounting.
The report reviewed the extensive efforts by ASCA in the areas of qualification and training in all parts of the Arab world. ASCA also issue the Arabic authorized translations of the international accounting, auditing standards and professional code of ethics as adopted by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), in addition to enriching the Arab library with reference books in the certified accounting and auditing.
The meeting was attended by members of the Board of Directors and other ASCA members from various Arab countries including Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Tunisia, Syria, Libya, Iraq, Qatar, Yemen, Algeria and Bahrain.