Accountant-General of the Federation, Mr Ahmed Idris
•FG, ACCA partner to promote international standards in sector
Unless state and local governments in Nigeria holistically drive the implementation of the Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) alongside the Federal Government, the objectives of the scheme may not be fully realised, the Accountant General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris said yesterday in Abuja.
The International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS), a set of accounting standards issued by the IPSAS Board for use by public sector entities around the world in the preparation of financial statements, is expected to improve the quality of general purpose financial reporting by public sector entities, leading to better informed assessments of the resource allocation
Speaking at IPSAS Implementation Workshop organised by Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), Idris, who said there were differences in levels of implementation of the initiative across the country, noted that some states are lagging behind.
“We need to be moving together at same level. We are talking and engaging those states that are lagging behind but they are independent; we cannot impose anything on them but we are dutiful to talk to them so that they come up to make the implementation is seamless”, he explained.
Idris insisted that current reforms in the nation’s public financial sector, including the Treasury Single Account, IPSAS implementation, the Integrated Personnel & Payroll Information System (IPPIS) and host of others would enable the country to block loopholes and fight corruption.
“We cannot afford to be left behind. We need to demonstrate that commitment not only to ourselves but also to the international community and partners. We have partners that would want to see us putting into practices these global best practices that will go a long way in the fight against corruption,” Idris stated.
He said government is partnering with ACCA to provide adequate capacity building, training and professional development for public financial officers.Chairman of ACCA Nigeria, Olajide Ibironke said the partnership would help to build capacity to make implementation of the programme seamless.
According to him, the way Nigeria reports financial statement in the public sector account prior to now has been cash basis.Head, ACCA Nigeria, Thomas Isibor said the group as well as the government by the end of the workshop would be able to ascertain and bridge some of the gaps in the implementation of the initiative.
Isibor said plans are underway to replicate the training across sectors to ensure that Nigeria to implement, adding that was critical to ensure finance professionals working in the sector are equipped with the right skills to deal with the challenges ahead.
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