International Federation Of Accountant
International federation of accountants (IFAC) is an organization for the accountant profession which is globally recognized. Similar to other sectors or fields of professionalism, the IFAC was formed particularly to structure and organize the working of accountants. The body of accounting professionals has been in place for more than three decades. It has played numerous crucial roles since its establishment in 1977(IFAC, 1997). Though there are several activities for which it performs, IFAC body has brought together top world’s professionals including both accountants and secretariats. Through the sharing of opinions and ideas, the accounting and secretarial profession has over the years undergone through an evolution to cope with the current challenges and sophisticated problems being prompted by the global economic operations. As an organization that aims at maintaining and advancing the quality of work in the accounting and secretariat sector internationally, the body is currently linked with one hundred and fifty seven members combined with its associates who are spread in hundred and twenty three nations. The members and associates of IFAC are recognized as the national professional accountancy bodies which have been registered with the body, so the body endeavors to harmonize and standardize the accounting work in all member nations. Wile the international federation of accountants tries to protect the interests of the public in the accounting and secretariat field, its primary goals is to boost the quality of service/ work in the profession. This has attracted two million plus accountants absorbed in various sectors which including public and private industries as well as learning institutions such as universities and college level academia .
The IFAC was established in the year 1977 in a world confederation of accountants held in Germany. There were several international assemblies held prior to the Munich global congress of accountants which led to the establishment of the international federations of accountants. It is believed or predicted that the idea of the formation of international body that would have control of the measures of accounting quality work begun as early as 1904, when the accounting professionals merged for a international congress in the city of St. Louis, which comprised of the majority local accountants of the united states. The number of foreigner increased in the subsequent international accounting congresses, but the ideas of coming together in the first meetings were far much different from those currently being undertaken by the body. In the early 1960s, the initiative to establish an international body that would oversees entirely the quality of the accounting and secretarial services to the public were blurredly put forward (Oliverio, M. 2004).
The eighth global congress that was conducted in the city of New York was very significant in the conception of the ideas of setting international standards that would govern the accounting, auditing and the closely related secretarial professions. Today, Sir Henry is attributed by the IFAC body for his great initiative in the accounting standardization process. Through the establishment of the first international body which constituted of the United States, Britain and the Canadian nations, Sir Henry is attributed as the father of the standardization body of accounting and auditing.
The trio unity of the accounting professionals from Britain, United States and the Canada states set the platforms for the further international cohesion, thus by 1972, an international active party known as the international coordination committee for the accounting profession (ICCAP) was already established. Though it was indirectly linked to the regulation of the international accounting work, the body drilled the way that eventually lead to the establishment of the real body that were bestowed with the regulatory works of the sector. Actually, the ICCAP acted as the mediating body that through its operation and efforts bonded the member national bodies. While the ICCAP helped in the bringing together of various country’s accounting bodies, they consistently kept in touch, updating them. Accountant’s international study group which was formed by the trio nations expanded and led to the formation of the international accounting standard group / committee (IASC) that with much struggle conceived the international federation of accountants under compromising circumstances of the organization’s based and expenditure of the sixty three bodies from fifty one members states.
The Internationals federation of the Accountant, a body that was founded in the 1977, was as a response to the great pressure to prevent unsatisfying service delivery to the public needs. The IFAC’s primary focus was to serve public interests on the accounting sector. It therefore aimed at serving the public intelligently and with honesty as way of achieving the goal of accounting and auditing services. The IFAC’s success and fame is entrenched not in the organization’s own interest, however, the merging together of various national accountant’s bodies aimed at the serving the public interests.
Processing your request, Please wait....
