Institute of Chartered Accountants honour Controller Staff

By Francis Ameyibor, GNA
Accra, March 28, GNA - The Institute of Chartered Accountants, Ghana, has adjudged Mrs Rukayatu Alhassan, a staff of the Controller and Accountants General Department as the overall best student in Public Sector Accounting and Finance, level two November 2016

Chartered Accountants Examination.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants Ghana (ICAG) also inducted a total of 219 professionals into membership of the Chartered Accountant professional programme.

Additionally 20 others also qualified to be Accounting Technician Scheme West Africa (ATSWA) and received certificates for successfully completing their respective programmes.

ICAG organised the induction ceremony to inculcate the ethics of the profession into the inductees and also equip them with basic trends in practice both in public and private entities.

Mrs. Alhassan, who is a past student of Tamale Polytechnic, told the Ghana News Agency in Accra after the honour, that the acknowledgement would serve as motivation for her to continue to exhibit a high sense of integrity and accountability in the performance of her duties.

She said the Ghanaian society was looking up to chartered accountants for guidance on how financial resources should be managed and encouraged professionals to show the way through rigid adherence to financial rules and regulations.

She challenged public sector accountants to adhere to prudent financial management requirements in order to promote national development.

She noted that accountants played critical role in development, a mandate which requires that chartered accountants were guided by the ethics and principles that underline accountancy practice.

Mrs. Alhassan, a mother of five, commended her husband, Mr Ibrahim Saaka, for the support and encouragement which contributed largely to her success in the highly rated professional examination.

She encouraged women to venture to professions hither-to ascribe as male dominated areas, stressing 'in recent years women are doing very well in the accounting field otherwise considered as the preserve of men.

'As ladies we have the capacity to climb to whatever level and should not use family obligations to hinder us,' and called on young girls and ladies in school especially those taking accounting, to determine to finish their course.

'Even though the accounting field is almost the preserve of our men, the best accountants in the world today are women. So, I will encourage more girls and ladies to venture into the area and I trust that we can do better than any man,' she added.

Mrs Alhassa pursued accounting at Ghana Secondary School, Tamale and went further to obtain Diploma in Business Administration (DBS) and Higher National Diploma (HND) at the Tamale Polytechnic.

She continued to the University of Professional Studies (UPS) and earned a degree in Business Administration, Accounting option.

She has Master's Degree in Business Administration with specialisation in Public Finance from the same Institution.

The ICAG was established by an Act of parliament, Act 170, 1963, and charged with the regulation of the accountancy profession in Ghana.

Its members are the only persons recognised under the Companies Code (Act 179) 1963, for the purpose of audit of company accounts.

It is governed by a council of eleven chartered accountants. The Council, headed by a President, holds office for a period of two (2) years.

The Institute currently runs two distinct programmes: Professional Programme and Technician programme, known as Accounting Technician Scheme West Africa (ATSWA).

A candidate who successfully completes the professional programme and obtains a working experience in accountancy, approved by the Council of the Institute, qualifies to use the designatory letter 'CA' after his/her name.

GNA