MIA, CIMA to increase number of professional accountants

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From left: Teng, CIMA president Keith Luck, Johan and Ho Foong Moi, MIA chief executive officer (CEO) are pictured during the MoA signing in Rome.

KUCHING:The Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA) and the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) have signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) which provides for a three year renewable collaboration to increase the number of accountants with professional qualifications in the country.

The collaboration between MIA and CIMA will also help to meet the Government’s aspiration of increasing the number of professionally qualified Bumiputra accountants from eight per cent to 25 per cent by 2020.

The MoA was signed in Rome, Italy on the sidelines of the recently concluded World Congress of Accountants.

The MoA will allow members of MIA admitted under Part 1 and Part 2 of the First Schedule to the Accountants Act 1967 who have 10 years of relevant work experience to obtain the CIMA professional qualification by completing only one assessment.

Those who have less than ten years of relevant work experience will be required to complete four assessments to obtain the CIMA professional qualification.

The requirement regarding the relevant work experience refers to the practical experience requirements as specified by CIMA in obtaining the CIMA membership and the Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) designation.

This will ensure that the MIA members have gained enough experience of applying management accounting skills and techniques and are competent to become a CIMA member and a CGMA designation holder.

“This MoA is a testament of both MIA and CIMA efforts to create a sustainable pipeline of professionally qualified accountants in Malaysia, in supporting the government’s Economic Transformation Programme and contributing to the nation’s economic growth.

“This MoA opens up new pathways for MIA members to have access to the best professional development that CIMA can offer. We believe that with this collaboration, we will be able to help build a stronger accountancy sector in Malaysia

“Collaboration has long been a key to the Institute’s strategy to further promote, enhance and develop the accountancy profession in this country.

“Together, we will strive to build the required capacity to support national goals. However, the pursuit of quantity will never be at the expense of quality and competency. Quality and quantity must go hand-in-hand,” MIA president, Datuk Johan Idris said.

According to Irene Teng, CIMA regional director of South East Asia and Australasia, the collaboration between CIMA and MIA will help strengthen the quality of accountants in Malaysia, and at the same time provide them with a fast track route to obtain a professional accounting qualification.

“In an age of globalisation, professional accounting qualifications are becoming more and more important as companies seek expertise to cope with a business landscape that is volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous.

“Chartered Global Management Accountants (CGMA) make use of financial and non-financial information to help a company’s management team make critical business decisions and drive strong performance.

“The CGMA designation is recognised by leading employers worldwide and it is awarded by CIMA and our joint venture partner, the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA). We are pleased to be able to offer a fast track route to this global designation for accountants in Malaysia, in partnership with MIA,” she added.