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Filipino Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) in the Philippines and the rest of world are commemorating a grand event this year as they celebrate the 95th year anniversary of the establishment of the accountancy profession in the country and the creation of the Board of Accountancy (BOA). In 1923 accounting was legally recognized as a profession in the country when the sixth Philippine Legislature approved Act 3105 on March 17, 1923. To commemorate this grand event, President Duterte issued Proclamation 464 declaring the period of March 17, 2018, to March 16, 2019, as the Year for the Celebration of the 95th year anniversary of the BOA with the theme, “95 years of invaluable service to the Philippines and the global accounting community.” The BOA has released the anniversary logo for the celebration of the diamond year.
The yearlong grand celebration had started. Various activities to showcase the accomplishments and the full potential of the accountancy profession have been planned and implemented. Conferences and other learning special events, which include foreign speakers and resources, have been organized. Awards will be given to those who have contributed to the profession, as well as the “95 prominent” CPAs. An anniversary song-composition competition has been launched. Milestone events to be completed are on the pipeline, including the rollout of the Asean Chartered Professional Accountants initiative, the implementation of an e-Quality Assurance Review system, the enhancement of the accounting education and CPA licensure ecosystems, and the approval of the amendments to the accountancy law.
The search for the Miss CPA Diamond Ambassadress of Goodwill BOA has identified already a select number of lady CPAs who personify the traits of the female professional imbued with talent, competence and beauty. They will be formally announced during the oath taking of the new CPAs in the Philippine International Convention Center on July 9, 2018. The BOA has organized already several events, where global accounting leaders shared their insights on relevant issues to the Filipino CPA audience, including such topics as “Sustainability Thinking and Reporting for SMEs” on January 3, 2018; “Trust and Ethics in the Digital Age” and “Digital Disruptions Impact on the Accountancy Profession,” both on March 22, 2018; and “Becoming Future Ready—It Starts with You” on May 10, 2018. Two newsletters have been released and various articles in the newspapers (and soon, in magazines, television and radio) have been circulated. A dedicated Face Book page (https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=accountancy95years) has been created to be the center of information-sharing for the anniversary events.
I have also been busy traveling around the country, delivering talks on such matters which are the focus of the BOA on this 95th year. I have covered such topics as the “Philippine Accountancy in the Future is Now of Age,” “Updates on Government Accountancy issues,” ”Time of Joy, Time of Disruption,” “Implementing the BoA QAR,” “The Road to Globalization,” “Enhancing the CPA Licensure Process,” “The Accountancy Profession: Then, Now and the Future,” “The Regulatory Environment to Meet the Needs of the Profession” and “Global Best Practices in Public Finance Management and Government Accounting.”
For the past months, I have also been traveling in various countries to spread the word that accountancy profession is very vibrant in the Philippines.
We have so much to be proud of and thankful for, especially now that we are celebrating our 95th year.
Chairman Joel L. Tan-Torres is the chairman of the Professional Regulatory Board of Accountancy. He is a Certified Public Accountant who placed No. 1 in the May 1979 CPA Board Examinations. He was the former commissioner of the Bureau of Internal Revenue from 2009 to 2010.
This column accepts contributions from accountants, especially articles that are of interest to the accountancy profession, in particular, and to the business community, in general. These can be e-mailed to boa.secretariat.@gmail.com