ACCA urges Ghana to adopt Integrated Reporting Framework
The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) has stressed the need for businesses to adopt the use of the Integrated Reporting Framework (IRF) to enhance their financial reporting and promote transparency.
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It said it was important for regulatory bodies such as the Bank of Ghana (BoG) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to support the adoption of the IRF and also institutionalise it for businesses to promote standards in the country
The ACCA’s Director for Africa , Jamil Ampomah, said the IRF was a financial reporting framework that provided a more comprehensive and integrated view of a company’s performance, taking into account the financial, environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors.
Speaking at the ACCA Business Leaders Forum to highlight integrated financial reporting, Mr Ampomah said the wholesale and mandatory adoption of IRF would promote greater transparency for businesses to enable them to be more competitive on the global stage.
“By adopting the Integrated Reporting Framework, Ghanaian businesses will be better equipped to meet the growing demand for greater transparency and accountability from stakeholders, such as investors, regulators and customers.
So I believe this interaction is an opportunity to sensitise people and businesses to really create that excitement but also the urgency to start, you know, thinking along those lines,’ he said.
The forum was on the theme: “Integrated Reporting – A Framework for Compliance and Decision Support.”
IRF
The IRF is an international framework that encourages the adoption of integrated financial reporting across the world with the aim to promote more meaningful and transparent reporting as well as better decision-making by providing stakeholders with a more holistic view of a company’s performance.
It specifically seeks to improve the quality of information available to providers of financial capital to enable a more efficient and productive allocation of capital and promote a more cohesive and efficient approach to corporate reporting that draws on different reporting strands and communicates the full range of factors that materially affect the ability of an organisation to create value over time
Again, the IRF seeks to enhance accountability and stewardship for the broad base of capitals (financial, manufactured, intellectual, human, social and relationship and natural) and promotes understanding of their independencies and support integrated thinking, decision-making and actions that focus on the creation of value over the short, medium and long term.
Due to its international appeal, countries such as India and South Africa have made the IRF a mandatory financial reporting framework for some sectors.
Regional body
Apart from the adoption of the IRF, the ACCA also urged the country to become members of the Africa Integrated Reporting Council (AIRC) which was established in 2017 and currently has eight members - Nigeria, South Africa, Morocco, Namibia, Mauritius, Kenya, Zimbabwe, and Botswana.
“The AIRC is a regional body that promotes the adoption of the Integrated Reporting Framework and provides guidance and support to companies in implementing the framework,” Mr Ampomah said.
