IFAC Holds Global Conference for Small and Medium Practices

The International Federation of Accountants held its seventh annual IFAC Small and Medium Practices Forum on Wednesday, gathering 175 delegates from 33 accounting organizations across 30 countries for the conference in Kampala, Uganda.

The conference was co-hosted by the Institute of CPAs of Uganda and the Pan African Federation of Accountants, with the speaker of the Uganda Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, delivering the keynote address.

The SMP Forum brings together representatives from the regulatory community, regional and national professional accountancy bodies, standard setters, and thought leaders and experts in their fields to collaborate on solutions to the challenges and pressures facing SMPs, both regionally and globally. This year’s event focused on trends that may affect the growth of small business and the way SMPs deliver their services. In addition to the co-hosts, the event was sponsored by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, Corpul Expertilor Contabili si Contabililor Autorizati din Romania, the Hong Kong Institute of CPAs, and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

“The IFAC SMP Forum is an important event that allows us to learn how we can best support professional accountancy organizations in the development of their SMP members globally,” IFAC CEO Fayez Choudhury said in a statement. ”The focus on innovative solutions to the unique challenges SMPs face is essential for helping SMPs to continue to adapt and create value. With this event, we aim to facilitate capacity development, which has long been a focus for IFAC, through the sharing of ideas and best practices on a global platform.”

Separately, IFAC also said that it is soliciting feedback from small and midsize practices through its semi-annual SMP Quick Poll is now open. The poll, which opened in May, is intended to take a snapshot of the key issues confronting small- and medium-sized practices and their clients.
This edition of the poll is being conducted in 16 languages (English, Arabic, Chinese, Dutch/Flemish, French, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, and Turkish). The previous poll received nearly 4,000 responses and we are hoping to increase our participation even further this time around. The poll will close on June 21, 2013.

To access the poll, visit http://ifac.smpquickpoll-may-june-2013.sgizmo.com/s3/.