North American Accountants Forge Closer Ties

Washington (Sept. 27, 2002) -- They may not be called by the same names, but Canada's Chartered Accountants and Mexico's Contador Publicos Certificado have the equivalent amount of experience and education as CPAs, and the three countries want to make that official.

Canada, Mexico and the U.S. will sign a "professional mutual recognition agreement" Friday that recognizes the "substantial equivalency" of all three designations.

The ceremony, to be held at the U.S. Department of Commerce, will be attended by Barton Baldwin, National Association of State Boards of Accountancy; American Institute of CPAs chairman James Castellano; Javier De Los Santos Fraga of the Instituto Mexicano de Contadores Publicos; Mexico Minister of Economy, Dr. Luis Ernesto Derbez; U.S. Secretary of Commerce Donald L. Evans; Canadian Ambassador to the United States, Michael Kergin; and David Smith, Chairman, Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants.

-- Electronic Accountant Newswire staff

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