BICA and API Sign the API Professionalisation MOU
Background and Professionalisation Rationale
BICA and API have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to professionalise public sector accountants and auditors in Botswana.
There exists a severe shortage of public sector accounting and auditing professionals across Africa. The African Union Charter on Values and Principles of Public Service and Administration stresses in article 9 the need for all governments to professionalise their human resource.
Among the many contributing factors to the slow progress in the implementation of Public Finance Management Reforms (PFMR) in Africa is the shortage of professionalised accountants and auditors that can provide governments with timely and relevant information for effective and efficient decision-making. This situation is further affected by the majority of existing public sector accountants and auditors not being subject to regulation by a professional organisation responsible for ensuring continuous up-skilling – generally referred to as continuous professional development (CPD).
Furthermore, currently the un-professionalised public sector accountants and auditors are not obligated to comply with the code of ethics applicable for protecting the public interest by ensuring government has preventative recourse against accountants and auditors that engage in financial malpractices through the robust investigative and disciplinary due process available in professional accountancy organisations.
Accountants and auditors serving in the public sector need to develop competencies in public financial management (PFM), performance management, public sector accounting and reporting, public sector auditing, and raising revenue. Accounting and auditing professionals who are equipped with these competencies can add value across the PFM cycle, from planning and budgeting, day-to-day financial and performance management, through to reporting, internal audit, and external audit.
They can operate in all spheres of government, including at central, regional and local levels, in public entities and government business entities, in schools, hospitals, and also large infrastructure projects. The API programmes include competency development for non-finance managers working in the public sector.
The CEO of BICA, Madam Verily Molatedi had this to say, “Professionalisation is important for strengthening of capacity for successful PFM reforms. BICA will play a key role in supporting public sector professionalisation. The Auditor general and accountant general fully support professionalisation for the public sector in Botswana. There is a lot of expectations from governments in terms of being able to enhance good finance governance for the benefit of common citizens”.
The Ag. Auditor General of Botswana, Madam Keneilwe Senyarelo, remarked as follows: “The API’s competency framework for professionalising public sector auditors and accountants will result in the improvement of staff performance in like with the Office of the Auditor General’s (OAG) strategic plan and the vision of the AFROSAI-E. The OAG of Botswana is a member of the API Interim Oversight Board, and this initiative provides a great opportunity to improve public finance governance thereby realising greater accountability and transparency in the use of public resources”.
Botswana is the second country in Africa to sign the MOU to professionalise public sector accountants and auditors. Plans are now underway to rollout the program in Botswana before the end of 2023.
Key Attributes of the API Programme
The attributes below provide a high-level summary of how the API Programme is designed to work towards realising its value creation objectives and vision for African governments,
- Ownership: API is driven & owned by the in-country local accountancy profession regulators and PAOs; Auditors General; Accountants General and other in-country partners
- Unique country content: This is scoped with help of the in-country stakeholders and reviewed and included in the learning platform to serve the unique learning needs for each country. It will address unique country topics and will be housed in the country’s API Online portal.
- Partnerships: The API as an institution works closely with its partners/ stakeholders and invests resources in growing its partnership base to realise long-term value creation and sustainable success
- Quality: Learning resources and content are bench-marked on IFAC and INTOSAI standards and locally contextualised to meet country specific needs
- Accessibility: The API taps the power of technology and internet connectivity to facilitate the efficient and convenient “Learn from anywhere anytime” online model.
- Affordability: Learning programmes are priced reasonably to eliminate cost barriers to professionalisation thus enabling successful accelerated Public Financial Management Reforms – PFMR in the face of competing public sector budgetary challenges.
- Recognition: National accountancy and auditing regulators and PAOs will make arrangements to recognise the API graduates as public sector professional accountants and auditors within their respective regulatory jurisdictions and will subject them to membership obligations.
The API Has 5 Key Houses (Service Categories):
The API is delivered through an ultra-modern user friendly and interactive Online Platform and is categorised in the 5 houses (service categories) below:
| House 1 – Incumbents | Ready to onboard un-professionalised but experienced auditors & accountants |
| House 2 – Specialisation | Ready from 2024 – To onboard CPA/ CAs without public sector competencies professionalisation |
| House 3 – Students | Ready from 2025 – To onboard high school or college graduates to pursue public sector careers with pathways to private sector |
| House 4 – Micro-credentials | Ready from 2024 – To address competencies development and strengthening for unique areas and topics in government to drive PFM success |
| House 5 – CPD (Continuing Professional Development) | Ready – API and partner organisations partnership on CPDs for public sector PFM officers ( Accountants, Auditors and non-finance managers with PFM accountability duties |
Our Vision: An African public sector capacitated with competent, ethical and influential professionals who support accountability, transparency and good financial governance.
Our Mission: To grow the capacity of accountancy professionals in the African public sector for enhanced service delivery.
The API Organisation and Learning Programmes
The API is an independent non-profit organisation whose primary objective is to strengthen the capacity and knowledge base of accounting and auditing professionals in the African public sector to enhance accounting and auditing service delivery to the citizens of Africa.
The API Learning Programme aims to achieve the above institutional goal as a partnership between the accountancy profession (represented by the Pan African Federation of Accountants (“PAFA”)), accountants general or their equivalent (currently being represented by the East and Southern African Association of Accountants (“ESAAG” – and in the near future the Association of African Accountants General – “AAAG”)), and supreme audit institutions or courts of auditors (represented by the English (“AFROSAI-E”) and French (“CREFIAF”) language sub-groups of the African Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (“AFROSAI”)).
Contact the API Team for more details: info@professionalisation.africa | www.professionalisation.africa