Zimbabwe Strengthens Public Sector Accountability with Professionalisation Agreement

Introduction

In a significant milestone for Zimbabwe’s public sector, a momentous ceremony was held on the 23 October 2023 to mark the signing of the Public Sector Accountants and Auditors Professionalisation Agreement. The agreement, signed between the Management Training Bureau of Zimbabwe (MTB), the Chartered Governance & Accountancy Institute in Zimbabwe (CGAIZ), and the African Professionalisation Initiative (API), is poised to enhance the professionalism and standards of public sector accountants and auditors in the country. The distinguished guest of honour at the event was the Minister for Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development, Prof dr Amon Murwira.

The presence of the Honourable Minister signified the government’s commitment to the professionalisation of public sector accountants and auditors. It further underscored the recognition of the critical role played by these professionals in fostering good governance, financial management, and accountability in the public sector. The government’s support and endorsement of the agreement further demonstrate its dedication to strengthening the country’s public sector institutions.

The Keynote Address

The Honourable Minister emphasised the need for investing in professionalisation to increase the number of professionals that will drive efficiency in government operations. He noted the urgent need for quality planning and accountability for public resources as a demonstration of a properly functioning PFM system. He observed that the country’s development objectives should be efficiently and effectively achieved thereby setting the ground for coining new and even more ambitious objectives. He urged the citizens and leaders to spend ample time on disciplined thinking about the problems they are trying to solve by doing the deep work that will create lasting solutions rather than waste significant time and long hours surfing the social media platforms or simply engaging in shallow work and talk.

He reiterated the power of collaboration, networking and partnerships. He quipped that even the smartest individuals would not achieve much without working in a well networked and organised team.  He discouraged professionals and leaders from being lone rangers but rather partner to achieve success typical of what is expected from the MTB-CGAIZ-API partnership. He challenged organisations to design and invent systems that make optimal use of great people within the networked teams by tapping individual brilliance that is networked.

The Honourable Minister challenged Zimbabweans and African citizens at large to spend time taking daily action by doing things that meet their needs while embracing ethical behaviour rather than sit and wait for others to come and solve their problems for them. This will be possible through commitment to development of relevant skills and competencies that will drive new value creation. He challenged the audience to start building the future now because they will spend the rest of their lives in the future (Time is not going backwards- it moves in one direction – forward). He noted that a nation and its people must take responsibility for their country.

Guests at the Ceremony 

Among those in attendance included: The Deputy Minister & The Permanent Secretary from the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development; over six Vice-Chancellors from various universities; Representatives from the Public Service Commission; the Auditor General’s Office; Accountant General’s Office; The Public Accountants and Auditors Board (PAAB); The Pan African Federation of Accountants (PAFA); Directors from various government ministries; Professional Accountancy Organisations; numerous media houses; multiple online participants representing different organisations.

Enhancing Professionalism in the Public Sector 

The ceremony underscored the commitment of the Zimbabwe Government to strengthen its public sector accounting and auditing professions, recognizing the crucial role these professions play in ensuring transparency, accountability, and good governance in the management of public funds. By signing the agreement, the parties involved aim to elevate the standards of public sector accounting and auditing through enhanced education, training, and certification processes.

Objectives of the Agreement 

The cooperation agreement aims to facilitate the successful implementation of the public sector professionalisation MOU signed on 7 October 2022 between the PAAB Zimbabwe ( regulator of the accountancy profession in Zimbabwe) and the API. The objectives of the cooperation agreement between MTB, CGAIZ and API include the following;

1. Support the government of Zimbabwe efforts to increase the number of finance, accounting and auditing professionals in Zimbabwe and beyond
2. Create opportunities for the government employees to access high quality tuition support to complete their professionalisation and career advancement objectives
3. Enable the CGAIZ and API tap into the experience and expertise of the MTB in training and capacity development
4. Contribute to the successful realisation of the vision and mission of MTB; CGAIZ and API
5. Advance and be an enabler for public sector value creation and productivity for the benefit of common citizens in Zimbabwe and the African continent

Expected Outcomes

The MTB, CGAIZ and API cooperation agreement once implemented will be expected to contribute to the realisation of the following essential public value creation outcomes:

1. Increase in the number of ethical and competent public sector professionals.
2. Enhanced support for accountability, transparency, and good financial governance in public sector
3. Successful public finance management reforms (PFM Reforms) leading to socio-economic development.
4. Improved compliance with the government finance laws
5. Increased compliance with International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS)
6. Increased compliance with International Public Sector Auditing Standards
7. Contribute to success of the African Union (AU) Agenda 2063 and section 9 of the AU Charter on public service and administration that encourages governments to professionalise their staff
8. Build a pool of public sector professionals in Zimbabwe for cross border trade in professional services under the Africa Continental Trade Area framework (ACTFA)
9. Create a platform for supporting public sector professionalisation in other African countries in line with the African spirit of cooperation, partnership and sharing.

The Management Training Bureau of Zimbabwe (MTB)

The Honourable Minister heaped praise on the leadership of MTB. He singled out the Executive Director of MTB, Dr Nelson Maseko for the outstanding work he has done to raise the quality standards at MTB to world class levels. The MTB is the Zimbabwe government training institute renowned for its expertise in providing specialized corporate, individual training and other capacity building. It will play a pivotal role in implementing the professionalisation agreement. Learners will enrol at the MTB to complete the API professionalisation program. MTB will partner with CGAIZ to deliver on this goal.

The Chartered Governance & Accountancy Institute in Zimbabwe (CGAIZ)

As an internationally recognized professional accountancy body, the CGAIZ brings its wealth of expertise and experience in setting professional standards for the accountancy profession. Being an associate member of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and the Pan African Federation of Accountants (PAFA), the CGAIZ is well-positioned to contribute to the development of a robust framework for professionalizing public sector accountants and auditors in Zimbabwe. The API learners enrolled at MTB will have access to the CGAIZ CPD programmes as they progress towards becoming public sector professional accountants. Through the agreement, the CGAIZ will provide technical support, guidance, and access to its extensive network of professionals to enhance the professionalisation process.

The API’s Purpose (Objective)

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 Vision and Mission

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 Houses / Learning Programmes

Please choose below what may work for you and drop us an email on info@professionalisation.africa

Houses (Learning Programmes)
• House 1 – Incumbents (Experienced un-professionalised accountants and auditors)-Implemented
• House 2 – Specialisation – Ready for occupation from 2024
• House 3 – Students – Ready for occupation in 2025
• House 4 – Micro credentials – Unique areas of need by governments asset management and accounting; performance audits etc.
• House 5 – Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

The API Partner Organisations

The API Learning Programmes aim 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 (African Association of 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”)).

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Contact the API Team for more details: info@professionalisation.africa | www.professionalisation.africa