The IAESB Personal Perspectives Series shares insights from board members, technical advisors and other key stakeholders on some of the challenges affecting aspiring professional accountants and the importance of effective accountancy learning and development.
This Perspective, A Growing Demand for Public Sector Accounting Education, is from Rania Mardini, IAESB Member.
As the work of the International Accounting Education Standards Board comes to a close, board leadership share perspectives on the board's work.
The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board® (IPSASB®) has released an Exposure Draft (ED), Public Sector Financial Instruments, Amendments to IPSAS 41, Financial Instruments, for comment. The ED provides guidance on how to account for a number of important categories of financial instruments that are unique to the public sector.
The proposed new Standard will augment existing guidance in IPSAS 41, Financial Instruments, and improves that Standard’s requirements by introducing guidance on:
“The topics addressed in this Exposure Draft are unique to the public sector and have a significant impact on government finances,” said IPSASB Chair Ian Carruthers. “The final guidance will ensure users of IPSAS-based financial statements have the information they need about these important items for accountability and decision-making purposes.”
How to Comment
To access the Exposure Draft and its summary At-a-Glance document, or to submit a comment, visit the IPSASB website, www.ipsasb.org. Comments on the Consultation Paper are requested by December 31, 2019. The IPSASB encourages IFAC® members, associates, and regional accountancy organizations to promote the availability of this Consultation Paper to their members and employees.
About the IPSASB
The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) works to strengthen public financial management globally through developing and maintaining accrual-based International Public Sector Accounting Standards® (IPSAS®) and other high-quality financial reporting guidance for use by governments and other public sector entities. It also raises awareness of IPSAS and the benefits of accrual adoption. The Board receives support from the Asian Development Bank, the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada, the New Zealand External Reporting Board, and the governments of Canada and New Zealand. The structures and processes that support the operations of the IPSASB are facilitated by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). For copyright, trademark, and permissions information, please go to permissions or contact permissions@ifac.org.
About the Public Interest Committee
The governance and standard-setting activities of the IPSASB are overseen by the Public Interest Committee (PIC), to ensure that they follow due process and reflect the public interest. The PIC is comprised of individuals with expertise in public sector or financial reporting, and professional engagement in organizations that have an interest in promoting high-quality and internationally comparable financial information.
Stakeholder comment on Exposure Draft 69 sought by December 31, 2019
Exposure Draft 69, Public Sector Specific Financial Instruments, Amendments to IPSAS 41, Financial Instruments provides guidance on how to account for a number of important categories of financial instruments that are unique to the public sector.
The proposed new Standard will augment existing guidance in IPSAS 41, Financial Instruments, and improves that Standard’s requirements by introducing guidance on:
The IAESB has developed this guidance to illustrate how the International Education Standards implementation may be adapted to create curricula that cater to the needs of professional accountants in the public sector.
It is grounded in the Learning Outcomes approach that “embodies the idea that learning and development experiences are most effective when based on what the individual needs to demonstrate." It uses IES 2, Initial Professional Competence – Technical Competence, as a base as that helps establish the common ground.
IFAC submitted a comment letter to further highlight the importance of the issues covered in the IAASB’s Discussion Paper, Audits of Less Complex Entities.
Notwithstanding significant efforts by many stakeholders, including the IAASB and IFAC, concerns remain about the application of International Standards on Auditing (ISAs) to less complex entities (LCEs). IFAC applauds the IAASB’s initiative to consider the situation holistically and chart the best way forward, and believes that these challenges will be best resolved through thoughtful and constructive input and engagement from the largest possible number of diverse global stakeholders.
Click here to access the Audits of Less Complex Entities discussion paper.
IFAC strongly encourages all stakeholders to respond directly to the Discussion Paper or to participate in IFAC’s Audits of Less Complex Entities Survey by September 12, 2019. The survey is available in English, French and Spanish.
Former Chair, IESBA Consultative Advisory Group
United States of America
Gaylen R. Hansen became Chair of the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants’ (IESBA) Consultative Advisory Group (CAG) in July 2019.
Mr. Hansen retired as an audit partner of Plante Moran in 2018 following over forty years of engagement in the accounting profession. His career has encompassed lengthy periods in public practice as an auditor and quality control partner, and briefly as the controller of a small private company that went public during his tenure. He has been a sole practitioner and an audit manager with Arthur Andersen and later Price Waterhouse. Since 2010, he has represented the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) on the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board’s Consultative Advisory Group (CAG). Since 2016, he has served on the AICPA’s Auditing Standards Board, which promulgates practice standards for the audits of all U.S. non-issuers.
Previously he served as a chair of NASBA and served on the Colorado State Board of Accountancy, which regulates and disciplines all of the state’s certified public accountants and their firms. He has also served on the AICPA’s Professional Ethics Committee (PEEC) that establishes and enforces the ethics and independence requirements in the AICPA’s Code of Professional Conduct. He is a prior member of the PCAOB’s Standing Advisory Group (SAG) and during 2007 – 2008 served on the U.S. Treasury's Advisory Committee on the Auditing Profession (ACAP). ACAP conducted the first comprehensive study of the U.S. accounting profession after the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. ACAP made many strategic recommendations to enhance the profession’s sustainability and effectiveness. He has spoken frequently at conferences, seminars and roundtables in these various capacities.
Mr. Hansen obtained a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a major in accounting from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and a master’s degree in business administration with an emphasis in international business from California State University, Fullerton. In 2005, he was a founding member of NASBA’s Center for the Public Trust and in 2018 was the recipient of NASBA’s William H. Van Rensselaer Public Service Award. Currently, he serves as a volunteer trustee and the audit committee chair of the American University of Iraq, Sulaimani. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Colorado Society of Certified Public Accountants.
The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) today published its Biennial Review, Delivering for the Future, which summarizes the Board’s successes, challenges, and key outputs during 2017 and 2018.
The majority of the Board’s projects during the review period were public sector-specific in nature and aimed at closing perceived gaps in the IPSASB’s suite of standards, while maintaining alignment with International Financial Reporting Standards, when appropriate.
During 2017 and 2018, the IPSASB finalized IPSAS 40, Public Sector Combinations; IPSAS 41, Financial Instruments; and the landmark standard, IPSAS 42, Social Benefits. In addition, the Board approved two major Exposure Drafts (ED) 64, Leases, and ED 67, Collective and Individuals Services and Emergency Relief (Amendments to IPSAS 19).
“After celebrating the twentieth anniversary of the IPSAS program in 2017, these are exciting times for the IPSASB, with significant increases projected in the global adoption and implementation of IPSAS by governments in the short to medium term,” said IPSASB Chair Ian Carruthers. “The hard work, dedication, and commitment of my fellow IPSASB members and their technical advisors, all of whom are volunteers, together with the support of IPSASB staff, have been critical to the Board’s notable achievements during 2017 and 2018.”
The IPSASB Strategy and Work Plan 2019-2023 was also developed during the review period, which will guide the Board’s future activities toward its strategic objective.
To ensure it delivers in the public interest, the IPSASB’s strategic objective is: strengthening Public Financial Management (PFM) globally through increasing adoption of accrual-based IPSAS.
This will be delivered through two main areas of activity, both of which have a public interest focus:
About the IPSASB
The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) works to strengthen public financial management globally through developing and maintaining accrual-based International Public Sector Accounting Standards® (IPSAS®) and other high-quality financial reporting guidance for use by governments and other public sector entities. It also raises awareness of IPSAS and the benefits of accrual adoption. The Board receives support from the Asian Development Bank, the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada, the New Zealand External Reporting Board, and the governments of Canada and New Zealand. The structures and processes that support the operations of the IPSASB are facilitated by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). For copyright, trademark, and permissions information, please go to permissions or contact permissions@ifac.org.
About the Public Interest Committee
The governance and standard-setting activities of the IPSASB are overseen by the Public Interest Committee (PIC), to ensure that they follow due process and reflect the public interest. The PIC is comprised of individuals with expertise in public sector or financial reporting, and professional engagement in organizations that have an interest in promoting high-quality and internationally comparable financial information.
The IPSASB's Biennial Review, Delivering for the Future, summarizes the Board’s successes, challenges, and key outputs during 2017 and 2018.
The majority of the Board’s projects during the review period were public sector-specific in nature and aimed at closing perceived gaps in the IPSASB’s suite of standards, while maintaining alignment with International Financial Reporting Standards, when appropriate.