The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), the global organization for the accountancy profession with members and associates in 127 countries, welcomes the Spanish translation of the Handbook of International Standards on Auditing and Quality Control.

This single Spanish translation is the result of a two-and-a-half-year-long collaborative effort by Instituto de Censores Jurados de Cuentas de España (ICJCE) and Instituto de Contabilidad y Auditoría de Cuentas, and a review committee led by Federación Argentina de Consejos Profesionales de Ciencias Económicas (FACPCE), with representatives from IFAC member bodies in Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, and Uruguay, and other key stakeholders.

The translated publication includes an unofficial Table of Equivalencies showing differences between terminology used in Spain and that commonly used in Latin America. It has also been reviewed by the Directorate General of Translations (DGT) of the European Commission for its acceptability in the European Union.

According to Rafael Cámara, president of ICJCE, “ICJCE is especially delighted with the publication and would like to congratulate all those involved. This publication represents the first time a Spanish translation of these high-quality international auditing standards has been published in Spain, and is the culmination of several years of work.”

Fermín del Valle, former president of IFAC, said, “This publication is indeed a significant milestone and will be of great benefit to professionals in Latin America. Spanish is a significant world language, spoken in Spain as well as in some 20 Latin American countries. Many Latin American countries have plans to adopt the International Standards on Auditing and Quality Control, and availability of the Spanish translation will be essential in this regard.”

Ian Ball, IFAC chief executive officer, added, “This project is an excellent example of cooperation between IFAC member bodies for the benefit of the global accounting and auditing profession. IFAC is extremely grateful to all those who have contributed resources and efforts to this very important publication. This Spanish translation represents an essential step in furthering the adoption and implementation of high-quality international auditing and quality control standards in the public interest.”

IFAC member bodies are working together on a number of related projects. A cooperation agreement was recently signed between ICJCE, FACPCE, and Instituto Mexicano de Contadores Públicos to publish a single Spanish translation of the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants, issued by the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants. The final translation is expected to be published on the IFAC website in 2012. A draft memorandum of understanding between these three IFAC member bodies has also been prepared with the objective of collaborating to achieve longer-term, sustainable processes for a single Spanish translation of the international standards and other IFAC publications.

The translation was published in Spain by ICJCE and in Latin America by FACPCE (Argentina). Contact ICJCE at auditoria@icjce.es or FACPCE at facpce@facpce.org.ar to purchase printed copies of the translated handbook.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. IFAC is comprised of 167 members and associates in 127 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

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IFAC has urged the G-20 Deputies and Finance Ministers at their April 2012 meeting in Mexico to take action to encourage governments to seriously address the quality of public sector financial management systems and institutions. The letter, which is a follow-up to previous submissions to the G-20 in 2009, 2010, and 2011, focuses solely on public sector financial management, transparency, and accountability. 

The PSTF strongly encourages the G-20 to implement all of the 15 recommendations presented in its 2011 Report with a strong emphasis on its first two recommendations, encouraging the G-20 to: continue to focus on regulatory convergence in the financial sector, ensuring that G-20 nations work together to identify and narrow gaps in regulatory practice; and discourage nations from implementing unilateral national regulatory reforms that are inconsistent with international standards and that widen—rather than narrow—the convergence gap.

IFAC CEO Ian Ball is quoted in the Economist on accounting standards and transparency in the public sector.

The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) has published Exposure Draft (ED) 47, Financial Statement Discussion and Analysis—a proposed new standard. The ED proposes minimum required content while still providing sufficient flexibility for entities to prepare and publish financial statement discussion and analysis that best portrays their specific circumstances.

Because of the close link between financial statement discussion and analysis and an entity’s financial statements, ED 47 proposes that:

• the guidance be issued as an International Public Sector Accounting Standard (IPSAS) with the same authority as IPSASs concerning accrual-based financial statements;
• financial statement discussion and analysis be prepared and presented in conjunction with an entity’s financial statements; and
• the qualitative characteristics governing preparation of financial statements be applied to financial statement discussion and analysis.

ED 47 includes implementation guidance and an illustrative example that show how an entity might prepare its financial statement discussion and analysis to comply with the proposed requirements.

IPSASB Chair Andreas Bergmann notes, “The purpose of the financial statement discussion and analysis is to provide additional information to users of an entity’s financial statements for accountability and decision-making purposes. Financial statement discussion and analysis complements and supplements the information in the accrual-based financial statements with further insights and perspectives.”

How to Comment
To access the Exposure Draft and the At-a-Glance document, which provides a summary of the Exposure Draft, or to submit a comment, please visit the IPSASB website at www.ipsasb.org. Comments on the Exposure Draft are requested by July 31, 2012. The IPSASB encourages IFAC members, associates, and regional accountancy bodies to promote the availability of this Exposure Draft to their members and employees.

About the IPSASB
The IPSASB develops accounting standards and guidance for use by public sector entities. The structures and processes that support the operations of the IPSASB are facilitated by IFAC. The IPSASB receives support (both direct financial and in-kind) from the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the United Nations and the governments of Canada, China, New Zealand, and Switzerland.

About IFAC
IFAC is the global organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. IFAC is comprised of 167 members and associates in 127 countries and jurisdictions, representing approximately 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry, and commerce.

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See all presentations at www.ifac.org/2012SMPForum.  

See all presentations at www.ifac.org/2012SMPForum.