Sinéad Donovan was appointed Chair of the IFAC International Panel on Accountancy Education, effective January 1, 2026. Ms. Donovan is a Fellow Chartered Accountant and served as a partner in Grant Thornton Ireland from 2005 and as Chairperson of the firm from 2021 until January 2025 following the successful amalgamation with Grant Thornton US.

Ms. Donovan was the engagement partner to some of the largest clients acting as auditor but also specializing in servicing multinationals ensuring a centralized offering for their global reporting and compliance needs.

She served as President of Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI) 2023-2024 and successfully negotiated and secured a member vote for the historic amalgamation of CAI and CPA Ireland, making CAI the largest professional body in Ireland. Ms. Donovan served on the Council of CAI until May 2025.

Currently, Ms. Donovan sits on a number of boards as a non-executive director and chairs the audit and risk committee for the global organization Girls Not Brides. She also acts as strategic advisor to scaling and fast growth companies in the professional advisory and technology sector. 

Jac is the Head of the School of Business and Professor of Accounting at Charles Sturt University. Previously she was Deputy Dean and Head of the Department of Accounting and Finance at UWA. Jac is the current Vice President-Education at the International Association for Accounting Education and Research (IAAER). She is a past Australian President of the Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand (AFAANZ), past Chair of the Chairs in Accounting and Finance (CAFF) and has served on the International Accounting Education Standards Board Consultative Advisory Group (IAESB CAG)

Ms. Kotwal is the Chairperson of ICAP’s Digital Assurance and Accounting Board, as well as ICAP’s AML Board. She actively participates with global accounting bodies in CAPA, CAW and SAFA.

She is double qualified as a Fellow Chartered Accountant & Fellow Corporate Secretary. She is the Certified Director and Chairperson of the ICAP Audit Committee. She is the founder of a management consultancy, Aasman International, and has served as its Chief Executive since 2010.

The Lebanese Association of Certified Public Accountants' (LACPA) 22^nd International Congress: “Financial Inclusion for a Sustainable Economy” will take place in Beirut from 30 September to 2 October 2025. The three-day program convenes global and regional leaders to explore inclusion, digital transformation, sustainability reporting, public-sector reforms, and assurance. The participation fee is USD 250.

Keynote Speakers include:

The assurance engagement culminates in the practitioner’s conclusion about whether the sustainability information is free from material misstatement.  The practitioner’s conclusion and assurance report are the ultimate deliverables of the sustainability assurance engagement and are designed to enhance the degree of confidence of intended users about the entity’s sustainability information.

Being well prepared sets the tone for a successful sustainability assurance engagement. In this session, IAASB experts will walk participants through the fundamental concepts and underlying premises for applying ISSA 5000—explaining its scope, authority, and why it was developed—and addressing overarching matters in preparing to perform a high-quality sustainability assurance engagement, including making sound engagement acceptance decisions. 

Offered at two different times to accommodate a global audience, this webinar will cover: 

Wesal Alqarawi is a Communications and Public Relations Lead at the Saudi Organization for Chartered and Professional Accountants (SOCPA). In her role, she drives strategic communication initiatives that strengthen SOCPA’s influence in advancing the accounting and auditing profession in Saudi Arabia and internationally. She leads partnerships with key stakeholders, oversees high-profile events, and develops impactful communication strategies to enhance visibility and engagement.

With over a decade of experience spanning public relations, communications, and translation management, Wesal has held progressive leadership roles, including Team Lead at Vinnell Arabia, a Northrop Grumman subsidiary, where she spearheaded quality initiatives and contributed to successful ISO certifications.

She holds a Bachelor’s degree in English Translation from King Saud University and multiple certifications, including ISO 17100 & ISO 9001 Lead Auditor Training. Recognized for her excellence, Wesal has received several awards, including SOCPA’s Employee of the Year (2023) and Northrop Grumman’s Global Quality Award (2017).