Ismaila Muhammadu Zakari
Nigeria
Ismaila Zakari joined the IFAC Board in November 2019, having been nominated by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN). He previously served as a technical advisor on the IFAC Small and Medium Practices Committee.
Mr. Zakari is currently the Managing Partner of Ahmed Zakari & Co. (Chartered Accountants), a small- and medium-sized firmed he co-founded in 1998. He is responsible for leading a resourceful team of Gen-Y professional accountants, specializing in helping mainly small- and medium-sized enterprises and public sector clients to achieve their business goals by providing high-quality accounting, audit & assurance, tax, insolvency, Islamic finance and consulting service engagements.
Mr. Zakari was president of ICAN from 2017 to 2018. He served on the ICAN Council for 15 years. In this role he worked on numerous ICAN committees and task forces, including Students Development, Membership, Continuing Professional Education, Professional Examinations, Practice Monitoring, Ethics Investigation & Disciplinary Tribunal.
Mr. Zakari also served as a board member and technical advisor with the Pan African Federation of Accountants and Council member and Honorary Treasurer for the Association of Accountancy Bodies in West Africa.
Mr. Zakari holds a Bachelor's degree (with honors) in accounting and began his career with Sulaimon & Co., a member firm of Nexia International, in 1987. Mr. Zakari was recently appointed by Nigeria's Minister of Finance to serve on the country's Tax Advisory Committee.