Buhari Seeks ICAN’s Support to Improve Nation’s Fiscal Condition

Buhari Seeks ICAN’s Support to Improve Nation’s Fiscal Condition

By Ndubuisi Francis

President Muhammadu Buhari has urged members of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) to buy into current reforms undertaken by his administration and provide support in the area of policy formulation with a view to improving the nation’s fiscal condition.

Buhari made the appeal in Abuja Tuesday at the 50th annual accountants’ conference where he was represented by the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed.

The federal government, he stated, has been fostering and nurturing enduring relationships with professional bodies such as ICAN towards the realisation of its vision of managing the nation’s finances in an open, transparent, accountable and efficient manner that delivers on the country’s development priorities.

According to him, the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning is also poised to continue to nurture these relationships in order to help design better policies against these priorities.

He said: “We count on members of ICAN both at home and in the Diaspora to buy into current reforms undertaken by the Buhari-led administration and provide support in the area of policy formulation to improve the fiscal condition of our nation.

“Furthermore, the present administration will continue to support legislations and policies that will enable professional bodies such as ICAN to deliver on the core mandates of their professions.”

Buhari noted that the theme of this year’s conference, “The 4th Industrial Revolution: Boom for the Accounting Profession and Panacea for pandemic”, is very timely and apt as it captures the digital economy policy and strategy of the present administration’s priority in information technology, adding that the federal government is willing to partner Academia in Information Technology Profession (AITP) and other stakeholders for Nigeria to play an active role in the fourth industrial revolution era.

He pointed out that the Fourth Industrial Revolution is marked by emerging technology breakthroughs in a number of fields, including robotics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), quantum computing, 3D printing, biotechnology & the Internet of Things.

“With the evolution of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, we stand on the brink of a technological revolution that will fundamentally alter the way we live, work and relate to one another.

“As the world we live and work in becomes more digitalized, the ways in which accountants and their clients can connect, collaborate, communicate and collect information are being reshaped. This creates potential for automation, innovation and disruption. For all of us in general and accountants in particular, the journey towards digital and growing cloud adoption is the mother trend of all changes,” Buhari added.

Noting that industrial revolutions often heralded disruptions in the operations of markets and economies, the president said these disruptions are deviations from the status quo and are not always negative.

Expressing an unwavering faith in ICAN, Buhari stated that his faith in the future of the institution is fully justified by the achievements of its fifty-year past, adding: “My faith in the future of this institution is as great as my faith in the future of our country, whose bounties we shall reap only through the hard work and perseverance of a people determined to win their rightful place under the sun.”

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