The educative program was done during the just concluded three-day stakeholders’ engagement forum aimed to discuss, and forge pathways that would strengthen their financial reporting framework and bolster investor confidence in the market.
The forum which ended on Wednesday was held at the Ocean Bay Hotel in Cape Point, Bakau and brought together representatives of various companies.
Participants were enlightened on the establishment of the FROB as a Financial Reporting (FR) Act 2013, with its board inaugurated back in 2019 and Management hired in mid-2022. The Financial Reporting Act is the mother Act in all matters of financial reporting, corporate governance and auditing in the Gambia.
The FR Act established three 3 Main bodies; which include the Gambia Institute of Chartered Accountants (GICA), The Gambia Accounting Auditing and Corporate Governance Standards Committee (also called The Standards Committee), and The Gambia Financial Reporting Oversight Board (FROB).
In his deliberations at the end of the three-day sessions, Modou L. Camara, the head of the technical department at FROB, revealed that FROB can issue rules and regulations in all matters relating to auditing, financial reporting and corporate governance to effect the provisions of the FR Act 2013.
He informed participants that Section 49 of the FR Act 2013 highlights the functions of FROB, which also supervises the activities of the auditing profession.
He said that FROB ensures its activities are conducted in accordance with the standards and other requirements set by IFAC and its various organs.
He noted that its functions includes overseeing the functioning of the quality assurance review system which may be established to ensure the good quality of audit and assurance services provided by practicing auditors, member firms of the Institute and public auditors.
He further lamented that it monitors compliance and enforces the corporate governance standards for public interest entities issued by the Standards Committee, and monitors compliance of public interest entities with the provisions of this Act.
He also delved into the successes of effective Financial Reporting Oversight, adding that the role of regulators in various jurisdictions have been successful in enhancing the quality of financial reporting, auditing and corporate governance standards and practices in their various countries.
He said that they have been successful in creating conditions for wealth creation and retention through added market confidence.
That, he said, engineers protectionist and enforcement measures in safeguarding the public interest from professional misconduct and gross violations of public trust.
He outlines countries with Effective Financial Reporting Oversight such as FRC United Kingdom, PCAOB United States, AASB Australia, ASBJ Japan, and BAFin Germany.
Countries in Africa, he went on, include ICAG Ghana, FRC Mauritius, SAIPA South Africa, FRC Nigeria, ICPAU Uganda, and ICPAK Kenya.
All of these countries, he concluded, have made strides and continue to enhance the quality of financial reporting, audit and corporate governance standards in their respective jurisdictions.
