Strategic Plan 2021 - 2023 (Extended till 2024)

The Maldives parliament passed the very first Chartered Accountants Bill on the 26th August 2020. The bill was ratified by the President of the Maldives on the 8th September 2020 and become law, heralding a new and promising chapter for the accountancy profession of the country. The Act created an independent legal entity, Institute of Chartered Accountants of the Maldives and defines the following as its purpose;

  • Advance the accountancy profession in the country, development of frameworks, policies and procedures for the establishment and development of the accountancy profession;
  • Ensure that those working in the accountancy profession are familiar with international accountancy practices, attain the relevant education and training;
  • Ensure that those working in the accountancy profession are competent, adhere to the professional and ethical standards;
  • Establish private sector financial accounting and reporting standards as well as auditing standards for the sector; and
  • Provide technical assistance to the entity entrusted with the responsibility of formulating public sector accounting standards.

During the first meeting, strategic plans of similar organizations were discussed, including that of IFAC, CA Singapore, CA Australia and New Zealand and CPA Australia. During the first meeting, important conceptual level decisions were taken, such as defining strategic plan for three years that will be subject to an annual review to cope with the unique issues and challenges during the formative years, formulation of a SWOT and to seek stakeholder consultation before developing the first draft of the strategic plan.

In addition to the above, the law also grants CA Maldives the sole authority to regulate private sector auditing and assurance profession through issuing statutory audit licence and registering and categorizing its members. In pursuit of developing a mission, core values and setting strategic goals and objectives, a steering committee was formed and the first meeting for the purpose was held on the 3rd of October 2020.

On 10th October 2020, the first stakeholder consultation workshop was held, with representation from accountancy and audit firms operating in the Country. A draft SWOT analysis was tabled for the workshop. The SWOT analysis was further refined, and ideas were generated for vision, mission, core values, strategic goals and objectives for the Institute during the workshop. Based on those ideas from the workshop, a draft strategic plan was developed and circulated to the members for further comments. What you have in your hand is the culmination of ideas from all the stakeholders of the Institute.

The strategic Plan 2021-2023 are based on three Strategic Goals and 12 objectives and several action steps to achieve those objectives.

Strategic Plan 2021 - 2023

Goal 1

Promoting Good Governance, establishing Frameworks and Operational Structures to en-sure agility, Adaptability and Relevance in a Fast-changing World

  • Objective 1.1: Establish a robust oversight structure in line with international best practices for corporate governance
    1. Develop charters for the Council and Committees with clearly defined roles and responsibilities
    2. Disseminate the progress and developments taking place at CA Maldives on a timely basis
    3. Engage and seek advice on an on-going basis from the stakeholder community
    4. Produce a Statement of Compliance Annually
  • Objective 1.2: Establish sound operational structures for efficient and effective delivery of services for members and the stakeholders
    1. Compile the organisational structure with clear mandates
    2. implementation of strong IT infrastructure for agility and adaptability
    3. Attract and retain a dynamic team comprise of strategic thinking and operational competencies
    4. Promote CA Maldives brand and provide value for money to members and other stakeholders
    5. Prepare and Publish Annual Budget and Financial Statements Annually
  • Objective 1.3: Become part of the global accountancy profession by adopting international best practices
    1. Align governance, procedures and process to become a member of International Federation of Accountants (IFAC)
    2. Promote international accounting and auditing standards in the Maldives, issue guidance and advice on financial reporting, disclosure and auditing issues in relation to respective international standards
    3. Actively engage in national and international level advocacy for sustainable practices

Goal 2

Promoting Excellence, Enterprise and Future Readiness among Members within a Strong Foundation of Highest Standards of Ethics and Professional Conduct

  • Objective 2.1: Create opportunities and pathways for aspiring accountants to develop their skills and employment options

    1. Conduct a rapid assessment of opportunities and challenges faced by those wishing to join the profession; for employment, accountants in business, audits and advisory
    2. Actively work with the government agencies and industry to find placements for talented and aspiring young professionals wishing to join the industry
    3. Work with government agencies to facilitate financial support for businesses in the field of accounting and finance
    4. Conduct programs for aspiring entrepreneurs of accounting profession
    5. Provide assessment of overseas qualification for employment visa for accountants
  • Objective 2.2: Contribute to the national competency framework in formulating competency standards for the accountancy industry

    1. Review the current accountancy training programs available locally and conduct gap analysis with respect to IAESB’s guidance
    2. Conduct review of accounting education delivery and assessment at local educational institutions and training providers
    3. Develop an accountancy skill development cluster in association with training providers, government and industry
  • Objective 2.3: Develop learning materials and CPD programmes for accountancy profession

    1. Industry relevant learning content made available to meet CPD requirements of members
    2. Ensure provision of mandatory training on tax and local laws for those in accounting profession
    3. Ensure provision of mandatory training on digital transformation for those working in the profession
    4. Ensure provision of mandatory sustainability accounting practices for those working in the profession
    5. Develop and conduct Public Practice Training Program required for Audit Licence
  • Objective 2.4: Engage with global accounting educators and examiners to ensure international recognition of CA Maldives certification programs

    1. Work with Professional and Technician level accounting examination providers, including ACCA, CIMA, CPA, AAT and other similar regional and international bodies to ensure mutual recognition of qualifications and membership
    2. Conduct educational programmes to create awareness on sustainable accounting standards and ESG reporting
    3. Launch National Award for Sustainable Accounting and Reporting
  • Objective 2.5: Ensure CA Maldives members follow Code of Conduct the Institute and the incidental of breach of Code of Conduct are addressed in a timely manner
  1. Set Code of Conduct for CA Maldives Licenced Auditors and Accountants in Business
  2. Create awareness on Code of Conduct for CA Maldives members
  3. Work with employees to actively promote Code of Conduct
  4. Establish a mechanism for reporting breaches of Code of Conduct
  5. Establish standards for review and taking action
  6. Establish strong appeal process to ensure justice, fairness and impartiality

Goal 3

Contribute to National Development, engage in Advocacy for Good Governance and Promote Sustainable Business Practices

  • Objective 3.1: Reach out to to policy makers and parliamentarians and engage in the policy formulation

    1. Conduct policy reviews and provide recommendations for government agencies and other national agencies
    2. Conduct reviews on national budget and participate in creating awareness among the pubic on fiscal matters
    3. Contribute to the legislative agenda and provide commentary to improve the applicability of the laws
  • Objective 3.2: Engage with the academia and the civil society to collaborate and promote research-based policy formulation

    1. Collaborate with research centres to formulate a research agenda and develop a research cluster
    2. Register and publish CA Maldives journal
    3. Seek opportunities for CA Maldives members to participate in international conferences
    4. Secure financing for research both locally and internationally
  • Objective 3.3: Promote sustainable business practices and good governance

    1. Take the regional leadership in promoting sustainable practices through education and training programmes
    2. Conduct national level events with international participation on sustainability themes (Linked to SDGs)
    3. Enter into collaborative research arrangement with overseas research organization engage in environmental accounting and renewable energy
    4. Work with businesses and community to identify challenges to access to finance and conduct literacy programmes
    5. Formulate a framework for determining Public Interest Entities (PIEs) and define accounting, disclosure and auditing standards for such entities
    6. Rate the quality of Licenced Audit Firms in accordance with the quality management framework
  • Objective 3.4: Set standards and ensure quality in auditing, financial reporting and disclosures as well as valuation standards to promote trust in orderly markets and promote fair competition

    1. Contribute to setting public sector accounting standards to promote trust in public financial reporting.
    2. Carry out quality reviews of firms and audit engagements
    3. Involve in the standard setting process by commenting EDs both from IASB/SASB
    4. Prescribe applicable IFRS/AAOIFI/ISA/IES