IASCA Representative in Palestine Visits the International Federation of Accountants Headquarters in New York

NEW YORK --- July 13, 2015 --- Mr. Jamal Melhem, a Board member and representative of the International Arab Society of Certified Accountants (IASCA) in Palestine, visited the New York-based International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), and discussed with officials the professional status in Palestine as well as the role of IASCA in the development of accounting profession in Palestine and the Arab region.

The meeting also tackled IASCA's activities headed by its Chairman HE Dr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh regarding the application of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) and the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSASs) through direct communication with decision makers in the Arab region. The meeting also addressed the regional and international activities carried out by IASCA in order to introduce these standards and the significance of applying them.

In addition, the meeting tackled the role of IASCA in translating and publishing the professional publications issued by IFAC into Arabic, preparing the training materials and the importance of these publications as well as providing them to the interested parties. Such publications aim to assist non-English speaking professionals to easily understand the content of these materials, disseminate them to promote the profession of auditing and accounting, facilitate their application and use, maintain professional independence of accountants and auditors and ensure their protection.

The meeting also addressed the efforts made by IASCA including training courses and awareness workshops on accounting and its role in the development of countries’ economies in cooperation with Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization (TAG-Org)  in Palestine and the Arab region. The continuous cooperation in translating IFRS training materials and the possibility to conduct mutual events or conferences in the Arab region to realize the mutual goals of IASCA and IFAC were also discussed.

Mr. Melhem discussed the action plan of the Palestinian Association of Certified Public Accountants (PACPA), which demonstrates PACPA’s compliance with the Statements of Membership Obligations (SMO’s) after it became an “Associate Member” of IFAC in November 2013 at the General Assembly’s meeting of IFAC held in Seoul, South Korea, aiming at obtaining the full membership of IFAC.

IFAC is a global organization dedicated to serving and developing auditing and accounting profession worldwide. IFAC is comprised of over 177 members and associates in 130 countries worldwide.

IASCA was established on January 12, 1984 as a non-profit professional accounting association in London, UK. It was formally registered in Amman on February 24, 1994. IASCA is dedicated to the promotion of accounting, auditing and other globally related topics, as well as maintenance of professional independence of accountants, assurance of their protection and application of professional supervision as a means of promotion of accounting and auditing professions. IASCA, chaired by HE Dr. Abu-Ghazaleh who is the first Arab member of the IFAC Board of Directors in the 90s of the past century, is actively supporting the Palestinian Auditors Association in all possible means in order to improve its performance and become a full member of IFAC.