ICAN to deepen transparency in private sector

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) has disclosed plans to extend its advocacy for transparency in public finance management to the private sector through the inauguration of a corporate reporting award in partnership with NGX Limited.

Its President, Dr Innocent Okwuosa, disclosed this to journalists in Lagos after he led a delegation of council and the registrar on a visit to NGX Regulation Limited.

The visit is to finalise arrangements for the ICAN-NGX Corporate Reporting Award earlier advanced by both organisations. Okwuosa said the institute is poised to attain accountability and transparency in the management of public finance through the ICAN Accountability Index (AI).

Okwuosa congratulated Sobanjo on his recent appointment as the CEO of NGX Regulation Ltd and highlighted areas that need to be looked into in finalising the arrangements for the Corporate Reporting award scheduled for May 17.

Both parties agreed that the Corporate Reporting Award will be opened to the top 30 most capitalised listed companies at NGX in this maiden edition and will be expanded subsequently while the award will be given to the top three companies among the NGX 30 companies using a framework developed to assess the yearly reports of the listed companies among others.

He said a panel of independent experts, including academics, investors, industry representatives, Capital Market professionals and members of ICAN with input from the Nigerian Integrated Reporting Committee will administer the assessment.

The assessment, based on carefully selected criteria agreed upon by ICAN, NGX RegCo and the independent assessors, will evaluate NGX-listed companies’ annual corporate reports, emphasising compliance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and sustainability reporting standards.

He said: “The ICAN-NGX RegCo Corporate Reporting Award is a pivotal step toward recognising and promoting excellence in corporate reporting practices in Nigeria. By aligning with international best practices, this initiative aims to enhance accountability and transparency in the private sector, fostering trust among investors and stakeholders.”

Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NGX Limited, Femi Sobanjo, lauded the initiative describing it as a means to elevate standard and performance in the private sector.

He also provided valuable insights into NGX’s services and outlined the areas of mutual interests shared by both ICAN and NGX Ltd, adding that the Corporate Reporting Award underscores the NGX collective commitment to fostering a capital market that operates on principles of transparency, integrity, and excellence.