Aberdeen Press and Journal
January 24, 2005

Icas helps armenia rebuild its economy

by Keith Findlay

Scotland’s prized reputation for financial prudence is helping the
former Soviet state of Armenia rebuild its economy. The Caucasus
republic aims to have its fledgling accountancy profession
rubber-stamped by international governing bodies in the next two
years and has enlisted the help of the world’s oldest accountancy
body – the Institute of Chartered Accountants Scotland.

Hundreds of young Armenian students are now being put through
professional exams as part of an international effort to encourage
investment in the country and secure its membership of the respected
International Federation of Accountants.

Armenia’s best-known exports are its fine brandy and cut diamonds,
but the economy has depended heavily on foreign aid since
independence in 1991.

It has been forced to rebuild its formerly Soviet-funded power
industry.

Neil Wallace, ICAS head of international services, has been leading
the project from Armenia’s capital Yerevan and is now seeing
Japanese, Korean, German and French investors looking for business
opportunities.

“It sounds a bit pie in the sky to say you can help people become
rich, but it does happen,” he said.

“If you can put in an accounting and auditing system in these
countries, it does help attract investment and you can see the
progress.” He added: “Whenever a country’s coming out of a period of
crisis, accountants are among the first people called in by the
international agencies because no one is going to invest in an
organisation unless they have an idea of its financial position or
projections.

“Joining IFAC will give credibility to members of Armenia’s local and
international institutes because they’ll be regarded as working to
the highest international standards.” ICAS, which celebrated its
150th anniversary last year, is collaborating with Armenia’s ministry
of finance to set up an independent body along the lines of the UK’s
Financial Reporting Council.

It is also helping the Armenian Association of Accountants and
Auditors to develop ethical standards, disciplinary procedures and
training resources.

“We’re the oldest professional accountancy body in the world and
probably the most respected,” Mr Wallace said. “Scotland has
generally got a solid reputation for producing good, honest
accountants and people tend to trust what we say.” ICAS is working on
similar projects in Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Poland and is
tendering for contracts in other countries around the world.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress