Title: International accounting education and certification in the former Soviet Union

Authors: Robert W. McGee

Addresses: Andreas School of Business, Barry University, 11300 NE 2nd Avenue, Miami Shores, FL 33161, USA

Abstract: Transition economies encounter numerous problems as they go through the process of converting their centrally planned economic systems into market economies. One hurdle they face is how to attract foreign direct investment (FDI). One of the keys to attracting FDI is having financial statements that international investors can trust. The two most widely recognised sets of internationally recognised accounting standards are International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and US GAAP. However, merely adopting IFRS or US GAAP is not enough. International investors have to feel confident that the accountants who prepare the financial statements and the auditors who audit them are fully conversant in the international standards that they use. That is where education and certification enter the scene. This paper discusses the process being used in some countries of the former Soviet Union (FSU) to achieve the goals of creating a class of educated and competent accountants and auditors who will be able to make and audit financial statements that international investors can trust. The focus is on accounting certification.

Keywords: accounting certification; accounting education; former Soviet Union; Russia; Ukraine; Central Asia; certified accounting practitioners; certified international professional accountants; ACCA; International Federation of Accountants; IFAC; CIS; Commonwealth of Independent States; accounting standards; auditor education; accounting qualifications.

DOI: 10.1504/IJAAPE.2005.006890

International Journal of Accounting, Auditing and Performance Evaluation, 2005 Vol.2 No.1/2, pp.19 - 36

Published online: 20 Apr 2005 *

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