INSTITUTIONAL

PROFILE

In 1970, the Institute was established to provide in-service training in public sector administration and financial management for the staff of the civil and public services (especially the staff of the Controller and Accountant General’s Department and Auditor General’s Department. At the time of its establishment, it was the sole provide of public sector financial management training in the country.

 Thus the Institute was established under the auspices of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MoFEP) in 1970 to train government employees to acquire knowledge and skills in accounting and financial management who would be in position to provide accounting and financial management services to various government establishments, particularly the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department and the Auditor General’s Department.

 In 1975 the Institute started to run a single diploma programme in accounting, the Diploma in Public Service Accounting, concurrently with refresher and customized courses. The Institute was aptly named the Institute of Accountancy Training. The diploma programme became so popular that the Institute started attracting students from the private sector.

 With the realization that public sector financial harmonized into the private sector to lubricate the wheel of economic development, after about 20 years of its existence, the diploma programme was completely reviewed with qualitative and quantitative changes in the programme content in 1999. This major review was carried out in the accounting programme to take account of the current trends in accountancy profession and an additional diploma programme in public administration was introduced.

The Institute also entered into a cooperation arrangement with the British Professional accountancy body, Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) whereby the graduates of the Institute were given in-country tuition and registered to write for the professional examination of CIPFA. This was after the Institute had reviewed its accountancy programme to take account of the syllabus of CIPFA.

The Institute also offers tuition to registered students of the British Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA). This followed from the co-operation the Institute entered into in 1996 with the British Institute, which is a professional accountancy body with public sector as its specialization, in order to validate and accredit the Institute as the sole educational body in the country to deliver training for the CIPFA professional qualification. The accreditation was granted in 2002 and so far 29 students have completed the second level of the 54 level programmes, while 25 students have to subjects to complete the second level. The co-operation was also to enable the students of the Institute to get into positions where they could offer change in the old system of accounting, financial management, budgeting and administration.

 The time is now ripe for the Institute to make another giant

leap forward to meet the challenges of the future.

 The Institute has secured an affiliation with the University of Ghana in order f or the University to award the Institute’s Diploma in Public Administration qualification. The process is on going for the Institute to affiliate with the University of Ghana in order for the University to award the Institute’s Diploma in Public Finance and Accountancy as well. Initially the Institute’s diplomas were awarded by the Technical wing of the Ministry of Education. It is the great expectation that the affiliation with the University of Ghana will enhance the quality of teaching, the certificates of the Institute and the competency of the Institute’s students. However this also means major challenges for the Institute which can only be overcome with the support of the MoFEP.

 Recognizing the importance that relevant professional training is crucial to the development of public sector, the Institute offers customized services, symposia, seminars and short courses for public, private and civil service organizations.

PitchBlaq | +233 (0) 247 976551