BY IKOME CHRISTIE-NOELLAEPOSI IN BUEA
Over 100 public accountants in the South-West Financial Jurisdiction have been trained and enlightened on the accounting framework of financial accounting, annual financial statements, and the need for certification of accounts amongst others. This was during a training caravan on accounting reform which held at the National Dialogue Hall of the National School of Local Administration (NASLA) from Wednesday, February 23, 2022 to Thursday, February 24, 2022.
The two day National caravan which was presided over by the representative of the director of Treasury from the ministry of Finance was aimed at sensitising all the actors/stakeholders in the accounting process of the state to get abreast with the changes that are to be implemented.
According to the Representative of the director of Treasury, Martin Ojongfong some of the changes to be implemented include; an accounting based on accrual principle and no longer the account based on the budgetary principle when all the cash method is received and just posted. He explained that henceforth, stakeholders have to do accruals by attaching every operation to the financial year that the operation is related.
“There are also accounting documents that have to be presented to the stakeholders so that they see and come to know the documents and how to exploit and present.” The new principle he said is for sincerity, faithful image, transparency and prudence in the accounting operations.
Adding his voice to that of the representative of the director of Treasury was the Treasurer-paymaster General for the South-West region, Angoula Mbassi Ananias who mentioned that the reforms on the recent account is ongoing for some years now but this year marks the start of the effective implementation on the field “This training has come to give me and my collaborators the necessary tools we will need to go on with the implementation. We have to take into consideration the assets and liabilities of the state accounts. What was not accounted for in the previous years has to be accounted for as per the implementation of these new reforms”.
The stakeholders present were also trained on how to carryout inventories, valorisation and opening balance sheet operations, recording tangible and intangible assets, recording of charges and proceeds and cash operations and single treasury accounts. The two day training caravan was very interactive as participants had the opportunity to ask questions and share ideas on how to better manage and implement the new reforms.