The BEE Charter for the accounting profession, which is due to be gazetted and implemented this month, focuses on skills development to improve the pipeline of Black Chartered Accountants in South Africa. Figures recently released by The South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) show that the number of Black Chartered Accountants has risen 237% since 2002, however there are only 5302 Black CAs compared to their 25863 White counterparts.
In line with this drive, this year’s Association for the Advancement of Black Accountants in South Africa (ABASA) awards saw Deloitte being recognised for the fifth consecutive year for achieving the highest number of successful Black candidates in the 2010 qualifying accounting examination in Gauteng. ABASA was established in 1985 to promote the interests of Black men and women engaged in the accounting profession.
“There is no question that our profession has a long way to go in advancing Black Chartered Accountants, however this recognition from ABASA shows that we are on the right track. Deloitte has contributed 23% of all newly qualified African Black CAs into the South African market over the last 10 years. It is gratifying to see our transformation policies bearing fruit, and we remain committed to increasing the number of talented black CAs in the South African economy,” says Grant Gelink, Chief Executive of Deloitte.