The 22nd Annual
Caribbean Conference of Accountants was hosted
by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of St.
Lucia (ICASL) under the theme "Adapting
to the Changing Faces of the Accounting
Profession Expectations".
The 2004
Conference was a resounding success and the ICAC
believes the following features are worthy of
special mention:
- The attendance
of both Her Excellency, the Governor General
of St Lucia, Dame Pearlette Louisy, and the
Prime Minister of St Lucia, the Hon. Dr
Kenny Anthony, at the opening Ceremony, and
Her Excellency also at the Presidential
Dinner.
- Relevant and
stimulating topics presented by
knowledgeable and high profile individuals.
- The eloquence
and wittiness of the Master of Ceremony, Mr.
Richard Peterkin.
- The selection
of an exquisite venue - The Sandals Grande
Beach Resort & Spa, Pigeon Island, St.
Lucia.
- The impressive
cultural entertainment package at the
President's Dinner.
The Welcome
Remarks were conveyed by Mr. Elson Jordan, the
President of the Institute of Chartered
Accountants of the Caribbean and Mr. Frank
Myers, the President of the Institute of
Chartered Accountants of St. Lucia.
The Opening
Address was delivered by Hon. Dr. Kenny Anthony
Prime Minister, who is also St Lucia's Minister
of Finance, International Financial Services,
Economic Affairs & Information. Sir K.
Dwight Venner, Governor of the Eastern Caribbean
Central Bank, delivered the feature address. The
representative of the Association of Chartered
Certified Accountants (ACCA) to ICAC's Board,
Mr. Michael Sleigh delivered an address on
behalf of Allen Blewitt, the Chief Executive of
ACCA. The Conference was fully subscribed
recording 320 delegates well in excess of the
250 budgeted participants. Delegates were
accommodated at the following hotels:
- Bay Gardens
Hotel
- Bay Gardens
Inn
- Rex St. Lucian
Hotel
- Royal St.
Lucian Hotel
- Caribbean
Jewel Resort
The actual
Conference site was located at the Sandals Grand
Beach Resort and Spa and delegates were shuttled
to and fro. The President's Dinner was also held
in the hall of the Sandals Beach Resort.
Entertainment comprised:
- A Folk Party -
a melee of local culture
- A modeling
show which showcased the designs of Chazi
Chalon, a local designer
- Paul Keens-
Douglas, a well known Caribbean personality
and
- Barbara Cadet,
a saxophonist.
The first session
of the Conference was on the topic, "The
Accountant as General Manager -The changing role
of the Financial Controller" and was
presented by Mr. Nicholas Gomez, Ernst &
Young Caribbean, Trinidad.
This was followed
by sessions on:
- "An
Overview of the Recent Improvements to the
International Accounting Standards"
presented by Mr. Anthony De Bell,
PricewaterhouseCoopers, United States.
- "Ethics
and Integrity in the Accounting Profession
in the Caribbean" presented by Dr.
James Gaa, University of Alberta, Canada.
The mid afternoon
sessions covered:
- "Human
Capital Management" presented by
Mr. L. Anthony Watkins, Odyssey Consulting,
Trinidad & Tobago.
- "A
Framework for Self Regulation of the
Accounting Profession in the Caribbean"
presented by Mr. Sha Ali Khan, Head of
Monitoring and Supervision at the ACCA.
The final session
of the day was:
- "IASB
Insurance Project" presented by Mr.
Alex Ashwal, Deloitte & Touche LLP,
United States.
Saturday June
19th commenced with sessions on:
- "Caribbean
Single Market and Economy"
presented by Mr. Timothy Odle - Deputy
Programme Manager; Services, CARICOM
Secretariat, Guyana.
- "A
Strategy for Fraud Prevention and
Detection" presented by Mr. Derek
Rostant - KPMG LLP, Canada.
The closing
session was on:
- "Corporate
Governance - Functions of the Board and the
Role of Audit Committees" presented
by the following individuals;
- Dr. Emily Dick-Forde, University of the
West Indies, Barbados
- Dr. Michelle Causton, Canadore College,
Canada.
In general, it
can be concluded that the 2004 Conference was
delivered at a very high standard. The
presentations were relevant, stimulating and
matched the "best in class".
[Watch
the video]
|
About
Us
