Gabriella Kusz Sr. Financial Management Specialist MENA FM World Bank

 Address both professional and ethical misconduct › Goal: To identify, address and sanction violations. › Responsible Entity: Can be Professional Accountancy Organization (PAO), regulator, government and/or a combination of the aforementioned.

 Promote and protect the integrity of the profession;  Alert Professional Accountancy Organizations (PAOs), government and regulators to areas of weakness;  Provide inputs into education, training and awareness activities; and  Provide force to ethical codes, professional standards, quality assurance findings, etc.  But most importantly….

Rules and Regulations Empower authorized personnel to investigate Compel compliance of accountants and firms Provide sanctions if non-compliance Legal and Regulatory Framework

MISCONDUCT Gross professional negligence Breaches of professional and ethical standards Criminal Activity Unsatisfactory work Accumulation of a # of less serious violations Acts bringing the profession into disrepute

Appeals Sanctions Exclusion from Profession Discipline (Tribunal) Balance of JudgmentIndependence of Decision Investigation (Committee) Independence of Team Initiation of the Case ComplaintInformation

 Confidentiality  Timeliness  Monitoring progress of cases through system  Communications  Independent review of complaints  Annual report of findings

 Weak legislation  Ad-hoc systems  Lack of independence  Weak penalties  Lack of coordination / communication  Focus is on auditors – but forgets accountants!

 Strong legal and regulatory foundation  Independence  Balancing accountants and non- accountants  Linking to other core functions  Enhancing and formalizing communication  Strengthening / Broadening sanctions  Cooperative efforts to strengthen I&D

 Questions / Comments?