The Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) and the London-based Association of the Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) – have signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Tuesday morning, 24 October 2017 at AAOIFI Headquarters in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

This MoU uniquely draws on the expertise and standing of the leading international standard setter for the Islamic finance industry (AAOIFI) and a those of a prestigious international organization that is an over 100 year- old issuer of one of the most important accounting fellowships around the world; the MoU includes a group of technical and professional activities, and reflects the intention of both parties in enhancing mutual interests in the sustainable development of the accountancy profession locally and internationally; enhancing professionalism; improving ethical standards in the accounting profession; and expanding opportunities for in getting  various internationally recognized fellowships for the enhancement of their career prospects; and ultimately to further the profession and the wider economy.

On the occasion Ms. Lindsay Degouve De Nuncques – Head of Middle East, ACCA – commented after the signing of the MoU, “ACCA greatly values the role AAOIFI has played in developing and progressing the standards for the global Islamic finance industry and acknowledges its contribution towards professional development in the area of Islamic accountancy. This MoU expresses our intention to cooperate and collaborate with AAOIFI within the scope of our respective mandates and areas of competences for mutual benefit of both AAOIFI and ACCA stakeholders.”

Dr. Hamed Merah –  Secretary General, AAOIFI – considered the MoU signing a significant step and stated: “we are pleased with this professional and distinctive partnership as it comes at a time of a great expansion in the global Islamic finance industry, as well as the increasing recognition and interest  from central banks and regulators of the Islamic finance industry and the move towards proper regulation thereof and the establishment of better governance frameworks on international level; this creates increasing demand for prestigious fellowships in the Islamic finance industry and thus the cooperation between AAOIFI and ACCA in this area will have a positive impact internationally”.

The MoU aims at enhancing the cooperation and integration between the specialized professional accounting fellowship issued by AAOIFI (Certified Islamic Professional Accountant) ‘CIPA’ and the international professional fellowship (ACCA), and this cooperation is illustrated in providing special exemptions for ACCA holders in some parts of CIPA.

Mr. Farhan Noor – Head of Professional Development, AAOIFI- added, “AAOIFI recently revamped its CIPA qualification after benchmarking it against multiple international qualifications one of which was the ACCA qualification. The new CIPA now requires the candidates to pass four module exams and fulfill a one-year practical experience requirement (PER) in an approved institution under the mentorship of an external supervisor. By virtue of this MoU, ACCA qualified accountants can now get exemptions from half of the CIPA program which fast tracks their journey to acquire the prestigious CIPA Fellowship which is highly recognized by the Islamic finance industry.”

It is worth to note that the MoU included cooperation in different areas such as research, events and continuous development.