The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka) will host an international technical workshop of the South Asian Federation of Accountants (SAFA) in October this year, which will feature top international experts who will educate accountants in South Asia on the Non Compliance with Laws and Regulations (NOCLAR) and the IFRS15 standards. 

The international workshop, supported by the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA), will be held on October 31, at the Cinnamon Lakeside, Colombo and will bring together Dr. Stavros B. Thomadakis, Chairman of the IESBA, Ken Siong, technical director of IESBA and Mr. Prabhakar Kalavacherla, global IFRS leader of KPMG to share their expertise on NOCLAR, which came into effect globally in July this year, and the IFRS 15 standard which will be effective for IFRS reporting entities for an annual reporting period beginning on or after 1 January 2018. 

Both, NOCLAR and IFRS 15 are seen as important standards to help strengthen the accounting profession, as well as enhance the financial reportingquality. NOCLAR is an international ethics standard for auditors and other professional accountants (PAs) including chartered accountants. It sets out a first-of-its-kind framework to guide PAs in what actions to take in the public interest when they become aware of a potential illegal act, known as non-compliance with laws and regulations, or NOCLAR, committed by a client or employer.

With revenue recognition being the most important and controversial topic in financial reporting, the new IFRS15 standard aims to remove weaknesses in current guidance and provide a comprehensive framework to improve comparability between companies. It presents a significant departure from the current standard. 

During the workshop, the speakers will provide an overview on the key differences from the current practice, implementation issues and concerns, how to take advantage of implementation exemptions, disclosure requirements and the transitional guidance and optional exemptions of the new standard. 
The one day programmewhich will comprise of several technical presentations on the two standards by the international speakers, will bring together professional accountants to Colombo from across South Asia, including SAFA countries.

Apart from his role at IESBA, Dr. Thomadakis, is an Emeritus Professorof financial economics at the University of Athens, and for many years, he directed the University’s graduatefinance program on applied accounting and auditing,in cooperation with the Hellenic Institute of CharteredAccountants (IESOEL).He was Chairman of the Hellenic Capital Market
Commission during the formative stages of the organization (1996-2004) and also chaired the IOSCO EuropeanRegional Committee during his tenure, and was thefirst Chairman of the Public Interest Oversight Board(PIOB, 2005-2011), which oversees the activities of theIESBA and other standard setters.

In his role as technical director, Siong manages and oversees the IESBA’s work, including its strategicand operational activities and its work program. Until 2012, Siong served on the technical staff of the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), and most recently as deputy director. Prior to joining the IAASB staff in 2002, Siong was a senior manager in the assurance practice of PwC Hong Kong. He is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, and a member of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Apart from his current role at KPMG, Kalavacherlawas also the first Indian to be appointedas a member of the International AccountingStandards Board (IASB) in London, where he wasactively involved in the development of financial reporting standards.

During his tenure with IASB, PK was also the leadboard adviser to the staff on the revenue recognitionproject, a joint project with the US FinancialAccounting Standards Board and the liaison withthe International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board. He also served as the chair forthe IASB’s Global Preparers Forum.Prior to joining IASB, PK was with KPMG’s USA auditpractice for 15 years from 1993, and served as anAudit Partner in the last 7 of those years, and leftKPMG USA in 2008, and joined the company onceagain after his tenure with IASB. 

Professional accountants including members of CA Sri Lanka who wish to attend the workshop can contact Samanthi Perera on 
11 2352000 Ext. 1462