ABUBAKER TYABA
The Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Uganda - ICPAU has expressed concern over rising number of students failing accountancy examinations.
Results for the June sitting released Thursday morning in Kampala show that more students are failing core accountancy subjects under the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) course.
Only 14.4% candidates who sat the CPA examinations passed the Financial Reporting subject. This was a reduction from the 19.7% candidates who passed the same subject in the November 2017 sitting.
Similarly, only 14.4% of candidates passed the Financial Management subject, a drop from 23.2% who sat in November 2017.
The Public Sector Accounting and Reporting subject continues to dog students with only 15.7% of candidates passing. 17.5% candidates passed in November 2017.
Other key but failed subjects are Advanced Financial Management with a 9.8% pass rate and Auditing & Other Assurance Services subject in which only 17.4% of candidates passed.
Releasing the results, incoming ICPAU president, Frederick Kibedi noted emphasis is to be put on rectifying the falling grades.
"There are many causes for the poor performance. This includes if the candidates are ready for the exams, do they get nervous when presented papers, and many others", Kibedi said.
"This is something we are not glossing over. We are trying to solve it as a professional body", he added.
Dr Edna Rugumayo Isimbwa, a ICPAU Council member said 127 candidates completed the CPA course in June out of 5,643 candidates that attempted the examinations.
Cumulatively, 3,246 students have completed the CPA course since inception of the Public Accountants Examinations Board (PAEB).
The Board also released results for the Accounting Technicians Diploma (ATD) and the Certified Tax Advisor (CTA) courses whose performance mirrored that of the CPA course.
New council elected
ICPAU also elected a new council to serve for the next two years, with Frederick Kibedi replacing URA's Protazio Begumisa as president.
He will be deputised by CPA Ruth Doreen Mutebe, who becomes the first woman to hold the position since the Institute's founding in 1992.
