Region’s first accounting training excellence centre launched in Malaysia

PETALING JAYA, 14 March 2013 – The region’s first accounting training excellence centre was officially launched today at Sunway Resort Hotel and Spa, and is a collaboration between ICAEW, TalentCorp Malaysia and Sunway-TES, as well as training employers, BDO Malaysia, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG, PwC and the Sunway Group. The parties formalised this partnership with a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the aim of promoting excellence in accounting training in Malaysia and the region.

This is the first such public-private partnership in the region and supports the government’s aim of establishing Malaysia as an education hub for ASEAN in addition to providing the needed skilled talent to effect Malaysia’s Economic Transformation. One of the first initiatives that will be carried out is a pilot programme where promising students from the region will have the chance to study for ICAEW’s internationally-recognised ACA qualification in Malaysia. They will undergo the required training with BDO Malaysia, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG, PwC or the Sunway Group, with TalentCorp facilitating necessary approvals. Other accounting firms, banks and businesses are also expected to participate as the programme matures.

The initial cohort of students will come from Sunway University, Taylor’s University and Nottingham University.

Michael Izza, ICAEW Chief Executive said, “ICAEW is committed to developing and enhancing the accountancy profession across the world. This is the first time that the profession, government, and academic institutions have come together to give Malaysian and non-Malaysian students alike the opportunity to study for the ICAEW Chartered Accountant qualification. Many of the signatories here today were trained as ACAs in the UK and are now leading business leaders. We look forward to establishing an education hub here in Malaysia, where students from the region can train to the same high standards as their predecessors did in the UK, and become well-respected business leaders.”

The agreement was signed by Michael Izza, Chief Executive of ICAEW; Lee Weng Keng, Director of Sunway-TES; Encik Johan Mahmood Merican, CEO of TalentCorp Malaysia; Dato Gan Ah Tee, Managing Partner of BDO Malaysia; Encik Mohd Nizar bin Mohd Najib, Executive Director, Deloitte; Lee Soo Fern, Partner, Malaysia People Leader, Asia Pacific, of Ernst & Young; Adrian Lee Lye Wang, Partner of KPMG; Encik Mohammad Faiz Azmi, Executive Chairman, PwC; and Chong Chang Choong, Chief Financial Officer of the Sunway Group. The signing was witnessed by Tan Sri (Dr) Jeffrey Cheah, Founder and Chairman of The Sunway Group.

“In line with our strategic vision set out in Talent Roadmap 2020, creating a regional centre of accountancy training excellence here in Malaysia will be a critical step in ensuring we can build a world-class workforce. In order to achieve our aims, we will need to maximize on all of the talent available in the ASEAN region. Partnering with both a prestigious academic institution and a world-leading professional body will ensure that we are able to tap upon an elite group of individuals who wants to work in Malaysia, and that they will have the qualifications needed to contribute to our economic transformation,” said Johan.

According to Lee Weng Keng, Malaysia is a great place to become a regional centre of excellence for education, which in turn will be the best possible support as we strive to become a high-income nation by 2020.

“As a leading institution and education provider in professional accountancy, we are pleased to be part of this strategic partnership with both TalentCorp and ICAEW to help raise the bar of accounting quality in Malaysia. This initiative will ensure that the next generation of business leaders is trained right here in Malaysia and showing that Malaysia can offer the very best in accountancy training.”

Mark added, “This is a fantastic opportunity for prospective students to get engaged with the best accountancy qualification in the world and the fact that Malaysia is welcoming and opening its arms to fellow ASEAN nationals to come here and take hold of that opportunity, it is something that they should not miss.”

A student from Indonesia, Anthon said ICAEW will help explore his fullest potential. He would also like to thank BDO, the Malaysian government and TalentCorp for giving him this opportunity. He added that the reason he chose Malaysia was because of the good training platform Malaysia provides and that Sunway-TES teachers are dedicated in being the best for their students.

The ACA, which is the qualification held by ICAEW Chartered Accountants, is internationally recognised as extremely rigorous. It involves both theoretical examinations and a period of practical work experience that must be undertaken with an Authorised Training Employer (ATE). The partnership of TalentCorp, ICAEW, Sunway-TES, The Sunway Group and five professional accounting firms will enable students from all over the region to qualify as Chartered Accountants, offering career opportunities and increasing the skills and talent pool in the country.