The Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRCN) has said the convergence to the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) by Nigeria will promote corporate governance in the country.

This, according to the Council, will also enhance foreign direct investments and national economic growth.
Chairman, Governing Board of the FRCN, Mrs. Maryam Ladi Ibrahim stated this at a welcome address presented at the train-the-trainer workshop on the IFRS for SMEs held in Lagos recently. She said the programme was part of the mandate of the federal government’s agency as enshrined in Section 8 (1)(i) of the FRCN Act No. 6, 2011, which states that the “Council shall monitor and promote education, research and training in the fields of accounting, auditing, financial reporting and corporate governance in Nigeria.”

According to Ibrahim, the overriding goal of the Council is the protection of investors and other stakeholders’ interest.
“My Board strives to ensure that investors get reliable and accurate financial information that will enable them make informed judgment and investment decisions through the development, publication and enforcement of financial reporting standards and corporate governance code that are used by preparers and users of financial statements. I wish to remind you all that since the return to democratic governance in 1999, our country has witnessed significant economic reforms which entailed deregulation and liberalization of the economy, divestment of government interests from various public sector enterprises and consolidation of banks and insurance companies,” she said. </p>

All these, according to her, had impacted greatly on investment and business activities in the country. “The recent global economic meltdown, with its attendant devastating effects on the capital market and capital accumulation processes around the world, have equally necessitated that concerted efforts be made by relevant national stakeholders in order to continually sustain the confidence of investors in their economy,” she said.

She said at the financial reporting standards setting level, the global solution was premised on internationalization and harmonization of financial reporting standards and jurisdictional financial statements regulation “As the flagship of financial reporting standards in Nigeria, my board, in accordance with the decision of the federal government readily accepted to immediately introduce, in concert with other regulatory agencies and other stakeholders in the economic scene, measures that will ensure smooth transition to the new financial reporting regime in Nigeria while keeping the phases in mind,” she added.

She expressed optimism that the workshop would facilitate efforts to meeting the timelines and milestones contained in the national road map to the adoption of IFRS and promote the general compliance at the level of SMEs.