In an effort to crown the best and most brilliant annual reports produced in the country, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka) has called for applications for its 54th Annual Report Awards Competition.
The competition will this year revolve around the theme ‘Epitome of Brilliance’ with the best annual reports scheduled to be honoured at a gala event in December this year. The competition will reward organisations that produce the most cohesive, clear and customized annual reports that better reflects an entity’s operations, whilst going beyond their statutory boundaries of reporting, all while promoting transparency, accountability and good governance.
With a history spanning over half a century, the competition, which is recognised as one of the country’s most coveted corporate level competitions has carved an important niche as a platform that has significantly helped organisations from multinationals, to conglomerates, NGOs, NPOs and even SMEs to improve transparency and accountability in financial reporting, while also enhancing Sri Lanka’s reporting standards in line with best global practices.
Entries for the 54thAnnual Report Awards Competition will close on August 31, 2018. The Institute will accept reports for financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2017 and March 31, 2018.
Addressing a press conference held in Colombo, President of CA Sri Lanka, Jagath Perera said as the national body of accountants in the country, CA Sri Lanka has been at the forefront in ensuring that the Sri Lankan businesses adhere to global requirements. “In such a scenario, the Annual Report Awards Competition organised by CA Sri Lanka has built a reputation as an important competition that promotes companies to produce high quality annual reports that are cohesive, clear and go beyond the statutory boundaries of reporting,” he said.
Perera said that as Sri Lanka continued to inch towards upper middle income status, the professional community and corporates, have an important role to play in our country’s forward journey, by conscientiously promoting transparency, accountability and good governance which are important cornerstones for any developing economy.
“In this journey, producing precise and transparent annual reports in line with the highest global standards should also remain at the top of the agenda of any organisation immaterial of its standing or stature in the business world, as accurate financial reporting also has a long term bearing on both a company and country,” Perera added. Chairman of the Annual Report Awards Committee, Heshana Kuruppu explained that the importance of this competition has been highlighted by the consistent growth it has witnessed year after year. He also said that the Institute has taken every necessary effort in updating the marking scheme in terms of the latest accounting standards and other relevant pronouncements, to ensure the relevance of the competition.
Kuruppu said that a meticulously formulated annual report helps develop the capital market in the country, therefore ensuring the availability of information in a clear, complete and concise manner which is vital for all stakeholders including shareholders and potential investors which will allow them to make informed investment decisions.
“It is refreshing to see that organisations from blue chip companies to even small time non-profit organisations have continuously demonstrated their commitment towards best practices in annual corporate reporting.
I encourage corporates in Sri Lanka that produce annual reports to take part in this competition and convey to the world that they are a responsible business willing to promote the core areas that is transparency, accountability and good governance,” Kuruppu added.