Colombo will host 50th Assembly Meeting of the South Asian Federation of Accountants (SAFA), one of only two apex bodies of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), next month.

The SAFA Assembly, comprising heads of the eight member associations of the Federation, is the top policymaking body for accountancy-related matters in the region. Sri Lanka also hosted the inaugural meeting of the SAFA Assembly in 1984.

"Being selected to host the Golden Jubilee meeting of the SAFA Assembly is an honour for Sri Lanka," said Indrajith Fernando, Vice President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (ICASL) and Chairman of the Organising Committee for the event. "This underlines our close involvement in the evolution and elevation of accounting standards and practices in the region."

Coinciding with this event, the ICASL has organised a high-powered regional conference at which five member nations of SAARC will review their progress towards compliance with International Accounting Standards (IAS), and a separate international workshop by Dr. Paul Pacter, one of the world’s foremost authorities on IAS.

The two events, scheduled for July 4 and 5, will be attended by local accounting professionals as well as many overseas participants from SAFA member countries, the ICASL announced. They are also open to non-members of the ICASL, and many senior corporate sector executives are also expected to attend, the Institute said.

"The international workshop and regional seminar are important milestones in the development of the accountancy profession in the region," Fernando said. "The seminar will provide accountancy professionals in the region with a unique opportunity to address common challenges in introducing and implementing Accounting Standards with their peers, and ultimately develop a shared vision of how the profession can move forward in serving the needs of the public.