A new partnership between the North West University (NW), the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) and the Thuthuka Education Upliftment Fund (TEUF) of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) hopes to address the shortage of forensic accountants.

Forensic accountants at the forefront of the war against corruption

South Africa is battling a great amount of fraud and corruption, and if it hopes to win the war, it needs a new generation of forensic accountants.  TEUF wishes to empower previously disadvantaged persons who wants to enter the accounting profession, but do not have the financial means to do so.

An agreement between SIU, TEUF and SAICA was signed yesterday. The agreement aims to help combat the war on fraud and corruption through the establishment of an R10m bursary fund.

The fund will assist forensic accountant students. They will also be placed with the SIU to participate in vacation work programmes with the prospect of being employed by the SIU once they completed their forensic accountancy studies, as part of their training contract period.

The SIU desires to contribute to the forensic accountancy profession, as part of its drive to equip the unit with skills critical in successfully fighting corruption and economic crime.

The agreement is for a period of four years where after it will be reviewed and possibly extended.

The immediate aim is to make sure the provincial offices of the SIU have skilled people to fast-track investigations concerning proclamations that have been signed by President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Opportunities for the unemployed youth

Enock Qoma, SIU senior manager of learning and development, says he is excited about the agreement.

Qoma says the purpose of the memorandum is not only to strengthen the capabilities of forensic accountants but to heed the call of the president to give opportunities to young people to alleviate unemployment in the country.

According to Advocate Andy Mothibi, head of the SIU and alumnus of the NWU, forensic accounting abilities are critical for successful investigations.

“This memorandum of understanding (MoU) will allow us to construct the timber we require. This is a high-profile initiative aimed at reducing youth unemployment. We are delighted and ecstatic that these programs are gaining traction.”

Equal opportunities

Professor Linda du Plessis, the acting principal and vice-chancellor, says the dream of the NWU is to be an internationally recognised university for engaged scholarship, social responsiveness, and an ethic of care.

“For the 2021 academic year, we delivered 14 484 graduates who entered the world of work. For us to fulfil our dream we must offer qualifications that are relevant, accredited and fill the skills needs in the market.

“Therefore, in 2006 we were the first university in South Africa to start offering forensic accounting programmes in both our undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications. Our qualifications are accredited by SAICA and the Institute for Commercial Forensic Practitioners.”

According to her, the NWU believes that everyone deserves equal economic, political, and social rights and opportunities.

Make haste in responding to corruption concerns

SAICA CEO, Freeman Nomvalo, believes the MoU is a question of principle. Following the establishment of the Zondo Commission, Nomvalo says they as an institute recognized the need to respond by delving deeper into the issues that led to state capture.

” The fourth Zondo report has been released, highlighting a number of concerns. We need to figure out how to respond to this more quickly and create the human capacity to do so,” he says.