THERE is great news for South Africa’s budding accountants. The South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) Sage One Junior Accounting Olympiad is back, and high schools have until September 9 to register their Grade Nine learners to take part in this year’s event.
This year marks the third year that the SAICA Sage One Junior Accounting Olympiad will take place. A separate competition to the much-anticipated, annual SAICA Sage One Accounting Olympiad, which targets learners in Grades 11 and 12, the Junior Accounting Olympiad gives learners who are still deciding to choose accounting as a school subject the chance to see if they have mastered both its content and methodology.
The Olympiad falls squarely in line with SAICA’s Thuthuka projects, which seek to transform the demographics of the chartered accounting profession and grow the number of chartered accountants in South Africa – with a strong emphasis on creating more CAs from African and coloured backgrounds.
Matsoso Tsoaeli, project director for transformation and growth at the SAICA, said, “The Junior Accounting Olympiad was created to target youngsters in Grade Nine who are deciding whether or not to continue with accounting and entice them to take the subject in their final school years. Our aim, thereafter, is to steer them towards studying chartered accountancy as well as other commerce-centred degrees at university. It is our hope that developing a love for the subject will, in turn, help to address South Africa’s urgent need for chartered accountants.”
This sentiment is echoed by co-sponsor Sage Pastel. As South Africa’s leading provider of accounting software, the group says it is proud to support the advancement of accounting learners through this project because by supporting the young accountants of today, Sage Pastel lays the path for the leaders of tomorrow.
Taking part, however, does not just assist the profession, but also benefits the participating learners and schools.
“The Olympiad is about more than helping learners make informed career choices. It also promotes healthy competition between learners and serves as great practice in preparing them for their year-end exams as well as for the challenges that the Grade 10 accounting syllabus presents. Plus there are great prizes that the top learners from each province stand a chance to win,” explained Tsoaeli.
How can your school get involved?
Participating schools are selected by the district co-ordinators at each of the provincial departments of education, in conjunction with SAICA. From there, the schools’ educators select the five to 10 learners they have identified as their school’s top Grade Nine accounting talent. It is a careful selection process, with only 20 districts selected to participate nationwide.
The closing date for high schools to submit their entries is September 9. The Olympiad will take place on September 29.
For more information, speak to your school’s accounting teacher.
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