By Babajide Komolafe

Minister of Trade & Investment, Olusegun Aganga

The adoption of  International Financial Reporting Standards has enhanced the perception of Nigeria in the international community, Minister for Trade and Investment, Mr. Olusegun Aganga disclosed this at the 10th annual Financial Reporting Council summit held in Lagos.

“The first phase of the adoption of IFRS in Nigeria has started producing enhanced perception for Nigeria,” he said.

IFRS is a set of international accounting standards that state how particular transactions and events should be reported in the financial statement of companies.

The standards, which replace the old International Accounting Standards, are issued by the International Accounting Standard Board (IASB), for the purpose of making international comparison of companies as easy as possible.

The journey to adoption of IFRS in Nigeria started in July 2010, when the Federal Executive Council approved the Road map for Nigeria’s adoption of the standards. This was followed with the enactment of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria Act in 2011, which led to the transformation of the Nigeria Accounting Standards Board to the Financial Reporting Council (FRC).

The FRC among other things is charged with the responsibility of implanting the road map for adoption of IFRS in Nigeria.  In 2012  Nigeria commenced phased adoption of IFRS in 2012, with all companies quoted on the stock exchange and companies with significant public interest required to comply in the first phase.

Aganga noted that the summit is to consolidate on the gains of the adoption of IFRS, and deliberate on the wider implications of the Financial Reporting Council Act, 2011 and the on-going unification of codes of corporate governance for private and public sector entities in Nigeria.

He charged participants at the summit to come up with suggestions that will assist the FRC in actualising the strategic plan that will ensure a seamless completion of the phase transition to IFRS adoption in Nigeria.

He also called on the FRC to urgently finalise details on the establishment of the IFRS Academy, conclude discussions with the executives of the National Universities Commission on the possible revision of accounting curricula to enable students gain exposure to practical applications of IFRS and International Standards on Auditing.