PwC achieve annual golden ABASA award

Professional services firm PwC was recognised today by The Association for the Advancement of Black Accountants in Southern Africa (ABASA) for its achievement in producing the highest number of black chartered accountants this year.

The ABASA awards which are highly acclaimed throughout the accounting profession, commend organisations that have contributed to the success and transformation of aspiring chartered accountants.

Suresh Kana, CEO of PwC in Southern Africa says: “For PwC, awards of this nature make us extremely proud as we are strongly committed to achieving our transformation goals. One of our top priorities is driving transformation and it is extremely pleasing that the market is recognising our commitment.”

“There is no doubt that the profession still has some way to go in advancing black chartered accountants. The development process is long and it can take several years before the fruits of the profession’s efforts mature. However, this recognition from ABASA shows that we are on the right track.”

Kana says: “PwC is committed to transformation and recognises that transformation is not only about numbers but about the meaningful development of our people. The firm recognises that transformation is an economic imperative and it is essential to the growth of the firm and also of the South African economy.”

PwC has contributed a significant percentage of all newly qualified black chartered accountants into the South African market in the past decade. “It is enlightening to see our transformation strategy bearing fruit,” says Kana.

This year PwC contributed 129 black chartered accountants to the profession.
Kana says that the firm is involved in a number of initiatives to drive transformation in the profession. These include mentoring and bursary schemes in addition to contributions to the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants’ Thuthuka programme.

The critical shortage of black accountants has been identified as a challenge for the accounting profession. The South African Institute of Chartered Accountants’ (SAICA) figures for last year showed that since 2002, the number of chartered accountants had risen 49% to 31165, with black chartered accountants up 237% to 5302 and white accountants up 34% to 25863.
Kana says that the profession was faced with several challenges as it strived to achieve further transformation. There is a limited pool of graduates coming through the universities. The profession is working with the various universities in a bid to grow talent to serve the demands of the economy

PwC’s number of black staff amounts to 1850, of which 79 are partners. Kana says 63% of the firm’s newly admitted partners are black. Last year the firm had a total of 4439 trainee accountants.

“Our progressive transformation strategy ensures that we are well on our way to being a transformed firm that represents the demographics of South Africa. For us, transformation continues to be a rewarding experience in enriching our firm’s diversity,” says Kana.