ICASL awards ceremony on 27

The Chartered Accountants Annual Report Awards presented by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (ICASL) will be held on Thursday 27 November at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel in Colombo.

A much looked forward to event in Sri Lanka's annual corporate calendar since1964, the Chartered Accountants Annual Report Awards is a prestigious event which recognizes and honours those organisations which have achieved excellence in annual reporting.

Chairman of the Annual Report Awards Committee Lasantha Wickremasinghe said, "The aim of the Chartered Accountants Annual Report Awards competition is to encourage compliance with accounting standards, legal requirements, governance, corporate social responsibility, timeliness, clarity and consistency in the presentation of information in the annual reports. These prestigious awards recognise the Best Annual Report of the year selected from the winning reports in the Business award categories.

22 awards are presented in special categories, with a winner and runner-up in each category. The awards open to every organisation that produces an annual report and has entries ranging from large multinational companies to small community groups. Among the top awards are those for 'Excellence in Annual Financial Reporting', 'Corporate Governance Disclosures', 'Corporate Social Responsibility', and 'Management Commentary'.

Judges take into account the size, complexity and sophistication of each entrant as well as the resources available. Their Annual Reports are evaluated against established criteria. These however do not include actual financial position or actual financial or non-financial performance of an organisation.

Winners are judged and selected on their ability to clearly communicate their objectives, highlights, performance, governance and social responsibility to the intended audience. All competitors go through an initial selection process by a team of senior Chartered Accountants.

Those short listed are then subjected to a much broader review by a panel of judges who are well respected in the industry and the society.

Wickremasinghe further added that the objectives of the awards were to promote better communication to stake holders particularly through the publication by the organization, of informative annual reports, effective communication of financial and business information, and, the compliance with legislative requirements and generally accepted accounting practices.

President of the ICASL Nishan Fernando said that as Sri Lanka's premier National Accounting Body, the ICASL has been proud to conduct these awards for the past 44 years. "In today's global economy, transparency, social accountability, and good governance of an organisation, play a vital role. This competition encourages organisations to meet these global expectations".