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South Africa is running out of accountants

Source: Businesstech, 28/01/2024




The number of chartered accountant candidates in South Africa is decreasing, while others are choosing to pursue opportunities in first-world countries â€` contributing to the ongoing talent and skills shortage within the industry in the country.
The Department of Home Affairs periodically releases a Critical Skills list to attract foreign professionals with locally scarce skills into South Africa to resolve economic bottlenecks resulting from skill shortages.
Three updates have been made to the Critical Skills list over the last two years: February 2022, August 2022, and â€` most recently â€` October 2023.
In the latest edition of the Critical Skills list, Accountancy, specifically auditing and financial analysis, is in high demand in South Africa.
Speaking to eNCA, the education and training manager at the South African Institute of Professional Accountants (SAIPA), Karl Smith, said that one of the reasons for this decline in qualified accountants is the negative perception of the profession.
“Many students are not pursuing careers in auditing, as they view it as a less exciting or less innovative industry,” he said. Additionally, he noted the industry doesn’t align with the aspirations of the youth in South Africa.
“Gen Z (ages between 12 and 27) value purposeful work instead of routine office tasks, and there has been significant demand for hybrid and work-from-home environments which is not offered by the industry,” he said.
“Young professionals want a work-life balance, flexible work hours, and to see the positive results of their work in society â€` and this has particularly accelerated after the Covid-19 pandemic,” Smith added.
This has led to an ageing auditing workforce, with many professionals nearing retirement age.
According to the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants, there has been a drop in the number of candidates writing Test of Competence (ITC). The number dropped from 3,887 in 2021 to 2,946 by 2022 â€` a 24% decline.
SAIPA’s most recent estimates indicate that South Africa has a shortage of more than 20,000 skilled accounting professionals.
The State of Accounting Firms Trends Report for 2023 revealed that over 90% of accountants and 95% of auditors find recruiting skilled talent difficult. The study was conducted among 4,100 accountants and 2,300 auditors.
Compounding the issue is that many international audit firms poach local talent.
Smith noted that many qualified professionals seek greener pastures in favourable countries such as the United Kingdom (UK) and Australia.
Local talent firmly believes international markets offer significantly higher salaries and better opportunities to achieve long-term goals.
“For auditing businesses to survive, they need to relook at their competency frameworks and invest in tools and the necessary technology that tackle the needs of evolving generations,” said Smith.


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