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Feature

Accounting Week:
Beyond Accountancy

Mohammad Mutasim Hossain
Photo: Deep Nahid and Rahmat

ACCOUNTING Week 2009 was observed by the department of Accounting and Information Systems, University of Dhaka. In pursuit of the prospect of creating future business professionals rather than simply accountants, the department designed the program with multi dimensional knowledge and skill development activities as required by the professional and corporate bodies. Generally students enroll in the department with an exclusive thirst for knowledge and spirit of youth and with appropriate directions they can be molded into the genre of a powerful and archetypal sculpture. Accounting students hardly get chances to nurture the skill of real life corporate culture, communication and cultural practices due to mainstream academic pressure. Accounting Week 2009, from 4th to 10th of August has been organized to allow them to achieve first hand experience on planning and budgeting a complete program, collecting sponsors, unveiling the hidden skill of culture and sports, developing business plan and corporate practices, interacting with distinguished government and corporate personalities and successfully organising all the events as per schedule.

The inauguration of the program took place on the 4th of August with the presence of the Chief Guest Muhammad Faruk Khan MP and Minister for Commerce, and the Guest of Honor Professor AAMS Arefin Siddique, Vice Chancellor, University of Dhaka. Others present were Abbas Ali Khan, Dean, Faculty of Business Studies, Professor Begum Khaleda Khanam, Chair, Dept. of AIS, Dr. Shafiq Ahmed Siddique, Convener Accounting Week, Shawkat Ali Bhuiyan Dilan, president, Accounting Alumni, and representatives of the prime sponsors as Debashish Neogi, Managing Director, Marico Bangladesh Ltd., Mohua Rashid, Country Manager ACCA Bangladesh and Hasan Ahmed Chowdhury Kiron, Chairman, Debate for Democracy. In his speech, the commerce minister asked the students to maintain highest standard of ethics in accounting profession and accountability in corporate practices and reminded the students about their social and corporate responsibility from the world recession perspective. He also hoped that the program would build up a common platform for both business executives and students and to exchange their ideas, views, thought and experience. The Vice Chancellor, Dr. A. A. M. S. Arefin Siddique also hoped that the weeklong extracurricular activities along with seminars on contemporary business and financial reporting with distinguished resource persons will certainly act as a value added step to the students' knowledge of corporate environment and help them to go beyond simply accountancy. A colorful rally went around the campus after the inauguration ceremony.

The cultural and sports competition was inaugurated on 5th August by Professor Mijanur Rahman, Treasurer, University of Dhaka, which had been successfully completed on 7th August. The cultural, sports and business competitions included musical, dance, reciting, set acting, essay writing, business debate and case competition along with football, cricket and other indoor games.

Seminars on contemporary business issues were held on 8th and 9th of August. Major issues of the seminars were Public Financial Management by Professor Dr. M. Harunur Rashid, Vice Chancellor, Presidency University and chaired by Ahmed Ataul Hakeem FCMA, Comptroller & Auditor General of Bangladesh, seminar on Belief, Knowledge and Enterprise Governance: An Anthropological and Philosophical Approach; by Professor Dhiman Kumar Chowdhury FCMA, and chaired by Professor Santi Narayan Ghosh, Treasurer Bangladesh Open University, Seminar on The Policy Led Approach to Budget Planning in Bangladesh and the National Budget of 2009-10; resourced by Associate Professor Swapan Kumar Bala FCMA, and chaired by : Professor Mustafizur Rahman, Executive Director, Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), seminar on Career Planning and Guidance, by Quazi M. Ahmed, Lead Consultant and CEO, FutureLeaders, seminar on Convergence of Financial Reporting Standards: Causes and Effects; by Adeeb H. Khan FCA(UK), Partner, Rahman Huq Chartered Accountants and chaired by Professor M. Harunur Rashid, Vice Chancellor, Presidency University, seminar on Divergence of Management Accounting Practices in Different Parts of The World ; by Professor Dr. Mahmuda Akhter and Chaired by Mamtaz Uddin Ahmed, Professor, Dept. of AIS, seminar on Development of Corporate Governance Regulation The Case of an Emergent Economy; resourced by : Javed Siddiqui, Assistant Professor and chaired by Dr. Riazur Rahman Chowdhury, Professor, Dept. of AIS, seminar on : ACCA; resourced by Mohua Rashid, Country Manager, ACCA Bangladesh and M A Jaki Turjaman, Student Advisor, ACCA Bangladesh.

The week long accounting carnival concluded on 10th of August with Souvenir publication, prize-giving ceremony, closing session and 'Grand Accounting Night'. The program got esteemed dimensions with the presence of Nurul Islam Nahid MP, Honorable Minister of Education, Government of the Peoples' Republic of Bangladesh. The honorable minister unveiled the cover of the souvenir and awarded prize to the distinguished faculties and winners of the different competitions. He urged the students to utilise the distinguished faculties and other available facilities of the university and devote themselves to the welfare of the society. Professor A. A. M. S. Arefin Siddique, Vice Chancellor, University of Dhaka was present as the guest of honour while Professor Khondaker Bazlul Haque, President, Dhaka University Teachers Association, Professor Santi Narayan Ghosh, Professor M. Harunur Rashid were also present as the special guest and the session was chaired by Professor Begum Khaleda Khanam, Chair, Dept. of AIS, University of Dhaka.

A series of exclusive cultural shows were staged to celebrate the 'Accounting Night'. The night came alive with a colorful theatre 'Jatra PalaKehermaner Chokkranto'. The performance by two teachers of the department, Amirus Salat and Shahidul Islam as the central characters of the theater delighted the audience.

The Accounting week added distinct values to the department as well as to the students. The events go past but memory never die. Students sigh that 'We wish we could observe Accounting Week every year'.