Ms. Helen Brand OBE, Chief Executive, ACCA (Left) and Professor Hongbin Cai, Dean of HKU Business School (Right) signed a Memorandum of Understanding today.
Nurturing the next generation of responsible accounting and finance leaders in contributing to a sustainable economy
Towards strengthening the mutual cooperation and nurturing the next generation of talents in accountancy and finance, ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) and HKU Business School signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) today. This is a renewed MoU between the two parties after the first MoU signed in August 2018.
This partnership agreement stems from the fruitful relationship between the two parties since 2018, making HKU Business School the first institution in Hong Kong to embed ACCA Qualification's innovative exam 'Strategic Business Leader' into the syllabus of its Master of Accounting (MAcct) Programme, with the global resources and support from ACCA including teaching guidance, case studies and learning materials. At the same time, the Programme has secured the maximum exemptions from ACCA papers at the 'Fundamentals' Level, where graduates from this Programme (2019-2023) are entitled to exemption of nine ACCA papers. The two parties also joined hands in expanding and attracting top talent from the region, elevating students' strategic professional capabilities, enhancing their ethical and professional skills, and raising their employability in the career market.
With the economic anxiety over the Covid-19 crisis, there is, however, a silver lining as the pandemic has brought the role of business ever more front and centre. Businesses must now play their part, rebuilding economies, supporting societies to thrive and providing jobs. For accountancy, this is a brilliant opportunity to attract new young talent into a global profession that is repurposed for the modern world of work.
This new MoU signifies the commitment of the two parties to further foster strategic partnership in promoting diversity of international student pool and driving global competitiveness and employability of students.
Ms. Helen Brand OBE, Chief Executive, ACCA, said, 'As a forward-thinking and innovative global accountancy body that offers first-choice qualifications to people of ability and ambition, ACCA is strongly committed to equipping aspiring finance professionals around the globe to be the most valued, up-to-date and sought-after talent, and we're glad to share this vision with HKU Business School. We are also united in a common objective of developing responsible and impactful leadership capability. We could not be recommitting to this MoU at a more significant moment for the global economy. The challenges of the pandemic have brought the need for business and finance professionals to play a key role in driving a sustainable future. Through deepening this important partnership, we look forward to truly bridging the academic to the professional, showing the interconnectedness of how HKU and ACCA work together on a global basis – for the benefit of students, the profession, and the economy.'
Professor Hongbin Cai, Dean of HKU Business School, said, 'Despite the challenges in local, regional and global economy in recent years, our Master of Accounting Programme continued to grow, from 64 students in the inaugurate intake to over 300 new students in the next academic year, which is five times of our first cohort. In addition, our academic and research capabilities in Accounting and Law grew stronger with new scholars joining us from around the world. All these contribute to the overall development of HKU Business School. The first MoU signed between ACCA and HKU Business School three years ago helped enhancing students' business knowledge, learning experience and professional network. I believe the signing of the new MoU will further synergise our strength to provide support to our students and enable us to achieve new heights in the future.'
This press release is issued on behalf of HKU Business School and ACCA by Locus Communications Ltd.
