Local accountants will now be able to access jobs in the United Kingdom without having to undergo further training under a deal signed last week by professional bodies of the two countries to ease labour exchange.
The deal signed between Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) now see the two accounting bodies recognize each other’s certificates.
Consequently certified public accountants from Kenya applying for jobs in England and Wales will compete for same job grades and perks with domestic workforce.
“ICPAK is delighted to be working with ICAEW to ensure that we offer the highest international recognition and opportunities for our members in Kenya and around the world.” ICPAK chief executive Patrick Ngumi said.
Dr Ngumi added: “It is a demonstration that ICPAK’s qualification framework has come of age and meets the international benchmarks.”
The deal signed on Wednesday last week comes four years after the two professional bodies signed a Memorandum of Understanding to start working more closely together to enable their members join either of the associations as full members.
The partnership comes at a time when labour markets are opening up especially with the influx of multinational corporations in East Africa. Kenya already serves as the headquarters of most of UK firms doing business in East Africa who have had to fly in key accounting staff.