Without exception, professions across the world face issues about ethics and professionalism. The situation has reached such a level that public trust in government and institutions is at a level below expectations. There is, therefore, an urgent need to address the situation and restore calm to the nerves of the public. The accountancy profession, through the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) which represents the voice of the global accountancy profession, is taking the lead in this crusade in three main areas- ensuring the profession is appropriately engaged in a shared public/private standard-setting; preparing the profession for the future with “an emphasis on implementing a comprehensive, integrated approach to international accountancy education” with a view to equipping current and future professional accountants with the skills, capabilities and ethical behavior required for a rapidly changing environment, especially in the context of the 4th industrial revolution, and “speaking out even more effectively as the voice for the global profession on critical matters including the need for reporting that aligns with societal values and provides a holistic, timely view of organizational performance and sustainability.” The thoughts and initiative of the IFAC are imperative given that, along with its member organizations and over three million professional accountants, serve the public interest by “enhancing the relevance, reputation, and value of the global accountancy profession.”
For too long, accountants have been introverted. This may not be unconnected with the technical nature of their training at the expense of the social dimension of the profession. To a large extent, professional accountants see accounting as mediating only in commercial exchange relationships. This is not quite so as accounting is also implicated in other areas of human endeavour- social, cultural, political among others. This explains, for instance, the role accounting played in sustaining apartheid in South Africa. Accounting is a powerful and complex technology. No doubt, professional education is important for the development of industrial society up until now. But things are changing and professional education alone is narrow and thus, not sufficient to help develop character and does not shape gentleman in the ‘Confucius’ sense, especially in the context of the fourth industrial revolution.
The time has become auspicious to strengthen professional accounting education with liberal arts education. Liberal arts education stresses the broad study of the arts and science and helps students to develop reasoning skills, collaboration, and art of discussion. These would assist to put the students in a stead to more appropriately debate matters of public interest and arrive at a reasoned argument and agreement or disagreement with peers, not only in business but also in other areas such as social and political. These are areas where accountants currently lack the required clout. As opined by Pericles Lewis, there are many positive sides of liberal arts education that make it worthy of mention- it shapes more innovative contributors to the economy and society because softer skills such as creativity, the ability to think outside the box, and openness to multiple perspectives are developed. This is liberal arts students find it easier to relate and hobnob with the global elite. It is also to the credit of liberal arts education that students are prepared well for life outside their own immediate cultural environment thereby making them aware of a variety of cultures and the need to communicate effectively. One of the issues confronting the accounting profession is ethics. Liberal art education helps to develop the character which is fundamental in the practice of accounting. A professional accountant without character cannot be given a copy of the code of professional ethics and expect that ethical conduct would occur. No one gives what he does not have. Liberal education as has been noted by several authors “makes us aware of the importance of examining our own prejudices and assumptions by fostering habits of self-awareness and self-criticism.” It has also been noted that liberal education “allows the individual a greater enjoyment of life, whether it is in appreciating a work of art, understanding an argument in philosophy or exploring the diversity of the natural world.”
In spite of the appeal of liberal education, some persons still think that Universities should take a more vocational approach to teach young students and provide them with specific skills relevant to the job market. The job market is heterogeneous and only skills that are applicable to them all should be given more emphasis. The advocacy in this thesis is that the skills offered by liberal education would be more widely needed as artificial intelligence subdues human workers in almost all technical areas in accounting over which we currently pride ourselves. The solution to the ethical issues that have troubled the accounting profession unending lies in liberal education. Unless there is an adequate mix of professional accounting education and liberal education, very shortly, our pride in the profession will grow insipid and the relish would be lost.
Francis Iyoha
