Filipino accountants seek greener pastures

THE Philippines is losing its accountants to other countries amid a boom in the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry, according to an accounting group. Cindy Ortiz, president of the Association of Certified Public Accountants, said that the country is currently experiencing a shortage of accountants even as the demand for accountants is increasing since multinational companies move their backroom services to the Philippines.

“[BPO] firms are hiring accountants for entities that are located all over the world, thus, creating a lot of jobs,” Ortiz said during a recent exclusive roundtable with The Manila Times.

“But the downside is there’s a drain of accountants. There’s a shortage of accountants,” she added.

The Philippines adhering to international financial accounting standards and the Filipinos being hard workers make the Filipinos in demand in other countries, said Ortiz.

The finance and accounting outsourcing market is expected to grow by 26 percent this year, said Eranio Punsalan, chairman and chief executive of E.L.

Punsalan and Associates.

Training cost for companies have also shot up as Filipino accountants seek only one to three years of experience in the country, before departing for countries like Qatar, Dubai, Singapore, Brunei and Papua New Guinea, which offer pay three or four times higher than local firms.

Given the opportunities provided in the BPO industry, some schools like St. Scholastica College in Manila has developed a degree called BS Accounting Technology for students who want to work eventually in the BPO sector.

The degree offers a four-year ladderized program, which is high in technology stocks and offers the same curriculum as BS Accountancy, which is a five-year course, minus auditing and other courses since this will not be necessary because they will not take the board exam.

Out of the 200 students enrolled in the school of accountancy in St. Scholastica, only a fourth is enrolled in BS Accountancy, while the rest are enrolled in the BS Accounting Technology.

“The youth now, they like technology so they are attracted to it,” said Ortiz, adding that the estimated starting salary for accountants in the BPO industry is around P13,000 to P16,000 a month, higher than the minimum wage.

The country has also employed a stricter regulation on accreditation, requiring accountants to register with the Bureau of Internal Revenue, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Board of Accountancy and the Insurance Commission, further contributing the shortage of accountants in the country.

“If I am not accredited with the Insurance Commission, I cannot sign the financial statement of an insurance company. It’s not enough to pass the board,” said Ortiz.

About 48 percent of the takers passed the last accounting board exam, higher than the usual 20-percent range, said Ortiz. The Philippines has a total of 140,000 registered certified public accountants. –KRISTA ANGELA M. MONTEALEGRE REPORTER, Manila Standard Today