Dubai: The Institute of Chartered Accountants Zimbabwe (ICAZ), through its UAE members, will host its annual conference from August 7 to 9 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Dubai.
At least 400 delegates, including senior government ministers, Zimbabwe’s central bank governor and the head of the country’s investment authority are expected to attend the event, the institute says.
The local chapter of the organisation comprises Zimbabwean accounting professionals working in the UAE.
The conference will also bring together chief executive officers, chief financial officers and other accounting professionals, who are decision-makers within their organisations, with in-depth knowledge of the African market.
Bernard Tapera, the chairman of ICAZ (UAE chapter), told Gulf News that the organisation will be hosting an investors’ event on the sidelines of the conference
“We are inviting potential investors in the UAE to meet key policymakers and senior corporate executives from Zimbabwe, to discuss investment and tourism opportunities in that country.
“There is a growing interest from many companies to get into Africa. Annual GDP growth for sub-Saharan Africa is forecast to reach 5.1 per cent by 2017. This is a big opportunity for finance professionals and UAE business to come and get insights about that market.”
With members working in world financial centres such as the New York, London and the Cayman Islands the organisation is hosting its conference in Dubai this year because of the emirate’s growing importance in the global economy, Tapera said.
The conference offers a platform for networking and professional development, ICAZ (UAE chapter) deputy chairman Gideon Nengomasha said.
“Our theme for the conference is ‘Expanding Horizons, Elevating Minds’. Dubai was recently ranked the seventh most influential city in the world, and the story of its transformation is something that all professionals can learn from,” Nengomasha said.
Representatives of local chapters of other professional bodies, including the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales, and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, and the Big 4 professional services firms, are expected to attend.
