The University of Pretoria’s (UP’s) Andrew van der Burgh has been appointed as a board member of the International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB).

Van der Burgh, who is currently a senior lecturer in the Department of Accounting in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences at UP, is one of three new appointees to the IPSASB following a rigorous nominations and interview process, which involved numerous committees.

The IPSASB works to strengthen public financial management globally through developing and maintaining accrual-based International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) and other high-quality financial reporting guidance for use by governments and other public sector entities. It also raises awareness of IPSAS and the benefits of accrual adoption.

The board comprises of 18 members from around the world, including Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Nigeria, Panama, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, UK and US.

Van der Burgh’s appointment comes as a recognition of his technical excellence and commitment to the accounting profession in South Africa and internationally. He is a registered chartered accountant [CA(SA)] at the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA). He is also a member of the Accounting Standards Board in South Africa, which sets the local public sector accounting standards. He participates as a technical sub-committee member of the Accounting Practices Committee of SAICA.

In his current role, he lectures prospective CA(SA) students at postgraduate level in preparation for their first board examination. He is the Deputy CA Programme Manager responsible for managing the CA training programme at UP and is also involved with the various professional examination committees at SAICA.

“I am truly thankful and humbled by my appointment to the IPSASB. I am committed to serving the global accounting community with this exciting opportunity,” said Van der Burgh when asked how he felt about this honour.

The Head of the Department of Accounting, Professor Madeleine Stiglingh, added: “His appointment to the IPSASB is a huge achievement and recognition of his excellence and dedication to the profession. The appointment will not only add value to his development, but also the University of Pretoria and the profession locally and internationally.”

Prior to joining UP, Van der Burgh was a senior manager in the Accounting Technical Desk of Deloitte Africa from 2012 to 2018. During his term, he assisted clients across the continent to implement International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), developed various global publications and training materials, and was also involved in the Global IFRS Leadership Team of Deloitte.

He looks forward to contributing to the accounting profession globally and expanding his network through his board appointment.