Covenant Mission (CM) is a non-governmental organisation that provides charitable support to disadvantaged families.
It is currently involved in a number of community projects to assist in the provision of clean water supply to families in Liberia, Nigeria and the Gambia. In its home country, Ghana it focuses more on assisting clients in accessing state granted financial support as well as providing counselling and psychological support to less priviledged people.
The NGO has grown very rapidly in recent years as demand for its services have increased. In line with this rising demand, it has begun to slowly evolve from an enterprise primarily run by volunteers to an institution employing professional managers from the private sector. These changes are considered essential in supporting the sustainability of the charity.
The board of trustees at the NGO recognise the need to adopt a relevant code of ethics as part of necessary governance support structures. They are however concerned about recent criticism of such codes and wish to ensure that any code developed is effective throughout the organisation.
Required:
a) Advise CM on FOUR fundamental principles to be included in its code of ethics. (8 marks)
View Solution
Code of ethics may usefully draw upon the underlying principles of good governance or existing codes such as the IFAC code for accountants. Blending the most appropriate elements from a variety of sources is a difficult skill to apply in practice but necessary for the creation of a worthy document.
Below are the fundamental principles that should be included in code of ethics
A professional accountant is required to comply with the following fundamental principles:
- Integrity
A professional accountant should be straightforward and honest in all professional and business relationships. - Objectivity
A professional accountant should not allow bias, conflict of interest or undue influence of others to override professional or business judgments. - Professional Competence and Due Care
A professional accountant has a continuing duty to maintain professional knowledge and skill at the level required to ensure that a client or employer receives competent professional service based on current developments in practice, legislation and techniques. A professional accountant should act diligently and in accordance with applicable technical and professional standards when providing professional services. - Confidentiality
A professional accountant should respect the confidentiality of information acquired as a result of professional and business relationships and should not disclose any such information to third parties without proper and specific authority unless there is a legal or professional right or duty to disclose. Confidential information acquired as a result of professional and business relationships should not be used for the personal advantage of the professional accountant or third parties. - Professional Behavior
A professional accountant should comply with relevant laws and regulations and should avoid any action that discredits the profession.