Steve Agbota
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), Amuwo and District Society, has embarked on professional accounting career enlightenment programme for secondary school leavers known as ‘ICAN Catch Them Young’.
The catch them young initiative is designed with special accounting examination courses for secondary school leavers which will prepare them for professional ICAN exams.
The programme, organised by ICAN Amuwo and District Society in conjunction with Amuwo Odofin Local Government Council, was introduced to encourage enrollment of O’level school leavers in Accounting Technician Scheme West African (ATSWA). The Catch Them Young Programme, according to the organisers, already have 20 secondary school students who won scholarships to sit for the ASTWA exams immediately they finish their secondary school leaving certificate examination.
Speaking with Daily Sun, Chairman, ICAN Amuwo and District Society, Mrs. Oluwakemi Oderinde, said that the initiative was designed to sensitise and encourage students of secondary schools to study hard and become professional in the field of accounting.
“We want to clear erroneous impression that studying and becoming a chartered accountant is difficult. The reason is that a lot of people don’t know much about ICAN.
All they know is that ICAN examinations are so difficult to pass and that people don’t pass them. But we are here to tell the students that we want to catch them young from secondary schools. We want them to be interested in ICAN exams so that they too can become chartered accountants.
“We don’t want them to be misinformed. We want to clear all their doubts and answer all their questions. We want to tell them that it is quite easy to pass ICAN in as much as they are determined, disciplined and have the desire and interest in it. We want to also tell them all what it takes to sit for the exams.”