Date Of Article: 3/24/2003
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Accountants challenged
By: Alexander Newa
Accountants in the country have been challenged to take a leading role in the country’s efforts to improve the economy instead of waste time pointing fingers at who is responsible for the problems. Chief economic advisor to the State President Goodall Gondwe said at an annual dinner organised by the Society of Accountants in Malawi (Socam) at Le Meridien Mount Soche in Blantyre that accountants have a duty to ensure that interest rates are going down. He said he was hopeful that the country could achieve stability and improve its macroeconomic position with the help of accountants. “We have to take the country back where it was,” said Gondwe who has over 40 years professional experience as an economist. He advised the accountants gathered at the function to tap from the benefits of globalisation, positioning themselves in such a way that they are not left out of the global village if they are to succeed in their jobs. Gondwe, who started his career as assistant to the economic advisor to the then Prime Minister Hastings Kamuzu Banda in 1963, said good corporate leadership plays an important role in the success of private sector. Gondwe served in the Reserve Bank of Malawi between 1964-1970 and was undersecretary to the Treasury between 1970-1973. He got a job as executive director of the African Development Bank which he served between 1973-1980. From 1980 he served in various positions in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) until 2002 when he retired. He is currently chief economic advisor to President Bakili Muluzi. Socam President Jimmy Lipunga, who introduced Gondwe to the audience, said the theme of the dinner, “Corporate Leadership” was carefully chosen to reflect the current problems that the corporate sector is facing, especially when some of them are facing insolvency. The well-attended dinner, at which David Whitehead and Sons chief executive Evelyn Mwapasa was master of ceremony, was spiced with music from XYZ Disco and a live performance by Uhuru Band.
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