This volume of the Review of International Accounting and Reporting Issues contains the proceedings of the twentieth anniversary session of the Intergovernmental Working Group of Experts on International Standards of Accounting and Reporting (ISAR), which took place in Geneva from 29 September to 1 October 2003. The session deliberated on corporate governancedisclosure requirements, reporting on the impact of corporations on society, and a revised model curriculum for professional accountants.
In accordance with its proposed provisional agenda, which was approved by the Commission on Investment, Technology and Related Financial Issues, the Group of Experts discussed five case studies on corporate governance disclosures and major issues regarding implementation of requirements in this area. The case studies were conducted on Brazil, France, Kenya, the Russian Federation and the United States. An overview of the implementation issues, aswell as a summary of ISAR’s deliberations at its twentieth session, are presented in the first chapter of this volume. The detailed findings of the case studies are presented in Chapters 2 through 6.
The impact that enterprises have on society has been an issue of growing concern for many stakeholders. The twentieth session of ISAR considered a report prepared by the UNCTAD secretariat on the disclosure aspect of this issue. A summary of the Group’s deliberations and the paper discussed at the time are contained in Chapter 7 of this volume.
The last chapter of this volume contains a revised model curriculum for the professional education of accountants that was discussed at the twentieth session of ISAR. A summary of the deliberations of the Group of Experts also appears in the chapter.
