International Accounting appears as a consequence of international trade. The practice of importing and exporting goods and services was expanded to reach direct investment from other foreign countries. Then the world-class company appears. Then the concept of globalization of the economy is developed, which fundamentally changed the international practice of business.
International Accounting has had important changes in its development, due to the framed interest of adopting International Accounting Standards applicable in all countries. The first big step has been taken by the European community, who have defined the way forward to use International Accounting Standards, while underdeveloped countries observe this idea with some caution.
History
The evolution of international accounting begins during the 1960s. For García and others (1996), its appearance can be referenced from the creation in 1962 of the Center for Education and Research of International Accounting, of the University of Illinois, where the magazine The International Journal of Accounting was born and on the other hand the Professor Mueller G.'s article in 1963 on "The dimension of the international accounting problem", for this reason he is known in the academic world as the auditor of International Accounting.
This evolution occurs due to the need to compare financial information, since the activities of multinational companies expanded in two or more countries, as well as the internationalization of the capital market and foreign investments increased.
Benefits of adopting international accounting standards
According to Mueller G., the most frequently mentioned benefits are:
- The international comparability of financial information, with which misunderstandings around the preparation of Financial Statements would be eliminated, improves their analysis and increases the quality level of Accounting. Accountants believe that if you have a homogeneous system you can have a better acceptance of international M&A standards and foreign financing assurance.International Accounting Standards are also considered to improve international business competition and help underdeveloped countries, which They are benefited by an international model that serves them for their progress. They help reduce costs of book management, to present more efficient Financial Statements.
The Colombian case
According to Mantilla, Colombia has great problems such as violence, poverty, unemployment, guerrillas, drug trafficking, paramilitarism, violation of human rights, foreign debt, and because of this it is inevitable not to enter the international arena.
Colombia, as a member country of international organizations, cannot ignore that the globalization and internationalization that is taking place in the world is a fact and that it should not be closed to participate, since this would lead to more problems.
The big problem in Colombia is that it is not open to change, since most of the accountants cling to practices that in the past worked very well (double entry, Spanish language, complete and reliable clear history) but are now obsolete and are ineffective, they do not generate added value to the company.
It is necessary to adopt International Accounting Standards in Colombia developed by the international community. This does not imply that we have to change the country's regulations but rather that we adopt standards for the preparation, presentation and disclosure of financial reports, so that they can be understood by each sector that requires them for decision-making, it also facilitates the participation of the entities of the country in the different international processes.
The idea is to adopt for the public interest a single set of high quality general accounting standards that require comparable and transparent information in Financial Statements and other financial information in order to assist users of the information in the decision making.
The basic criteria for this are full adoption, in the sense that the standards are adopted as a whole (accounting, auditing and accounting), and gradual as soon as the level of the country's economic entities is taken into account. (International accounting standards IAS, from which the international accounting standards for the public sector IPSAS and the guidelines for the preparation of accounting and financial information for small and medium-sized companies DCPYMES are based).
For Mantilla, the idea is not to adapt, but rather to adopt international accounting standards. “ADOPT TO PARTICIPATE”.
The orientation of international accounting is not only private trust or public faith, but the public interest is privileged.
In Colombia it is very important to adopt standards, since current accounting regulations do not meet the needs of users of financial information, and current accounting regulations are asymmetric, incomplete and anachronistic.
The accounting profession in the face of internationalization
The accounting profession must introduce professional practices that are in accordance with the international processes that are taking place at the moment, since society is expanding and making economic activity more complex, and the environment every day demands more creativity, innovation and interdisciplinarity.
We are looking for an accounting professional with sufficient competence and responsibility to qualify the transparency of the information for the use of third parties, or an accountant with the interest and competence to add value in business performance.
Within this change, a new name arises for the accounting professional, leaving aside and with great respect that of "public accountant", since its meaning is very general and giving way to that of accredited professional accountant, which according to its added value will be public if the essential elements of the contract for the provision of services are the independence between who provides the service and who hires it, the priority of the public interest over the individual, private if it does so in this area, which does not need independence.
It is necessary to adopt a set of accounting standards to establish the essential techniques and methodologies that are recognized, accepted and applied internationally and that allow the acquisition of knowledge, the development of skills and the understanding of professional values.
Harmonization or standardization
The adoption corresponds to the standardization "to eliminate all national regulatory content" with respect to a specific issue, in this case the accounting "preparation, presentation and disclosure of financial reports."
Harmonization as opposed to standardization implies the reconciliation of different points of view, making this a more practical approach than standardization, where a better communication of information is achieved in such a way that it can be understood and interpreted internationally.
From the above, it follows that if the political and economic objectives of the country coincide with those of the international environment, they should be standardized or adopted to the international model, but if these do not coincide, a harmonization process must be carried out that guarantees the presence and maintenance of such objectives as guides. of the information and accounting control process.
Conclusions
The idea of adopting international accounting standards is not to change the rules of each country, but rather to embrace a unique set of standards that help in the preparation, presentation and disclosure of Financial Statements.
The accountant will not only change his name but will gain more knowledge, and will further broaden his horizons towards international accounting models, and will abandon obsolete practices, which only makes him more inefficient.
Great changes have arisen in the world that have generated systems that seek to have greater coverage of the market economy, such as globalization that seeks to cover all businesses, therefore it is important to belong and stay in them, which our country does not it has achieved and even less the globalization of accounting, auditing and professional accounting.
What is sought is to build transparent, comparable and high quality information that fully satisfies the satisfaction of users.
Bibliography
Mantilla Blanco, Samuel Alberto. Adoption of international standards: technical characteristics, November 2004
Mantilla Blanco, Samuel Alberto. The adoption of accounting standards, a reality in processes in Colombia and in the world, May 2002
Mantilla Blanco, Samuel Alberto. Adopting is not adapting. Regarding the difference between Colombian principles or norms and international accounting standards. September 2000
Mantilla Blanco, Samuel Alberto. Adopt to participate, October 2000
Mantilla Blanco, Samuel Alberto. Accountants yes, but which ones? The globalization of accounting and its consequences for professional practice, April 2001.
Mueller Gerhard G., Gernon Helen, Meek Gary K. Accounting an international perspective ed. Mc graw hill interamericana.
Technical Council of Public Accounting (Colombia), Analysis of the adoption in Colombia of the accounting, auditing and accounting standards, journal law of accounting and auditing No. 19.
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Vasquez Tristancho, Gabriel. Prospective of international accounting, October 2000, magazine Legis del Contador Nº5
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Technical council of public accounting. Analysis of the adoption of accounting, auditing and accounting standards.
Draft Economic Intervention Law by means of which mechanisms are indicated by which international accounting, auditing and accounting standards are adopted in Colombia.
Technical council of public accounting. Analysis of the adoption of accounting, auditing and accounting standards. Legis journal of accounting and auditing
