As part of events designed to climax the end of a two years tenure of camaraderie, the Society for Women Accountants of Nigeria (SWAN) which is the women wing of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) on Saturday hosted a lavish banquet to the outgoing Chief Mrs. Omokemi Oladipo Executive Committee.
The event, held on May 4 at the ICAN District Office, Adanla Close, Gbaremu, Ibadan, was attended by members the Women Accountants Society and other notable figures from the accounting profession.
According to Chief Mrs. Oladipo who is the Chairperson of the Society, the banquet was a tradition in SWAN which served as a platform to celebrate the achievements and contributions of the outgoing Exco after the successful completion of a two year term of office before a new Executive Committee emerges.
She disclosed that during her tenure, the Society witnessed remarkable progress in the area of human capital development via members capacity building, charity works to the orphanage, free medical outreach, trainings, and members career advancement among others.
Chief Mrs. Oladipo’s unwavering dedication and visionary leadership during her tenure were acknowledged and applauded by attendees at the banquet.
In her address, the Chairperson expressed her gratitude to the members of the Society for their support and collaboration throughout her tenure acknowledging that she could not have been able to accomplish such milestone without their support.
Speaking with journalists at the event about the future ahead, Chief Mrs. Oladipo expressed optimism in taking up higher responsibility and challenges in the profession noting that she looks forward to passing the baton of leadership to a new SWAN executive committee of Ibadan branch which would emerge by the end of the month through a process of election.
She emphasized the importance of unity and continued efforts to advance the interests of women in the accounting profession while also highlighting the need for greater transparency and accountability in financial management, both in the organized private sector and public office.
While commending Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo state over what was described as prudent financial management of public funds, she equally called on the government to prioritize financial transparency and accountability in all sectors as being critical to economic development.
She also emphasized the critical role of accountants in ensuring fiscal responsibility and safeguarding public funds.
“This banquet is all about celebrating SWAN and all the executives and committee members in Ibadan here, who have served in the last two years. This marks the end of an administration of the current SWAN executives in Ibadan and this is what we normally do to celebrate ourselves at the end of each administration.
“If you look at the program of event you would see that we have done a lot as an administration in the last two years and one of which is the most prominent is the launching of the first edition of our magazine called ‘The Cygnet’.
“One of the key goals of the current SWAN administration is to improve the professional skills of members and that is why we embarked on series of trainings and capacity buildings to equip our members with requisite professional skills that’ll make them more competitive with their counterparts from any part of the world.” Chief Mrs. Oladipo stated.