Thursday 28 Mar 2024
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This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on July 12, 2018

KUALA LUMPUR: Visitors of the much-lauded 2018 Malaysian Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (MAICSA) annual conference were kept abreast of regulatory updates in corporate Malaysia and related developments in governance.

Centred around the theme “Forging Forward — New Dimensions!”, the two-day event, held in Bangsar South on Tuesday and yesterday, attracted company secretaries, directors, and governance professionals alike, said the organisation.

“The theme of the conference was very relevant as it focused on new dimensions in reporting, and practical issues in corporate governance and company secretarial practice arising from the implementaton of the Companies Act 2016,” said MAICSA in a statement.

Topics covered at the conference included the Companies Act 2016 and companies regulations, management and corporate governance, new dimensions in reporting, corporate rescue mechanism, and practical issues on corporate governance.

“Corporate secretaries will play a pivotal role now in guiding and helping Corporate Malaysia understand the new changes and development in laws and legislations,” said MAICSA president Datuk Heng Ji Keng during the officiating ceremony.

The annual conference featured renowned speakers from the regulatory bodies and among the business community, including Singapore’s Black Sun Pte Ltd Asia Pacific chief executive officer Uantchern Loh.

Also gracing the conference as a guest of honour was newly elected international president of MAICSA’s parent organisation, the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA), Edith Shih. Shih is also the executive director and company secretary of Fortune 500 conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd.

In her keynote address, Shih said ICSA, which has some 36,000 members from over 80 countries, will be focusing on five key impetus — diversity, inclusivity, relevance, quality and value — going forward.

“We will be creative and flexible in helping our members realise the opportunities offered by the growing recognition of the importance of governance and the pivotal role of our profession. In addition, ICSA will continue to promote and ensure high professional standards among our members and divisions, including through education, standards setting and continuing professional training,” she said.

To add value for members, Shih said ICSA will focus on “exploiting revenue-generating opportunities” to ensure adequate funding for its programmes and for the growth of the organisation and its members.

ICSA is known for providing the qualification-cum-affiliate membership designation of “Chartered Secretary”.

Shih proposed a second designation, termed “Chartered Governance Professional”, be introduced.

“As ICSA positions itself as the governance institute, we have sought and already obtained approval from the Privy Council for the second designation.

“As an update, we are now targeting for full implementation of this second designation by 2020, and it is possible that some divisions might have already done so during 2019,” said Shih, adding the new designation may be followed by a name change for ICSA to Chartered Governance Institute, although it is not mandatory.

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