History was created today when the Barbados Accreditation Council (BAC) granted recognition status, as an awarding body, to the Certified Management Accountants (Nova Scotia, Bermuda and the Caribbean).

The hand-over ceremony took place at the Council’s headquarters at Roebuck Street.

Chairman of the Board of Management of the BAC, Yvonne Walkes, while stressing that it was a significant milestone in the history of the region and the life of the Council, underscored the importance of ???recognition’, particularly as it related to "an awarding body and the qualifications it awards to institutions".??

She said: "The term recognition is defined as the formal acknowledgement by a competent authority of the appropriateness of a foreign qualification, which enables the qualification holder to access educational and/or employment activities in the receiving country.

"Recognition by an authorised agency such as the BAC, will give learners and the wider national community greater confidence in the validity of the qualification they intend to, or are currently pursuing. Recognition also signals to the international post-secondary or tertiary education and training community our commitment as a nation, to the provision of the highest quality post-secondary or tertiary education and training programmes, which will provide value for money."

Additionally, Ms. Walkes pointed out that recognition of the CMA signified that the organisation had met the standards of quality established by the BAC for awarding bodies. "Learners can be assured that they have access to a qualification from an organisation that is recognised nationally, regionally, and extra-regionally. They can also be assured that they are acquiring the same skills, expertise and competencies as learners pursuing the same programme in the awarding body’s home country of Canada," the chairman stressed.

Recognition status also signifies that the BAC will accept CMA’s accredited qualifications which are delivered by registered education and training providers in Barbados.

As the BAC Chairman presented the award to Chief Executive Officer with CMA (Nova Scotia, Bermuda and the Caribbean), Nancy Foran, she challenged that body "to continue striving towards excellence in the provision of the CMA Professional Programme qualification."

The Barbados Accreditation Council is the sole government agency with responsibility for assuring the quality and integrity of post-secondary/tertiary education and training in Barbados. Its mandate includes advising on the recognition of foreign-based institutions and their awards; enhancing the quality of post-secondary and tertiary education and training in Barbados and providing, information on the quality and recognition of programmes of study and institutions.??jgill@barbados.gov.bb

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