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Special SAICA Board meeting held on 17 December 2021

Special SAICA Board meeting held on 17 December 2021

The SAICA Board and executive management would like to thank all APC candidates and SAICA stakeholders for their patience in awaiting the outcome of its deliberation following various stakeholder engagements regarding the impact of the 1 December 2021 Assessment of Professional Competence (APC) sitting.

With reference to the public statement made on 2 December 2021 and as outlined in the SAICA Board Digest circulated on 7 December 2021, the SAICA Board clarifies two key points:

  1. The Board, in principle, decided that steps should be taken to address the issues brought to its attention and reaffirms that all APC candidates should be given the opportunity to rewrite the 2021 APC assessment.
  2. In addition, the Board stated that it had decided to conduct an independent online survey to ensure that examination challenges encountered by the APC candidates were comprehensively identified and reasonably addressed. The SAICA CEO was also tasked to further engage with candidates and other stakeholders to prepare an updated comprehensive report for the Board.

The Board reconvened on 17 December 2021 to consider additional management reports, including the Initial Professional Development Committee’s (IPD) recommendations and to receive an update on the results of the various consultations.

Board approvals


Following careful consideration of all the facts presented, and considering the findings of further stakeholder consultations, particularly with candidates, the Board determined that:

  • Once SAICA completes the marking of the 1 December 2021 APC, all candidates will be informed of their individual result.
  • Once results are released, all APC candidates who took the 1 December 2021 APC will be given the opportunity to rewrite the assessment. The rewrite opportunity is available to all candidates due to the extent of the technical challenges experienced in order to provide the candidates with the opportunity to better demonstrate their competence or improve their competence level from ‘Competent’ to ‘Highly Competent’. Candidates who are successful with the 1 December 2021 APC may elect not to rewrite.
  • Candidates who opt to rewrite the 2021 APC will be accorded the higher of the competency levels achieved in the two assessments.
  • To participate in the rewrite, candidates must complete a formal registration process and complete all relevant documents pertaining to SAICA’s examination rules.
  • This rewrite opportunity will be provided at “no examination fee” to candidates.

The Board provides the following considerations with respect to timelines:

  • The timing of the rewrite from the time of release of examination results will not be excessive and will consider the stakeholders’ business and training cycle.
  • Practical considerations will be taken into account with respect to the lead time between scripts marking and rewrite timing.
  • The timing of the rewrite of the 2021 APC will consider religious holidays.
  • The overall results and accompanying statistics of the 2021 APC cohort including the results from the rewrite will be published at the same time. These will be released at a date to be communicated by SAICA management.

These special arrangements for the 2021 APC candidates are not intended to set a precedent for the future, but are extraordinary measures taken by SAICA to address the significant technical challenges faced by candidates on 1 December 2021.

The Board further approved the formation of a new sub-committee of the Board namely the Education and Assessment Committee. This committee will be given a formal mandate from the Board to, among other things, monitor the governance framework underpinning education and assessment processes and to ensure that they are clearly reviewed, monitored, and evaluated at regular intervals with IPD as a management committee.

The Board assures candidates and stakeholders that detailed oversight of this matter is in place, and that once practical, logistical timelines are determined, the exact dates will be communicated to candidates and stakeholders by SAICA management.