practice of accounting and accounting-related consultancy as well as the professional conduct of accountants and auditors in Liberia by establishing and enforcing accounting, auditing and other assurance engagement standards in Liberia; (2) determine, set, adapt or adopt and promulgate standards and rules of general and specific application to accounting and auditing in Liberia that are appropriate for the private sector of Liberia; (3) determine, adopt and promulgate quality control standards and assist audit firms with their implementation; (4) Implement Quality Assurance requirements to ensure the quality of the work undertaken by auditors; and ensure..” In addition, per Section 25 of the Act, “the authority to certify or otherwise accredit any and all professional accountants within the Republic of Liberia is hereby exclusively reserved to the Liberian Institute of Certified Public Accountants (LICPA).” Professional Credentialing Examinations In 2008, the LICPA joined the national institutes of Ghana and Nigeria in promoting a semi-professional credentialing examinations known as the Accounting Technicians Scheme, West Africa (ATSWA. The ATSWA exams, which are a uniform mid level exam for accountants in West Africa, are currently administered in English speaking West Africa under the auspices of the Association of Accountancy Bodies in West Africa (ABWA) of which the LICPA is a founding member. ATSWA exams is currently administered, as a foundation professional exam for aspiring professional accountants, in all but one English-speaking countries in West Africa, the sole exception being The Gambia, which expects to commence the ATSWA exam in September, 2014. Professional Examinations The LICPA does not yet have a full professional accounting credentialing program of its own. However, under a Memorandum of Understanding signed with the Institute of Chartered Accountants, Ghana (ICAG)in 2010, the LICPA, starting 2011, administers the professional accounting examination of the Ghanaian Institute as the LICPA's pre-admission exams. Based on the results of that examination, a successful LICPA candidate becomes eligible for admission into the Institute as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Liberia and also into the Ghanaian Institute as a Chartered Accountant, Ghana (CA, Gh). Accounting Education in Liberian Universities Under funding provided by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under its Governance Economic Management Support (GEMS) program to Liberia, the Liberian Institute has, starting September 2013, launched a program, called Syllabi Integration Program (SIP), which aims to raise the standards of accounting education in Liberia to a global level within five years, and in the process also correct