KUALA LUMPUR, March 4 (Bernama) -- Thirty years after the National Annual Corporate Reporting Awards (NACRA) were first established in 1990, joint organisers Bursa Malaysia Berhad, Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA) and The Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants (MICPA) have announced a new framework for NACRA 2020.

The changes come in response to a vastly transformed corporate and regulatory landscape as well as increasing investor demands for both financial and non-financial information. The new framework is also central to NACRA’s ongoing efforts to continually improve on the quality of annual reports to enhance disclosure, while upholding its vision of promoting excellence and accountability in Malaysian corporate reporting.

In his remarks, NACRA 2020 Organising Committee Chairman Mr Stanley Teo Swee Chua said, “NACRA 2020 introduces a brand-new awards structure and assessment criteria that enlarges recognition to many more leading organisations and is aligned with global reporting frameworks and best practices.”

This was supported by NACRA 2020 Adjudication Committee Chairman En Ahmad Zahirudin Abdul Rahim who said: “The New NACRA is carefully designed to ensure that reporting goes beyond disclosure. Indeed, reporting on both financial and non-financial measures can become a highly useful tool for companies to align their performance with their strategy and meet increasing investor scrutiny and expectations for better sustainability.”

The key changes to the New NACRA were explained at the NACRA 2020 Launch Ceremony:
· All organisations will compete for Excellence Awards according to market capitalisation for listed companies, with a separate category for non-listed organisations. The New NACRA has dispensed with the previous separate categories for industries to further streamline the awards framework. This means that companies’ annual reports will be assessed against their peers within the same tier of market capitalisation, or within the same category of non-listed organisations. In total, NACRA 2020 offers 21 possible Excellence Awards – 1 Platinum Award, and up to 3 Gold Awards and 3 Silver Awards for each category of market capitalisation, to be awarded at the organisers’ discretion and 1 Award for Non listed organisation.
· To enhance transparency and as a guide for better reporting, the organisers have revealed the marking criteria weightage for the Excellence Awards.
· Given the increasing global relevance and acceptance of integrated reporting and sustainability, the NACRA assessment criteria have been realigned with and sustainability elements and emphasises the importance of non-financial information, forward-looking statements and sustainability information to communicate organisations’ value creation narratives over time.
· Recognising the growing global emphasis on sustainability and impact reporting on ESG (environmental, societal and governance) impacts, NACRA continues to offer an Award for Best Sustainability Reporting.
· Under New NACRA, the adjudication process has been streamlined from two stages to just one to improve efficiency. As per past years, the organisers have assembled an independent panel of expert adjudicators who are well-versed with the latest issues and developments in business and markets, as well as corporate reporting and sustainability disclosures.
· As in the past, all participants are eligible to compete for Best Sustainability Reporting and Best Designed Annual Report. Those participants who submit the Bahasa Malaysia version of their annual report will be eligible to compete for the title of Best Annual Report in Bahasa Malaysia. 
· Companies are required to submit five copies of their annual reports and 1 PDF copy for the adjudication process to slim NACRA’s carbon footprint. Prior to NACRA 2019, 50 copies were required for adjudication.
· Companies are still required to submit a minimal number of hard copies for the design category so that the adjudicators can fully appreciate the aesthetics of the annual report in form, texture, readability and creativity.

All public listed and non-public listed organisations as well as other organisations established in Malaysia are cordially invited to participate in NACRA. The closing date for registration and submission of entries is 29 May 2020.

For more information about NACRA 2020, please contact the NACRA Secretariat at nacra@mia.org.my.
 
NOTE TO EDITOR:

Bursa Malaysia
Bursa Malaysia is an exchange holding company incorporated in 1976 and listed in 2005, and has grown to be one of the largest bourses in ASEAN today. Bursa Malaysia operates and regulates a fully-integrated exchange offering a comprehensive range of exchange-related facilities, and is committed to Creating Opportunities, Growing Value. Learn more at www.bursamalaysia.com.

Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA)
Established under the Accountants Act 1967, MIA is the national accountancy body that regulate, develops, supports and enhances the integrity, status and interests of the profession in Malaysia.  MIA accords the Chartered Accountant Malaysia or “C.A. (M)” designation. Working closely alongside businesses, MIA connects its membership to an unmatched range of information resources, events, professional development and networking opportunities.

Presently, there are more than 36,500 members making their strides in businesses across all industries in Malaysia and around the world.

MIA’s international outlook and connections are reflected in its membership of regional and international professional organisations such as the ASEAN Federation of Accountants (AFA), and the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). For more information on MIA, visit www.mia.org.my

The Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants (MICPA)
The Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants (MICPA) was incorporated in 1958 and is the only local body in Malaysia which conducts a professional accountancy examination recognised under the Accountants Act 1967.

MICPA’s objective is to advance the theory and practice of accountancy in all its aspects, recruit, educate and train a body of CPAs who are equipped with the technical knowledge and competencies needed to provide value add services of the highest quality. The CPA designation is widely recognised as a premier brand of professional business qualification.

MICPA is governed by a Council of 30 elected members and has close to 3,200 members and over 900 registered candidates. For more information: www.micpa.com.my

SOURCE: Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA)

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Name:Thane Meyyappan
Tel: +603 2722 9184 / +6012 248 9534

Name: Nurul Nadira Muhammad Shaharudin
Tel: +603 2722 9185 / +6019 261 9708
Email: communications@mia.org.my

--BERNAMA