ACCA, Deloitte launch 10th edition of CFO awards
“ACCA and Deloitte have established this platform over the last 10 years to recognise, to celebrate and to elevate the profile of exceptional financial leadership driving Uganda's economy,” Kukunda said.
Joseph Ssekabira, associate director for Assurance at Deloitte Uganda, Irene Mwoyogwona, executive director at BRAC, Godfrey Byekwaso, managing director, Centenary Bank and a past winner of the CFO Awards, Charlotte Kukunda, country manager at ACCA Uganda and Desire Mugumisa from Next Media. (Photos by Ali Twaha)
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The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) Uganda and Deloitte have launched the 10th edition of the CFO Awards, opening a six-week window for nominations among financial professionals.
Speaking at the lunch held at the Golden Tulip Hotel in Kampala, Charlotte Kukunda, country manager at ACCA Uganda, said the platform was established a decade ago with a clear purpose.
“ACCA and Deloitte have established this platform over the last 10 years to recognise, to celebrate and to elevate the profile of exceptional financial leadership driving Uganda's economy,” Kukunda said.
She said the awards were designed to highlight the role CFOs play in building resilient businesses while inspiring the next generation of business leaders. Kukunda revealed that over the past nine editions, 50 professionals have been recognised with a total of 76 awards, a quarter of which went to women.
The Banking, Financial Services and Insurance sector took the largest share of the awards at 52%, followed by the public sector at 13%, telecoms at 12% and the not-for-profit sector at 10%.
(L-R); Irene Mwoyogwona, executive director at BRAC, Godfrey Byekwaso, managing director, Centenary Bank and a past winner of the CFO Awards and Charlotte Kukunda, country manager at ACCA Uganda during the press launch event at Golden Tulip Hotel in Kampala.
The nomination window has opened today (August 6) and will close in September, with winners to be announced at a dinner on October 16. The awards retain nine categories, including three sector-specific awards for the not-for-profit, small and medium enterprise, and public sector segments, alongside function-specific categories covering leadership, governance and compliance, strategy, finance transformation and technology, sustainability, and a young CFO award reserved for finance leaders aged 35 and below.
“It’s not just about creating publicity. It’s also about encouraging the participants out there to nominate or to self-nominate the CFOs, the ones who work with CFOs, to acknowledge what they have done very well and go ahead and nominate them,” Kukunda said.
Godfrey Byekwaso, managing director, Centenary Bank and a past winner of the CFO Awards, said the CFO role had directly shaped his rise to the top of the bank. He said the position gives finance leaders a rare vantage point over an entire organisation before they move into broader executive roles.
Byekwaso, who moved from CFO to deputy managing director before rising to lead Centenary Bank, said the discipline of the finance function builds the strategic thinking, governance grounding and risk awareness that carry over into enterprise leadership.
“How do you come in? Are you coming in to compete or are you coming in to learn and grow? Come in and reflect upon your role as CFO. Yes, there is winning at the end, but it is more than winning. It is about the reflection on what you become after going through that process,” he said.
He urged applicants to back their nominations with evidence of what they have personally contributed rather than achievements attributed to their institutions.
Joseph Ssekabira, associate director for Assurance at Deloitte Uganda, said the awards are open to all sectors, including small businesses, provided they have someone heading the finance function.
“All industries, financial services, energy, telecom, media, real estate, retail and consumer business, please participate and encourage everyone to be part of this 10th edition," Ssekabira said.
Under the eligibility rules announced at the launch, nominees must be residents of Uganda, must head the finance function in their organisation regardless of job title, and cannot be nominated for an award category they have already won in a previous edition.