The COVID-19 pandemic crisis and its economic effect means that investors and other stakeholders need high-quality financial information more than ever. To this end, accountancy firms, regulators, IFAC member organizations and others have quickly made available advice and guidance on the accounting and financial reporting requirements that will need to be considered in addressing the financial effects of COVID-19 when preparing financial statements. Many of these resources are conveniently available through IFAC’s COVID-19 resource centre. To help consolidate the highlights of this guidelines, a summary of key areas to consider is outlined together with links to key references on the IFAC website. The 21st century is characterized by a lot of media and electronics to accomplish daily tasks in workplace endeavors. Technology is now flooded in a modern office in this 21st century timeframe.

The International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) published its Strategy for 2020- 2023 (the Strategy) and Work Plan for 2020-2021 (the Work Plan) , this week (April 15, 2020). We have also signaled our sensitivity to the current circumstances created by the COVID-19 outbreak. The purpose of this note is to update stakeholders on the progress of support material under development and the evolution of our thinking on our Work Plan. Staff Alerts under Development A core element of our COVID-19 response is to develop Staff Alerts on several targeted topics to support the application of our standards under current circumstances. Our goal is to support the public interest and the role auditors must play in sustaining trust in financial and other external reporting. We are coordinating with others, such as National Standard Setters (NSS) and the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and its Professional Accountancy Organization (PAO) members, as well as engaging with regulators and oversight bodies. In addition to the IAASB Staff Alert, highlighting areas of focus in an Evolving Audit Environment Due to the Impact of COVID-19, we are drafting Staff Alerts on the following topics: