Oluchi Chibuzor
The Regional Managing Partner, West Africa, EY, Anthony Oputa, has urged audit committee members to look beyond traditional compliance and financial reporting matters by anticipating emerging risks and strengthening corporate governance amid an increasingly complex operating environment.
Oputa, who was represented by Partner & Assurance Leader, EY West Africa, Jamiu Olakisan, stated this at the 2026 Audit Committee Transformation Summit themed, ‘Shaping High-Performing Audit Committees’ organised by EY, held in Lagos recently.
According to him, audit committees perform their oversight responsibilities in an increasingly complex environment
shaped by evolving regulatory expectations, geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty, technological disruption, sustainability considerations and significant changes in financial reporting.
He explained that these developments are placing greater demands on audit committees to strengthen the systems of accounting and internal control, enhance corporate transparency, safeguard audit quality and reinforce stakeholder confidence.
According to him, “In fulfilling their oversight responsibilities, audit committees must look beyond traditional compliance and financial reporting matters. They need to anticipate emerging risks, ask more
incisive questions and provide effective oversight of critical issues such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, sustainability, taxation, talent and the implementation of IFRS 18. They must also understand how changing regulatory expectations affect boards, companies and corporate accountability in Nigeria.”
He noted that building on the success of the inaugural edition, the 2026 Audit Committee Transformation Summit themed, ‘Shaping High-Performing Audit Committees’ provides the platform for audit
committee members, board members, regulators, governance leaders and business executives to exchange perspectives on strengthening oversight and governance effectiveness.
“Also, summit will foster thought leadership in corporate governance, risk management, regulatory compliance, financial reporting and audit quality. It will promote constructive engagement among audit committees, regulators and other key stakeholders, surface top-of-mind governance issues and identify practical actions that can help audit committees remain agile, informed and fit for the future.”
Delivering his keynote address, Registrar-General/CEO, Corporate Affairs Commission, Hussaini Ishaq Magaji, argued that a director who signs off on accounts but ignores outdated policy records, undisclosed changes in control, and years of unfiled returns is not practising prudent governance.
He also argued that a director who assumes that the issue of compliance is the company secretary’s problem misunderstands the concept of collective board responsibility. And so, a pragmatic director must be well aware of the statutory obligations and the company’s compliance status.
“He has to be diligent, ensuring that records are accurate and filings are timely. He must be transparent to support beneficial ownership disclosure and ethical conduct. He has to be accountable to recognise that regulatory failure can carry personal and corporate consequences. He must be forward-looking, treating compliance as part of enterprise resilience and value creation.
“Companies with clean records, transparent ownership, active status, and disciplined governance will be better positioned to attract investment, secure credit, participate in public procurement, pursue partnerships, and execute transactions. In an economy where trust, documentation, and verification increasingly determine commercial access, compliance becomes a competitive advantage,” he said.
Meanwhile, delivering her presentation titled ‘Geopolitics and Macroeconomic Updates for Audit Committee Members’, Associate Partner, Strategy and Transactions, EY West Africa, Olayinka Oyetunji, said board and committee members should focus on their supply chain resilience in view of the various shocks witnessed in 2026.
She stressed that they must try to diversify their critical suppliers as much as possible using local sourcing because energy cost resilience is important.
“There is a need to improve energy efficiency. Try to diversify your energy sources, focussing on alternative energy. This is cheaper and it also protects the environment. Investment discipline is important and prioritise your investments.
“Test your investments against forex demand and cost scenarios. Revenue diversification is also a potential area of opportunity. Expand across products, customers, and markets, and also build financial resilience by strengthening the liquidity, working capital, and funding management,” she said.