INPAS: A Unified Global Standard to End Audit Duplication

INPAS: A Unified Global Standard to End Audit Duplication

The launch of the International Non-Profit Accounting Standard (INPAS) on 21 October 2025 at the offices of The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria at the Global Health Campus in Geneva, was a milestone event for the non-profit sector. The core objective of INPAS is to significantly enhance transparency and accountability in the management of global resources.

The tone for this new era was set by Adda Faye, Chief Financial Officer of The Global Fund, who delivered a powerful keynote address stressing the moral necessity of prudent financial management: "We have a responsibility to use resources wisely. We must think of those who live on less than $1 a day and do our utmost."

Addressing the Audit Burden

The need for INPAS was highlighted in a panel discussion where Bright Amisi, CEO of BMG Partners Inc., participated. The discussion focused on the sector’s historical inefficiency: the crippling burden of multiple statutory and grant audits. This fragmentation, driven by the absence of a global standard, has led to wasted resources and complex compliance. The push is now firmly on for a single audit approach, enabled by the new standards, to replace this duplication.

The Standard and the Guide: A Cohesive Solution

INPAS is the first internationally applicable, accrual-based accounting standard for NPOs, designed to unify the preparation of whole-of-entity annual accounts. The standard and its companion, Practice Guide 1: Supplementary Statements for Donor Reporting, are designed for use together or separately.

The INPAS standard sets the fundamental reporting framework, introducing principles like Fund Accounting (separating restricted and unrestricted funds) and demanding clear, consistent financial statements. Practice Guide 1 is the vital tool for operational efficiency, providing a harmonised format for grant and project reports that links directly to the audited annual accounts. This linkage is key to enabling streamlined accountability and reducing the administrative complexity of managing dozens of different donor formats.

A Foundation for Trust, Adoption, and Efficiency

The commitment to this transformative agenda was evident in the launch sponsors, including the FirstRand Foundation. The Foundation not only supported the launch but is also committed to a significant project focused on the adoption of INPAS within their funding ecosystem. This proactive step from a major funder is an unequivocal signal that the era of fragmented reporting is coming to a close.

BMG Partners Inc. applauds this unified vision. We strongly encourage regulators and standard setters, in addition to all funders, NPOs, and auditors, to champion the adoption and implementation of INPAS and Practice Guide 1, demonstrating a commitment to global accountability that enables the strategic deployment of shared services, a key efficiency driver championed by BMG Partners Inc.