ACIN Tasks Audit Professionals on Competence to Boost Investors Confidence

Nigeria's accounting and audit professionals are being urged to sharpen their skills and oversight capabilities to maintain investor confidence, especially as artificial intelligence becomes more integrated into financial processes. The Audit Committee Institute of Nigeria (ACIN) emphasized this call during its 2026 Audit Committee Conference in Lagos.

ACIN stressed the importance of strengthening individual competence and professional oversight, particularly in light of AI's growing role. While acknowledging AI's efficiency in data analysis, the institute warned of the subtle yet significant risks, such as AI hallucination, which can introduce error margins. Professionals must therefore deploy independent judgment to mitigate these risks and safeguard shareholder trust.

Christian Ekeigwe, Chairman of ACIN, elaborated on this in his keynote address, 'The Guardians of Financial Truth in the Age of AI: The Challenge of Meeting Society’s Expectations.' He stated, "AI does extraordinarily well, and the profession that fails to deploy them is failing its clients and the public alike. But these tools introduce a risk that is subtler, and in some respects more dangerous, than the risk of inadequate technology adoption."

Goodluck Obi, Partner and Head of Audit at KPMG West Africa, echoed these concerns. He explained that audit statements significantly influence public perception of firms. Therefore, auditors and accountants must ensure robust oversight, strict adherence to regulatory compliance, and vigilance against both intentional and unintentional misstatements to uphold the integrity of Nigeria's financial market.

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AI does extraordinarily well, and the profession that fails to deploy them is failing its clients and the public alike. But these tools introduce a risk that is subtler, and in some respects more dangerous, than the risk of inadequate technology adoption.