MGI Worldwide continues to be a top-20 network in Africa and the Middle East

The latest IAB rankings put MGI Worldwide international accounting association solidly in the top 20 for both the African and Middle-Eastern regions, showing that we are among the top networks around the globe.

Following the publication of the International Accounting Bulletin's (IAB) 2019 World Survey, released in February, MGI Worldwide is proud to see that we’ve once again retained our top-20 positions in both the Middle East and Africa both in terms of fees and the number of staff within the accountancy network.

Strong growth in the Middle East

In the Middle East, MGI Worldwide member firms registered a total of $13 million in fees, the 19th-highest in the region. This is an incredible growth of 129 per cent, and we’re extremely proud to see our members succeed so impressively.

Of this, the majority of the fees came from audit and accounting services, which made up 54 per cent of the total. Another 19 per cent came from tax, with both advisory and accounting services providing eight per cent each towards the total.

Similarly, MGI Worldwide came in 19th in terms of the number of staff our member firms employ in the Middle East. The IAB recorded 189 staff, a 24 per cent increase from the year before, across 19 offices. Of these, 29 were partners and the remaining 160 were professionals.

This boost to accountancy services in the region might be due to the introduction of VAT throughout the Middle East, which has made audit services more necessary and in many cases increased their price.

Robust African markets

In Africa, MGI Worldwide performed similarly well. In terms of fees, we came in 17th having taken in a total of $11.1 million. This is a strong growth of 31 per cent, partly due to the introduction of new firms into our network and partly due to organic expansion.

Audit contributed to 37 per cent of the fees collected, while accounting services brought another 28 per cent. Some 22 per cent of the fees collected were for “other” services, suggesting that MGI’s African members have quite diverse offerings.

MGI Worldwide was 18th in the region for staff, with 40 partners and 285 professionals employed throughout African member firms across 15 different offices. This total of 325 staff represents a growth of 28 per cent.

Things are looking positive for Africa, despite fluctuation in oil prices causing some issues. Chinese investment in the region continues to grow, and the development of agricultural businesses looks set to be beneficial in the coming months.

For more information please contact Regional Director Audrey Danasamy.

MGI Africa and MGI Middle East and North Africa are part of MGI Worldwide, a top 20 ranked global accounting networkwith some 5,200 independent auditors, accountants and tax experts in over 260 locations around the world.