Young Difference Makers S2 E3 - Liswaniso Namatama: Charting the Course Through Accounting Triumphs and Educational Pursuits

In this episode, we have the pleasure of hearing from Liswaniso Namatama, a remarkable individual who not only excels in his professional life but also has a deep passion for empowering others through education.

 Liswaniso utilizes his strong ethical values and leadership skills to lead audit projects in his workplace. His dedication to his work is evident, and he is often seen as a wise and experienced individual despite his young age.

However, Liswaniso's interests extend far beyond his work as an accountant. He has a keen interest in current events, sports, music, and travel. But above all, Liswaniso prioritizes his family and friends, recognizing the profound importance of human connections and the support of loved ones.

Recently, Liswaniso had the incredible opportunity to be part of the Chartered Accountants Worldwide delegation at One Young World in Belfast. In this episode, he shares his inspirational journey, reflecting on his experiences and the impact this event had on him.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

just focus on your own path. It will have its own challenges, its own ups and downs, but stay focused and persevere until you reach your final destination. Giving up should never be an option. It's a pleasure to be here. My name is Lissuanisou Namatama. I come from Lusaka, zambia. Lusaka is the capital city of the beautiful country known as Zambia, so I'm here representing the Zambia Institute of Chattered Accountants. I come from a family of three. I'm the last born and only male child in my family. Yeah, so that's my background.

Speaker 1: 0:52

Then, in terms of my passion for Chattered Accountants, it's actually started at a young age. I always had a liking for numbers. Mathematics was my favorite subject in primary school. So the other thing is, I admired the title of Accountant. It's just something that made me feel so good. And I also admired the huge books that you know I would find each time I got to the bookstore. Yeah, I know most people would be afraid of such huge books, but they thought of just reading and finishing that book was just amazing to me and it's something that I really wanted.

Speaker 1: 1:28

So first forward, when I went to grade eight, which is junior secondary, I started taking a course known as bookkeeping. So in bookkeeping, you basically learn about the principles of accounts and it's something that really, at this point I'd say it started taking shape. But then when I went to grade 10, which is the next level, senior secondary I unfortunately did not take any accounts of bookkeeping. So it was mainly due to some limitations. The squalls are, but I did not let this hold me back in terms of my dream of being an accountant. So after high school I started researching to see what program in accounts I can take. I also got some advice from my family, friends and some people who have gotten an accounting and finance background. So of course, some people are advising again instead of the accountants and not just to something else. Listen to that. But I remain focused. I know what I wanted and I went for it. So my final decision was that I'm going to study the accountants program offered by the Zambian Institute of Chartered Accountants. In most, I say that was a very good decision I made.

Speaker 1: 2:52

I've heard of that misconception that people have that accounts is just about numbers, number crunching, as well as debits and credits. But I'm, being a chartered accountant and, having gone through all the training, I'm here to say that it's more than that. There's a lot of other services that we are fully equipped to do as chartered accountants. One of them could be internal control reviews and risk management. So this is where you basically assess a company's controls, see if they're working efficient and effective, as well as giving recommendations to management on how they can improve. On this, we can talk about compliance, as well with laws and regulations. As accountants, we normally stay up to date with all these changes and we offer these as a service to our clients so that they are not found wanting the relevant authority. So it's not just all about the numbers. There's lots of other services that we do offer as chartered accountants.

Speaker 1: 3:56

My favorite aspect the diversity that comes with it. So I'm in audit, I'm an audit senior and you get to deal with a lot of different entities, so I tend to appreciate different industries. I've worked with some mines, I've worked with some manufacturing companies, some retail, as well as automotive. So each time you go in, you tend to appreciate how things are around there and you get a better understanding, and that's just amazing. So, as a young difference maker, one of the key things is networking with those that are aspiring. That way, I'll be able to share my story and my experiences with them, like I have done in this case, and then also be able to hear the stories as well, maybe learn one or two things, and at this point I can advise accordingly, based on their stories and just letting them know the diversity that comes with being a chartered accountant.

Speaker 1: 4:52

Like I said earlier, it's not just about number crunching and all that, but there's a lot of other services that can be done by a chartered accountant, as we are fully equipped to take on this role. One thing is through cancelling. I think it's something that helps, and that way I'll firstly understand the requirements of being a chartered accountant and can also lead them to some. There are some scholarships that are offered as well, so I think there isn't much knowledge, so most people tend not to know how to go about this. So, as someone who's knowledgeable about this, that's one way of doing so going through communities, spreading the word, as well as offering assistance. In that way, I would say I had fun working with the mine, because this was a different type of assignment. It was not a financial audit, but it was an ESG audit economic, social and governance audit that we did for one of the largest mines in the world, which is based in Zambia, in the Copper Belt. I think, as time goes by, we are reaching more in the sustainability side, because this is becoming a bigger thing each and every day, and it's important that we do so.

Speaker 1: 6:16

So the biggest challenge that I faced in my journey was that, in 2019, I started working in audit and, as you may be aware, audit is quite a busy industry. You know you always have these deadlines that you have to meet, but then, come 2020, I decided to continue with my studies. So trying to balance the tool working in a busy industry as well as doing my studies was quite challenging. So, but in this case, I had to just sit back, analyze myself, work on my strengths, analyze my weaknesses and maximize on my strengths. And so, as I did take some sacrificing, I had to sacrifice some things, you know, in terms of time, because time was very limited in this case, so I had to make the most of it, including weekends. You know I would spend most time studying and all that. So, overall, it went on well. I was able to overcome this challenge, but it still remains the greatest challenge that I faced today.

Speaker 1: 7:20

So the first thing I would say is follow your dream. I think that's really important follow your dreams, follow your passion. Secondly, I would say stay focused, never lose focus. Then, thirdly, I would say is I believe we're all trying to get to a similar destination, but the roles that lead us there are different for each one. So I think it's important not to look at the next person or another person, as that might tear you. Just focus on your own path. It will have its own challenges, its own ups and downs, but stay focused and persevere until you reach your final destination. Giving up should never be an option.