Charitable Organisations To Be Financially Transparent

Charity organisations registered in the Charitable Trust Act, who fail to prepare and present an audited annual financial statement, can expect to be named and shamed by the Registrar of Titles.

This was after Parliament passed a Bill to amend the Companies Act yesterday.

Attorney-General and Minister for Economy Aiyaz-Sayed Khaiyum said the amendment ensured that those who donate funds to charitable organisations know how the money has actually been spent for the purpose the particular organisation holds itself out to be.

The amendment states that those who do not comply, will be named and shamed so that donor agencies know who have been non-compliant with the country’s transparency laws.

“The Registrar will publish and make publicly available any information in relation to the non-compliance of a charitable trust, including the names of the trustees and board members of the charitable trust, if the charitable trust fails to comply,” Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said.

“These are charitable organisations who in particular receive donations from corporates, international agencies and other donors.”

He said the mischiefs had been identified with regards to the registering of charitable companies.

“We have found that a number of these organisations are now not registering necessarily under the Charitable Trust Act but registering as companies limited by guarantee and therefore they are not necessarily caught by the Charitable Trust Act in terms of declaring their annual account,” he said.

“This amendment seeks to address this mischief and find a solution.”

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