A retired finance lecturer from Northern Ireland has been elected president of the leading global professional accountancy body.

Ronnie Patton, from Bangor, County Down, leads more than 750,000 ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) members and future members across 181 countries.

He joined ACCA in 1981 and is a former president of ACCA Ireland. He was senior lecturer in Professional Accounting Practice at Ulster University, Belfast, from 2003 until this year.

“I can’t wait to get started and to do all I can to contribute to our work around the world,” said Patton.

“The themes that I have chosen as my focus for the year ahead are Purpose, Professionalism and People. They’re about how ACCA stands for more than just making money; about how the professionalism of ACCA members makes them stand out in the crowd; and about how our people are special because they embody values and a purpose that make the world a better, more sustainable place.”

Patton is joined in the leadership of ACCA’s global governing Council by fellow officers – deputy president Ayla Majid from Pakistan, the CEO of a sustainable finance consultancy; and vice–president Melanie Proffitt, from England, who is CFO of a hotels group in the Cotswolds.

He is the second member of ACCA Ireland in three years to serve as ACCA President, following Orla Collins from Dublin in 2021/22.