The last two decades have been characterized by ground moving inventions in every aspect of life. Technology adoption has been the catalyst of efficiency in all business processes. Digitalization of processes has reduced human error and the speed of processing of data and reports has greatly improved. One of the areas most positively affected by computing is the processing of business data. The accounting function too is not alien to this developments hence the adoption of computing technologies in the reporting and analysis of financial statements.

Enterprise computing has always been in the lead since companies are always looking for way to improve their bottom-line. This has led to cloud computing which is a more cost effective, secure and efficient way to maintain credible data. For instance cloud accounting has gained notable momentum worldwide with an initial growth projection of the global computing market size to grow up to USD 832.1 billion by 2025 from USD 371.4 billion in 2020. (Source: Research & Markets).

We may say the move to cloud accounting was necessitated by the challenges paused due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Just enumerate a few;

1. The lockdown government directive created a logistical challenge where the work from home now popular initiative. Cloud accounting breached this gap since the accountants could work from their homes.
2. Cloud accounting helped the owners of the business be able to make quick financial decisions since they can monitor their businesses remotely.

 Cloud accounting will therefore become a striking reality for visionary enterprises in Uganda.

It has notably refined and redefined business processes worldwide, been remarkably acknowledged and has consequently gained appreciation amongst SMEs.

Is the shift worth it for Uganda? Why implement Cloud Accounting Systems?

• 24/7 Information Access on Web, Android or
• Scalability – Flexibility to system functionalities as the company
• Multi-access – Accountants, Directors and Auditors are able to access the system based on user
• Economical – Low upfront implementation costs, reduced support, quick implementation processes and little or no
• Data Security

In light of the above, implementation of Cloud Accounting Systems will ensure continuity in financial reporting despite the injunction to work remotely.

What else does it mean for businesses?

• Transparent and real-time financial
• Informed operational and strategic decisions by
• Automation and hence effectiveness, efficiency and ultimately productivity across various business
• Seamless document

Despite the aforementioned, organizations new to the cloud accounting concept in Uganda have reservations around data security. In our next post, we shall address these fears, whether accounting data is secure on cloud and how cloud accounting systems developers ensure the same.