Having demonstrated its commitment to distinctive corporate reporting, Telekom Malaysia Berhad for the first time in the history of the National Annual Corporate Report Awards (NACRA) walked away with the highest recognition by winning the Platinum award for Overall Excellence. They also won the Gold Award for the Best Designed Annual Report and Silver Award for Best Annual Report in Bahasa Malaysia.

Public Bank Berhad and Kumpulan Guthrie Berhad took home the Gold and Silver awards respectively for the Overall Excellence awards. Both organisations also clinched awards in other categories (see attached list).

Several other organisations also won accolades at the NACRA 2006 awards presentation dinner which was held at the Sime Darby Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur on 30 November 2006.

The NACRA awards entail five categories of awards which include the overall excellence awards, industry excellence awards for companies listed on the main board, industry excellence for companies listed on the second board, presentation awards, environmental reporting awards and a special award for non-listed organisations. Participation is open to all companies incorporated or registered in Malaysia, both listed and unlisted, as well as the public sector and other organisations established in Malaysia.

According to the NACRA Organising Chairman, Mohammad Faiz Azmi, NACRA gives honour and recognition to deserving organisations which have achieved excellence in annual corporate reporting. It is also the recognition of the efforts of the unsung heroes who comprise teams of faceless accountants, preparers, auditors and the public relations people, whose efforts are shown in the quality of reporting. ''In some ways, the Annual Reports are also a report card of their efforts which should be recognised and rewarded,'' Mohammad Faiz said in his welcoming address at the event.

He added that NACRA participation will also give companies a chance to benchmark against the best and see where they stand in the area of corporate reporting.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs, YB Datuk Haji Mohd Shafie Haji Apdal in his speech conveyed the Government? aspiration to see that that all Malaysian companies, fund managers, analysts, investors and entrepreneurs keep the issue of corporate governance high on their respective agendas. He also urged the private sector to adhere to the highest standards of corporate reporting in order to help the government foster investors' confidence in the Malaysian business climate. ''Confidence is also derived from having relevant, reliable, complete and timely information. This is vital for the efficient and effective functioning of markets and for sustaining levels of investment,'' he said. The knock-on effect of corporate malpractice and the lack of transparency are highly damaging, he added.

In encouraging participation of organisations and ensuring that NACRA stays relevant with the dynamic business environment, the range of awards at NACRA 2006 was expanded, said the Adjudication Committee Chairman, Ken Pushpanathan. The Overall Excellence Award, the Presentation Awards and the Environmental Reporting Award respectively were expanded to offer 3 awards which include a Platinum Award, a Gold Award and a Silver Award for each category. He added that Certificates of Merit were presented to all finalists in recognition of the high quality of their annual reports, and as an encouragement to each of them to achieve higher levels of excellence in corporate reporting in the coming year.

NACRA was established in 1990 to inculcate a culture of excellence in the presentation of financial and business reporting in Malaysia. Year 2006 marks NACRA's 17th year in existence and it is jointly organised by Bursa Malaysia Berhad, Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA), Malaysian Institute of Management (MIM) and The Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants (MICPA).

NACRA 2006
LIST OF AWARDS WINNERS

OVERALL EXCELLENCE AWARD
 

INDUSTRY EXCELLENCE AWARDS - MAIN BOARD

INDUSTRY EXCELLENCE AWARDS - SECOND BOARD

PRESENTATION AWARDS

ENVIRONMENTAL REPORTING AWARD

SPECIAL AWARD FOR NON-LISTED ORGANISATIONS

NACRA 2006
LIST OF CERTIFICATE OF MERIT RECIPIENTS