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ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) recruited a record number of new students and members in 2004. It is the world's largest and fastest-growing professional international accountancy body.

Nearly 68,000 new students and 8,000 members joined ACCA last year, making a global total of over 240,000 students and nearly 105,000 members.

The new total represents growth of 9% for students and 6% for members on the 2003 figures.

ACCA has enjoyed outstanding performance in markets around the world.

During 2004 ACCA gained over 16,400 new students in the UK and nearly 2,500 in Ireland, while central and eastern Europe witnessed over 15% growth in student numbers. Almost 15,000 students joined in greater China, Malaysia and Singapore; over 7,000 in Pakistan; in Africa, student levels grew by 10%; in south Asia by nearly 25% and in the Middle East by 30%. ACCA now has 50,575 members in its home UK market, representing 48% of the overall membership.

ACCA Chief Executive Allen Blewitt said:

"These results demonstrate the global popularity of ACCA's qualifications. ACCA delivers quality professional training that equips its students with skills that are proven to meet the needs of employers across the spectrum of business, government and practising audit firms.

"We now have over 6,500 global employers accredited for providing ACCA training, and over 385 tuition providers for students. We also now have joint examination schemes with local bodies in 21 countries. These represent the foundations that will sustain the ACCA success story around the world."

Summary of performance by region:

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