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Vietnam

Loan Le is certainly a woman of many talents. She was runner-up in the Miss Ho Chi Minh City beauty contest of 1989 and Miss Undergraduate 1989. Not only is she an ACCA member but she a masters degree in accounting from London 's South Bank University and is completing her PhD. In addition, she owns her own company - Loan Le Co Ltd.

Loan initially had her heart set on becoming an English teacher and it was while she was at university that a friend recommended she study accountancy. 'I'm eternally grateful for that nudge,' she said.

After graduating in 1992, Loan started her career as assistant to the chief accountant of Vinametric Ltd, a joint venture company. At this time, a colleague suggested that if she was serious about a career in accountancy she should study for the ACCA qualification. Around a year later she joined Baker Hughes Inc, an oil and gas company where she spent nearly five years as chief accountant and office administrator. At the same time, she opened her own business, TL Store, to supply uniforms and incentives for various companies. Between 1997 and 1999, Loan worked for two multinational companies in senior roles, eventually rising to financial controller.

'I come from a family of entrepreneurs. My father ran his own business and I had always wanted to be my own boss. The desire to open my own accounting and consulting firm pushed me to study for ACCA - I felt it was essential for me to obtain this qualification for the success of myself and my firm,' said Loan.

Loan secured sponsorship from her employer, Baker Hughes, and embarked on a four-and-a-half year programme of self-study. In this time, Loan travelled to Europe and other parts of Asia to sit her ACCA exams. Juggling a full day in the office, and in the evening taking care of the store, studying and looking after her husband and small daughter was very challenging. 'It was a really tough time for me,' said Loan. Things soon became even more demanding for Loan when she became pregnant with her second child. 'I flew to Hong Kong to sit some exams at five-and-a-half months pregnant.' In 1998, two months after giving birth, Loan sat her finals in Vietnam. 'I think I managed only a couple of hours sleep during exam time,' she said.

'It was my dream to run my own auditing business and I knew I had to work hard to realise that dream. I was lucky though, I benefited from the government's enterprise legislation, which aims to stimulate private enterprise by simplifying the registration of domestic business.' However, Loan's modesty cannot hide the fact that it was sheer hard work and determination which propelled her business career. In 2000, Loan finally got her wish and opened her own business, financed entirely out of her own pocket.

In her first year of business, Loan wrote a book on forecasting, budgeting and decision making. 'I thought it would be a good way to increase public awareness. I managed to get it published and it sold well. I was surprised, because at $20 a copy, it was expensive by Vietnamese standards,' she said.

Loan's hard work has certainly paid off. Today she employs 20 staff and has expanded the scope of her business to include consultancy, auditing and training services. 'When a client hears that I am an ACCA professional, they trust me. They know that I have a thorough knowledge of accounting and that I am able to understand their business. That not only helps them, but me as well. My qualification really gives a competitive advantage over many small audit firms in Vietnam,' she said.

Loan has achieved much in her young life, but for all her successes, she has no hesitation in citing motherhood as the greatest accomplishment of her 33 years. 'I'm glad that I can show it's possible to be a successful business woman and mother. It's important for me to spend time with my two daughters, to teach them playing the piano, to read them bedtime stories and just be there for them. And I have a good husband - I like to take care of him too.'