Public sector accounting in emerging economies

2016 ◽  
Vol 40 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan van Helden ◽  
Hassan Ouda
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Emerging Economies ◽  
Public Sector Accounting

scholarly journals Adoption of the International Public Sector Accounting Standards in emerging economies and low-income countries: a structured literature review

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tobias Polzer ◽  
Pawan Adhikari ◽  
Cong Phuong Nguyen ◽  
Levi Gårseth-Nesbakk
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Emerging Economies ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Flow Diagram ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
Public Sector Accounting

PurposeThe aim of the study is to review the extant literature on International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) adoption in emerging economies (EEs) and low-income countries (LICs) (“what do we know?”), and to propose an agenda for future research (“what do we need to know?”).Design/methodology/approachAn analytical framework that builds on diffusion theory is developed. The authors follow the “PRISMA Flow Diagram” to reduce a total of 427 articles from four databases to a final sample of 41 articles. These studies are examined, aided by the analytical framework.FindingsThe authors find that IPSASs are a relevant issue for EEs/LICs. Overall, existing research is often explorative. The authors discover that the majority of articles rely on secondary data collection. While two-thirds of the studies perform a content analysis of pre-existing material, about one-fifth of the articles each collect primary data through means of interviews and questionnaires. The findings offer a holistic understanding of where and at what stages IPSAS reforms stand in EEs/LICs, and what factors influence the progression of reforms to the next stage of diffusion.Originality/valueThe authors outline a number of avenues for further research after discussing the dominating trends and structuring the literature based on our analytical framework. These stem from looking at the blank spots and an identified need to contextualise IPSASs adoption in EEs/LICs.

scholarly journals Public sector accounting in emerging economies: a review of the papers published in the first decade of Journal of Accounting in Emerging Economies

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan van Helden ◽  
Pawan Adhikari ◽  
Chamara Kuruppu
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Performance Management ◽  
Emerging Economies ◽  
Public Management ◽  
New Public Management ◽  
Local Context ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Public Sector Reforms ◽  
New Public ◽  
Public Sector Accounting

PurposeA review of papers on public sector accounting in emerging economies, as published in the Journal of Accounting in Emerging Economies' (JAEE) first decade.Design/methodology/approachA reflection on the issues covered and achievements made in the reviewed papers in the context of extant knowledge in this domain.FindingsA majority of the research in JAEE is dominated by accounting reforms inspired by New Public Management (NPM). Performance management, budgeting and accrual accounting are the main topics in the reviewed research. NPM claims, which can range from usability and use of a new accounting repertoire to desirable impacts on efficiency and service delivery, are often not fulfilled. Many papers attempt to explain failing accounting innovations by the local context in which they are embedded, including political instability, poor governance and a lack of capabilities.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper reviews research in a niche journal, but the findings are related to wider public sector accounting literature.Practical implicationsPublic sector practitioners, but also researchers, need to move away from a focus on public sector reforms due to contextual circumstances leading to built-in failures and concentrate instead on understanding how the accounting repertoire works in practice, including routes for improvements therein.Originality/valueAn original framework for analysing public sector accounting research in emerging economies is proposed, which, among others, distinguishes between various ambition levels for achieving NPM reforms.

scholarly journals Institutionalisation of the Cash Basis International Public Sector Accounting Standard in the Central Government of Bangladesh

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Salah Uddin Rajib ◽  
Pawan Adhikari ◽  
Mahfuzul Hoque ◽  
Mahmuda Akter
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Emerging Economies ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Reform Process ◽  
Institutional Pressures ◽  
Accounting Standard ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Adoption And Implementation ◽  
Public Sector Accounting ◽  
Cash Basis

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine public sector accounting reforms, mainly the adoption and implementation of the Cash Basis International Public Sector Accounting Standard (IPSAS) in the Central Government of Bangladesh. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on the ideas of new institutionalism, the paper investigates the factors which have forced the country to accept the Cash Basis IPSAS but have delayed its implementation in practice. Findings Different approaches towards the Cash Basis IPSAS are now distinct in the Central Government of Bangladesh. Differences between Bangladesh and other emerging economies have been narrowed as the potency of institutional pressures has increased, and there is a risk, as experienced in other emerging economies, that the very adoption of the Cash Basis IPSAS may remain more a rhetoric than a reality in Bangladesh. The paper demonstrates that the extent to which professional accountants and their associations participate in reforms determines the public sector accounting reform trajectories in emerging economies. Practical implications The paper demonstrates that reforms driven by indigenous administrators can have the potential of becoming more instrumental in emerging economies than the externally propagated reforms, such as IPSASs and accrual accounting. What is important is to advance incrementally those public sector accounting reforms that local administrators have identified as important, that they could cope with their existing knowledge and capacity, and that they are interested in engaging with the reform process. Originality/value First, the study has contributed to extending neo-institutional theory by bringing out the responses of different stakeholders responsible for implementing public sector accounting reforms, mainly the Cash Basis IPSAS, in practice. Next, the paper has raised a question as to whether the Cash Basis IPSAS could be an appropriate reform measure for the central government of Bangladesh.

Public sector financial management reforms in Ghana: insights from institutional theory

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lexis Alexander Tetteh ◽  
Cletus Agyenim-Boateng ◽  
Samuel Nana Yaw Simpson ◽  
Daniel Susuawu
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Emerging Economies ◽  
Financial Management ◽  
Business Case ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Management Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Public Sector Accounting ◽  
Internal Stakeholders ◽  
The Impact

PurposeIn this study, we use neoinstitutional sociology to explore how institutional pressures exerted on Ghana influenced the government’s decision to adopt, implement and use integrated financial management information systems (IFMIS) for the management of public financial resources.Design/methodology/approachBased on a case study of Ghana’s Controller and Accountant General’s Department (CAGD), the study uses a qualitative interpretive case approach as the methodological stance, and some key officials involved in the implementation of the IFMIS project were interviewed and documentary evidence was also analyzed to achieve triangulation of data and results.FindingsThe results show that the IFMIS reform was instigated by two main forces. One is the pressure from external stakeholders like the World Bank related to funding relationships. The other is the indigenous pressures coming from internal stakeholders who felt dissatisfied with the outcomes of previous reforms. The findings also suggest that many contingencies for successful reforms to IFMIS were present in Ghana, such as the commitment of internal stakeholders, the training programs for improving the needed skills of employees, and the will to get inspired by best practices abroad. Nevertheless, ultimate users mostly were hesitant to use IFMIS due to fears of losing their jobs because of institutionalized practices and a lack of IT skills. The study further revealed that, even if many conditions for a successful reform, especially regarding adoption and implementation, are in place, the reform may ultimately fail due to the impact of other factors that particularly regard the use of the newly developed accounting repertoire.Practical implicationsThe findings of this study can be considered as a blueprint to emerging economies yet to adopt and implement similar IT-based Public Financial Management Information System (PFMIS). Moreover, given that some ultimate users exhibited resistance to the use of the new system, the results will prompt emerging economies that have not yet implemented IT-based PFMIS to recognize that cultural change management is an inevitable condition for successful implementation and use of IT-based PFMIS.Originality/valueThis study contributes to studies on public sector accounting reform in emerging economies by highlighting how the adoption of public sector accounting reform was instigated by both development partners and indigenous institutions responsible for ensuring effective and transparent management of public funds. Furthermore, unlike previous studies, the implementation team imported business case ideas from the private sector to augment the IFMIS implementation.

The Reporting Entity in Private-Public Accounting Harmonisation. Is Control Enough for the Local Government Consolidated Financial Statements?

2017 ◽  
pp. 5-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristian Carini ◽  
Laura Rocca ◽  
Claudio Teodori ◽  
Monica Veneziani
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Consolidated Financial Statements ◽  
The Public ◽  
Financial Accountability ◽  
Public Sector Accounting ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Reporting Entity

The European Commission initiated a discussion on the expediency of using the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS), based on the IAS/IFRS, as a common base for harmonizing the public sector accounting systems of the member states. However, literature suggests that accounting is not neutral with respect to the economic, social and political dimensions. In the perspective of evolution of the accounting regulation outlined, balanced between accountability, with the need to represent phenomena for reporting pur-poses, and decisionmaking issues, which concentrates on the quantitative importance of the values, the paper aims to analyse the effects of the application of different criteria for the definition of the reporting entity of the local government consolidated financial statements (CFS). The Italian PCA 4/4, the test of control and the financial accountability approaches are examined. The evidence that emerged from the case studies examined identifies several criticalities in the Italian PCA 4/4 and support the thesis that the financial accountability approach is more effective in providing a complete representation of the public resources entrusted to and managed by the group, whereas the control approach better approximates quantification of the group results in terms of central government surveillance. The analysis highlights the importance of the post implementation review period and the opportunity to contextualize the adoption of the consolidated financial statement in the broader spectrum of the accounting harmonization process, participating in the process of definition of the European Public Sector Accounting Standards (EPSAS).

Comparison of the perception of overt and covert options in IPSAS financial statements by intergovernmental organizations

Tékhne ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-39
Author(s):  
Berit Adam
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
European Commission ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Criminal Court ◽  
Intergovernmental Organizations ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Accrual Accounting ◽  
Public Sector Accounting ◽  
Primary Reference

AbstractSince 2012, the European Commission has embarked on the ambitious project to harmonize public sector accounting rules on all levels of government within Europe, mainly to improve the quality as well as the comparability of financial data. Although International Public Sector Accounting Standards were deemed not to be suitable for a simple take-over because of various reasons, they nevertheless shall function as a primary reference point for developing European Public Sector Accounting Standards. A total of 21 out of 28 central governments have already reformed their accounting standards to accrual accounting, and some of them have also relied on IPSAS in this exercise. Apart from governments, various international and supranational governmental organizations have also since the end of the 2000’s been reforming their accounting system to accrual accounting, and have in the same way relied on existing IPSAS. This paper explores accounting practices found in ten intergovernmental organizations (Commonwealth Secretariat, Council of Europe, European Commission, IAEA, INTERPOL, ITER, NAPMA, OECD, International Criminal Court, WFP) whose statements are prepared in compliance with IPSAS. It analyzes how overt and covert options contained in IPSAS with relevance to the activities of intergovernmental organizations are exercised and evaluates in which areas of accounting material differences in accounting practices can be found, which may hinder the comparability of financial statements prepared on the basis of IPSAS.

First-time adoption of International Public Sector Accounting Standards by Russian universities: Practical aspects

2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 364-383
Author(s):  
L.I. Kulikova ◽  
I.I. Yakhin
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Educational Process ◽  
Academic Excellence ◽  
Public Sector Accounting ◽  
First Time ◽  
Russian Universities

Subject. This article examines the practice of first-time applying the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) by Russian higher education institutions. Objectives. The article aims to identify and address the problems associated with such application, and conduct a critical analysis of Russian universities' compliance with the requirements of the International Standards on their first-time adoption. Methods. For the study, we used observation, systematization, and a comparative analysis. Results. The article examines and describes the practical experience of the first-time use of IPSAS in the preparation of reporting by Russian educational institutions participating in the Russian Academic Excellence Project (5Top100 Project). It presents the results of the most typical reclassification adjustments of reporting items made by the universities when preparing their inductive statements of financial position as of the date of transition to IPSAS. Conclusions and Relevance. Most of the universities studied complied with the requirements of the IPSAS first-time adoption and provided comparative information in their first IPSAS financial reporting. The importance of the study is to justify the provision that financial reporting in accordance with IPSAS is appropriate to improve the international competitiveness of universities, which makes it possible to better reflect financial information on the activities of universities. The results of the study can be used in the practical activities of the Russian economy public sector organizations, and in the educational process of higher education institutions.

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