scholarly journals Unintended consequences in implementing public sector accounting reforms in emerging economies: evidence from Egypt, Nepal and Sri Lanka

2019 ◽  
pp. 002085231986415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pawan Adhikari ◽  
Chamara Kuruppu ◽  
Hassan Ouda ◽  
Giuseppe Grossi ◽  
Dayananda Ambalangodage
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Emerging Economies ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Public Sector Accounting

Accounting Reforms for Accountable Public Sector Management

2020 ◽  
pp. 41-64
Author(s):  
Chitra Sriyani De Silva Lokuwaduge ◽  
Keshara M. De Silva Godage
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Financial Management ◽  
Public Management ◽  
New Public Management ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
The Public ◽  
New Public ◽  
Public Sector Accounting

Accounting reforms in the public sector have become one of the most debated aspects of the public sector financial management during the last three decades. Following the steps of developed countries around the globe, Sri Lanka as a developing country made initiatives to adopt international public sector accounting standards (IPSAS). The purpose of this study is to analyse the progress and the challenges they face in adopting IPSAS as a new public management (NPM) reform in Sri Lanka to enhance public sector accountability. Public sector accounting reforms in the developing countries in Asia is relatively under researched. Using the NPM concept, this study attempts to fill this gap. This chapter argues that even though Sri Lanka has initiated the move towards adopting IPSAS, developing countries face practical problems in adopting reforms due to their contextual factors such as limited institutional capacity and resources, high political involvements in decision-making, and high informality.

scholarly journals Perception of Government Accountants on Current Public Sector Accounting Practices and Implementation of Public Sector Accounting Standards in the Sri Lanka

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 76
Author(s):  
Vickneswaran Anojan
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Public Expenditure ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
The Public ◽  
Reporting Practices ◽  
Public Sector Organizations ◽  
Public Sector Accounting ◽  
Accrual Basis ◽  
Assets Management

The main aim of the study is to find out the perception of government accountants on current public sector accounting practices and implementation of public sector accounting standards in the Sri Lanka. Public sector accounting practices involve with public expenditure, budget preparation, maintain proper accounting records, assets management, public financial management and provide reports on the public expenditure and revenue. Most of the public sector organizations do not prepare final accounts on accrual basis in the Sri Lanka. Primary data used in this study which data collected from government accountants in Sri Lanka. Mean analysis confirmed that there is moderate level of public sector accounting practices and implementation of public sector accounting standards in the Sri Lanka. Correlation analysis confirmed that there is significant relationship between public sector accounting practices and implementation of public sector accounting standards. Implementation of public sector accounting standards are positively impact on the public sector’s financial reporting practices and assets management practices in the Sri Lanka. Also below 23 percentage of public sector organizations are preparing final accounts on accrual basis. More than 97 percentage government accountants have ability to prepare annual accounts on accrual basis. Government administrators, policy makers and professional institutions should motivate effective and efficient implementation of the public sector accounting standards which will lead to a healthy public sector accounting practices in Sri Lanka. 

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 Determinants of public sector accounting reforms

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (2/3) ◽  
pp. 191-205
Author(s):  
Chitra Sriyani De Silva Lokuwaduge ◽  
Keshara De Silva
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Developing Country ◽  
Financial Management ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Adoption Process ◽  
Sri Lankan ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Public Sector Accounting

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to extend the New Public Financial Management concept and the contingency model approach to an analysis of the determinants of the accrual-based International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) adoption process as a financial management reform in Sri Lanka, a developing country in Asia. Design/methodology/approach Based on the prior literature, this paper develops a framework to highlight the importance of accrual-based reforms in public sector accounting policies to enable better transparency and accountability. It shows the extent to which Sri Lankan public sector institutions have adopted IPSAS-based accounting standards and the limitations of adopting these standards in a developing country, using documentary analysis. Findings In developing countries, the public sector faces practical problems when adopting reforms due to limited institutional capacity, high political involvement and bureaucracy in decision making. This paper concludes that significant policy changes towards the adoption of international accounting standards have gained momentum over the last decade in Sri Lanka while the much larger economies in Asia are still studying this process. However, the prevailing political uncertainty in Sri Lanka has negatively impacted the implementation process. Originality/value Relatively little is known about the diffusion of, and the difficulties in, implementing accrual-based IPSAS in the Asian region. This paper is an attempt to fill this gap by exploring the Sri Lankan experience. This could be applied by other developing countries in Asia, including the high-growth nations, for policy adoption and accounting harmonisation.

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.

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