Factors Influencing the Acceptance of International Public Sector Accounting Standards in Cameroon

Abstract

There is a growing consensus that governments should be held financially accountable, and Cameroon like many developing countries faces the challenge of running a sound government accounting system that guarantees accountability and transparency. Governments strive to adopt a new public management philosophy which focuses on the change in management practices of the public sector towards more private sector practices with the aim of rendering the public sector more cost effective and efficient. The transition from cash to accrual based International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) in order to overcome the rising unaccountability and opaqueness in the use of public sector finances becomes a daunting task. In this respect, Cameroon tends to accept international accounting standards that can be adapted easily to its local situation and also make its financial reports more reliable, standardised, comparable, and attractive on the international scene. With this backdrop, the paper sought to investigate the factors influencing the acceptance of government accounting reforms in general and IPSAS in particular in Cameroon. A survey was conducted in the Ministry of Finance (MINFI) and the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and Ordered Logistics Estimation techniques used. The main findings revealed the determining factors of IPSAS acceptance in Cameroon namely: knowledge and awareness, institutional organisation, staff training and recruitment, management information system, qualification, sex, implementation cost, political support, and age. The paper ends up proposing a careful study of these factors by the government for any successful public sector accounting reform and IPSAS acceptance to take place.