Twentieth International Conference on Knowledge, Culture, and Change in Organizations

Abstract

The importance of corporate financial reporting in the public sector cannot be overemphasized. However, the implementation of relevant laws in enhancing corporate financial reporting in the public sector poses great challenges to accountants in all public sector organizations, most especially Government Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDA). Although there are several laws, this paper concentrates on some of the components of legal framework for public financial management in Nigeria, such as the Nigeria Constitution of 1999, the Finance Control and Management Act 1958, Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) 2007, Public Procurement Act (PPA) 2007, the Financial Regulations, Treasury Circular, and Reform in public Financial Management in Nigeria, as well as the use of cash basis in International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) in preparing its financial statements, International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) for government parastatals, and Government Business Enterprises, as they all improve the quality of general purpose financial reporting by public sector entities, leading to better informed assessment of the resources allocation decisions made by governments, thereby increasing transparency and accountability. The paper recommends that managers of government business entities and other nonprofit making organizations adhere critically to the relevant laws disclosed in the reporting framework of IPSAS in Nigeria. Furthermore, the paper concludes that the implementation of relevant laws is challenging, but surmountable especially in the aspect of financial reporting. Therefore, the relevant laws will enhance corporate financial responsibility in the public sector positively, and makes the keeping of records in the public sector easy and accurate.