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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to report on the results of a study carried out to examine the mediating effect of attitude in the relationship between subjective norm, religiosity and intention to adopt Islamic banking in a developing secular state like Uganda. Design/methodology/approach This study’ research design was cross sectional. Closed ended questionnaires were distributed to 258 managers of micro businesses in Uganda. Data were analyzed with the help of SPSS v22 and MedGraph program (Excel version). Findings Attitude is a significant mediator in the relationship between subjective norm and intention to adopt Islamic banking. Also, attitude significantly mediates the relationship between religiosity and intention to adopt Islamic banking. Research limitations/implications The study used only a single research methodological approach; therefore, future research could be undertaken using a mixed-methods approach. Practical implications Emphasis should be put on improving the mindsets of Ugandans toward Islamic banking. Originality/value While there has been a number of studies on Islamic banking, this study provides an initial empirical evidence on the mediation effect of attitude in the relationship between subjective norm, religiosity and intention to adopt Islamic banking in a single study in an African developing secular state like Uganda.

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the contribution of attitude, subjective norm and religiosity on the intention to adopt Islamic banking in an emerging economy like Uganda, which is a secular state that is in the early stages of adopting Islamic banking. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a cross-sectional and correlational research design. Usable questionnaires were received from 258 managers of their own micro businesses. A hierarchical regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses. Findings Results indicate that attitude and religiosity are significant determinants of the intention to adopt Islamic banking, unlike subjective norm whose predictive power is subsumed in attitude. In the absence of attitude, subjective norm is a significant determinant of intention to adopt Islamic banking. Overall, attitude, subjective norm and religiosity explain 44 per cent of the variance in the intention to adopt Islamic banking in Uganda. Research limitations/implications This study is cross-sectional, excluding the monitoring of changes in behavior over time. Further, the study used evidence from owner-managed micro businesses in Uganda. It is possible that these results are only applicable to Uganda’s micro businesses. Originality/value Islamic banking is an emerging phenomenon on the African continent, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa, where most countries are secular states. As such, there are largely no empirical studies exploring the combined contributions of attitude, subjective norm and religiosity on the intention to adopt Islamic banking in an emerging economy after the national adoption of an enabling legal framework. To the best of the researchers’ knowledge, this is the first study that carries out this task.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the contribution of internal audit function and audit committee effectiveness on accountability in statutory corporations (SCs). Design/methodology/approach This study is cross sectional and correlational. Data have been collected through a questionnaire survey of 52 SCs in Uganda through their Chief Internal Auditors and Chief Finance Officers. Data have been analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences. Findings The internal audit function significantly contributes to accountability of SCs in Uganda and audit committee effectiveness is not where effective internal audit is present in such organisations. However, audit committee effectiveness significantly contributes to accountability when an internal audit function is not present. Research limitations/implications The use of hierarchical regression is prone to problems associated with sampling error. However, the likelihood of these problems is mitigated by the interface with data. Originality/value Whereas hitherto both internal audit function and audit committee effectiveness had been viewed as explanations of accountability, this study only confirms the internal audit function as a significant predictor of SCs’ accountability relative to audit committee effectiveness.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to establish why firms in developing countries are slow to adopt integrated reporting (IR) and what needs to be done to ensure such firms embrace the practice of integrated reporting using evidence from Uganda. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a narrative cross sectional survey conducted using qualitative data collection techniques specifically the structured interviews. We conducted interviews on senior executive managers of Capital Markets Authority, Professional accountancy bodies, Uganda Securities Exchange (USE) and firms listed on Uganda Securities Exchange. The study also involved an analysis of annual reports of listed firms on USE from 2010 to 2016. Findings Results suggest that, firms are slow to adopt integrated reporting because of the scarce resources, culture and leadership, stakeholders demand, the regulatory requirement, the effect of globalization and the mindset, lack of awareness about IR and the nature of business and size. Results further suggest that integrated reporting be made mandatory for all firms, especially those that are publicly interested, such as financial institutions, and those that are listed on the stock exchange. Originality/value IR being an emerging phenomenon there are few empirical studies exploring IR practices in a developing economy perspective. To the best of the authors’ knowledge this is the first paper that provides some insights into IR from a Ugandan perspective using the Diffusion of innovation theory.