Government Accounting in the Global South: The Design, Implementation and Use of Global Solutions for Local Needs

Government accounting reform in an ex-French African colony: The political economy of neocolonialism

“…However, government officials resented the scale and scope of accounting reforms in the SAPs, and their limited discretion to adapt them to local needs and context, as noted in other DCs (e.g. Hedger and de Renzio (2010); Wynne and Lawrence (2012). A Cabinet Minister complained that:…”

“…However, when civil servants have adequate responsibility and working conditions they can produce a degree of effective bureaucracy to mitigate poor governance. Implementations can be successful when expectations are matched to feasibility; designs and implementation involve and grant ownership to local officials and communities; there is local political commitment; external agencies frequently but sensitively monitor progress; the capacity and expertise of local officials are developed; reforms are incremental, well-sequenced, sustainable, simple, and evolve through problem-based learning; and systems are based on what works rather than imposing complex total solutions based on Northern best practices (Andrews, 2013;Wynne and Lawrence, 2012). Given the failure of many imported Northern schemes implemented by Northern experts the case for greater indigenous involvement remains compelling though it may only intermittently yield incremental and sometimes discontinuous benefits.…”

Globalisation, accounting and developing countries

“…Inequities in experience, status and qualifications may prohibit locals from challenging foreign consultants at the specification, tendering and implementation stages of accounting projects. This inadvertently stifles local involvement and contributes to reforms that do not deliver the improvements promised (Wynne & Lawrence, 2012b). For example, despite "billions of aid dollars, mountains of red tape, heavy burdens on local government staff, and literally centuries of full-time-equivalent technical expertise devoted to MTEF" results are disappointing (Schiavo-Campo, 2009, p.7); and in much of Africa IFMSs proved too complex for local needs and needed substantial customisation (Peterson, 2007).…”

Varieties of neo-colonialism: Government accounting reforms in Anglophone and Francophone Africa – Benin and Ghana compared

“…The Anglophone and Francophone regional divide -a consequence of British and French colonization in Africa (Firmin-Sellers, 2000) has received scant attention, despite each coloniser's legacy still permeating their former colony's accounting, and their continuing involvement in their former colonies' economy. Research on accounting in Africa tends is either on Anglophone or Francophone countries (Elad, 2015;Iyoha and Oyerinde, 2010;Wynne and Lawrence, 2012), with little on Francophone countries. Thus, there is little appreciation of how accounting, particularly by governments, differs across both regions; and how their different colonial and post-colonial histories, IFIs and their former colonial masters continue to shape it.…”

“…However, the influence of IFIs and former colonial powers may vary across regions (Hopper at al., 2017). For example, the WB and IMF were instrumental in encouraging Anglophone African countries to adopt Anglo-Saxon IASs (Graham and Annisette, 2012;Wynne and Lawrence, 2012) but were less successful in the Francophone region (Elad, 2015), which raises the question of why? Lassou and Hopper (2016) found tensions between the country's political leaders and civil servants.…”