Giving an impression of central government accounting reform : evidence from Malta

Abstract

Public sector accounting is firmly embedded in the political, economic, legal and social contexts in which it is practiced (Jorge et al., 2011). This results in the underlying literature, namely comparative international governmental accounting research (CIGAR), to consist mainly of a set of country studies (Jorge et al., 2011). As a research field, CIGAR developed on the idea that governmental accounting systems of different countries are worth knowing about for their own sake, and that sharing this knowledge enhances understanding (Jones, 1991). Over a 25-year period, CIGAR has constantly revealed the uniqueness of national governments. National governments are institutions that are very different from private sector bodies, and they are also very different between themselves due to the various relations that may exist between their legislatures, executives and judiciaries (Jones et al., 2013). Unique characteristics lead each national government to have its own rules and conventions, and thus its own consequent accounting and budgeting system (Jones et al. 2013). CIGAR has also confirmed the centrality of the budget in national governments accounting systems, albeit using different methods (Jones et al., 2013). CIGAR has tried to understand what leads a national government to consider changing its accounting system in an attempt to be more modern; how such accounting reforms are planned and implemented; and the factors affecting such a change process. The purpose of this paper is to apply this approach for a better understanding of the accounting reform being carried out at central government level in Malta. The study of this particular context is important for its own sake; it is particularly interesting given that Malta is the smallest EU member state; and the timing of the study is also crucial, since, following the economic crisis, the EU is considering the implementation of a standardised public sector accounting system across all member states.