Accounting professionalism and the quality of financial reporting in Ugandan local government, a case of Mbale district local government.

Abstract

The study sought to determine the influence of accounting professionalism on the Quality of Financial Reporting in Ugandan Local Government: Case Study of Mbale District Local Government. The study was supported by specific research objectives which included evaluating the influence of professional knowledge of accountants on the quality of financial reporting, establishing the influence of personal integrity of an accountant on the quality of financial reporting and evaluating the influence of professional independence of an accountant on the quality of financial reporting. The researcher used descriptive research design and a case study was Mbale District Local Government. The study used simple random sampling and purposive sampling method. The study used a sample size of 48 respondents was used. Data was collected from the respondents’ using questionnaires and interview guide questions. The findings indicate that accountants strictly adhere to the local professional standards and rules, adhere to government’s rules and regulations guiding the profession, ethics has a significant effect on the faithful disclosure of financial reports, disclosure of items in the financial statement is affected by personal interest of the professional accountant, and disclosure of items in the financial statement is affected by personal interest of the professional accountant. Furthermore, the study revealed that adherence to high ethical standards helps boost the integrity of financial statements, accountants engaging in insider dealings tend to compromise the integrity of financial reports, acceptance of gift items by professional accountants affects the integrity of financial report, and violation of ethical core values undermines the integrity of financial reports. In addition, the findings indicate that accountant's professional independence is crucial for ensuring unbiased financial reporting, accountant's independence impact the reliability of financial statements, ethical guidelines and regulations govern accountant's professional independence in the organization, the current regulatory framework provides sufficient safeguards to maintain an accountant's independence. Besides, accountant's professional independence is crucial for ensuring unbiased financial reporting, accountant's independence impact the reliability of financial statements, ethical guidelines and regulations govern accountant's professional independence in the organization, and the current regulatory framework provides sufficient safeguards to maintain an accountant's independence.