Developments and challenges in public sector accounting

What could be dubbed traditional public sector accounting was adequate for the public sector as it existed up to the late 1980s. When it became evident that this type of accounting no longer sufficed, attention turned to seeking a role model in business accounting that differed significantly from public sector accounting. Despite the move of public sector accounting towards business accounting practices, some issues still remain unresolved. The accounting treatment of fixed assets is the question which has perhaps generated the most literature. Today much ground has been covered; however, to be modern and effective, public sector accounting has still to grapple with three important challenges: standardisation and accounting convergence; consolidation of financial statements; and management indicators and additional information for disclosure.