Governance, transparency and accountability: An international comparison

Governmental financial transparency is an essential element in the implementation of policies to overcome the present crisis of public finances. The international financial reporting standards aim to improve governmental transparency and accountability through the use of new accounting models. Based on an international empirical study involving the Supreme Audit Institutions of 29 countries, this paper examines the political decisions associated with the introduction of the fair value accounting (FVA) to improve governmental financial transparency. Our findings show that the application of FVA would require action in three areas of government public policy: regulatory reform, skills training for public-sector staff and internationalisation.