Public sector financial reporting

Financial Reporting in Private and Public Sectors – Common Issues, Challenges and Recent Developments

A two-day workshop on November 28-29 convened participants from three regional programs, covering 13 countries, that is STAREP (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine), EU-REPARIS (Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Kosovo, FYR Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia) and PULSAR (Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Georgia, Kosovo, FYR Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia and Ukraine) [PULSAR joint workshop was co

The PULSAR program is an initiative to increase transparency, accountability, and better management of public resources through the enhancement of public sector accounting (PSA) and financial reporting frameworks. PULSAR is financed by the Governments of Austria and Switzerland and is implemented by the World Bank. Participating countries include Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Georgia, Kosovo, FYR Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia, and Ukraine.

The Public Sector Accounting and Reporting program (“PULSAR”) is a new initiative to increase transparency, accountability, and better management of public resources in Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Georgia, Kosovo, FYR Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia, and Ukraine through the enhancement of public sector accounting (“PSA”) and financial reporting frameworks. PULSAR is financed by the Governments of Austria and Switzerland and is implemented by the World Bank.

A new initiative aiming to increase transparency, accountability, and improve management of public resources through the enhancement of public sector accounting and financial reporting frameworks was launched in Vienna on December 11, 2017. The Public Sector Accounting and Reporting Program (“PULSAR”) delivers on a growing demand for a programmatic approach to strengthening public sector accounting through diagnostic assessments and capacity building targeted at public sector accountants, government institutions and a variety of other stakeholders.

The PULSAR initiative was introduced at the 19th Annual Meeting of OECD Senior Financial Management and Reporting Officials, held on March 4-5, 2019 in Paris. The presentation focused on tools and guidance developed under the program as well as PULSAR’s contribution to the 21-century public sector finance function.

The PULSAR Financial Reporting Community of Practice (FinCoP) Working Group meeting was held from June 3-4, 2019 in Winterthur, Switzerland. Professor Dr. Reto Steiner, Dean and Managing Director of the ZHAW School of Management and Law, welcomed participants and opened the meeting.

The Smart Interactive Talk (SIT) virtually hosted more than 170 participants from more than 20 countries. The main objective of this SIT was to: (i) discuss the existent methodology and the best way of its use in public sector; (ii) present IPSASB position on the topic; (iii) explore the benefits of financial statements for investors and Credit Rating Agencies; (iv) present countries/cities experiences in using performance indicators.

The Workshop hosted virtually about 180 participants from 32 countries.

Execution of core government functions and public sector service delivery crucially relies on the availability of effectively managed public sector assets. A well-informed and evidence-based management of financial and non-financial assets is crucial for governments and citizens. In this regard, Public Sector Accounting (PSA) reforms create fruitful conditions for an efficient use of public sector resources and therefore are an important prerequisite for sound public sector fixed asset management.

The Workshop hosted virtually about 135 participants from 34 countries.

Governments are entrusted to manage public resources and deliver a wide range of public services in a sound, cost-effective, and sustainable manner. However, many countries still face significant challenges in the quality of financial reporting, including its consistency and comparability.