Major Challenges and Barriers to IPSASs Implementation in Lebanon

The need for greater accountability and transparency in government and private institutions handling funds and resources reporting was heightened by the global financial crisis that led to reduced resources available for both the government and private sector. This led to the introduction of an accounting and auditing system known as International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSASs) that will help to track all transactions hence ability to maintain transparency and accountability while reporting financial statements. However, the implementation of the IPSASs guidelines in most countries has been faced with a lot of barriers. Therefore, the purpose of this report is to determine some of the challenges facing the implementation of IPSASs in Lebanon. The study deploys quantitative descriptive study design and the primary data gathered using a semi-structured questionnaire from 100 public accountants and financial system managers. The data collected has been analyzed using SPSS to get frequencies and percentages which have been presented in tabular form. The findings indicate that the level of IPSAS awareness in Lebanon is higher, however, the full implementation of the IPSASs guidelines is still facing a lot of barriers. The principal obstacles that have come out clearly from the study findings included lack of government support, the high cost of implementation, resistance to change and lack of better understanding of the significance and operation of the IPSASs tool. The study has recommended that IPSASs be incorporated in college and university curriculum, the government to fund the implementation of IPSASs in all listed organizations and government departments and strengthen regulatory bodies to ensure that all accountants and auditing organizations in Lebanon comply with IPSASs guidelines.