Effect of Fiscal Responsibility Act on Budgeting and Accountability Practice in Nigeria

This study examines the effect of the Fiscal Responsibility Act on budgeting and accountability practice in Nigeria's Fourth Republic. Specifically, the study determines the relationship between the pre and post effect of the Reform Act to ascertain if there is any significant difference in the management of the nation's fiscal operations. The study made use of secondary data obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria Annual Reports and Accounts, the Central Bank Nigeria Statistical Bulletins and report of the Accountant General of the Federation as audited by the Auditor General of the Federation for the period under study. Six research questions and seven hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. The data generated for this study were presented in tables, graphs and mean scores and analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 22. The hypotheses were tested using the T test of difference and the Pearson Correlation r . Results revealed among others that the number of months of default on the publication of Federal Government Audited Accounts was reduced in the post Fiscal Responsibility Act era. Again, there is a significant negative trend in the mean corruption index after the introduction of the Act and that actual capital expenditure is more closely related to capital expenditure budget in the post than pre Fiscal Responsibility Act period. Based on the findings, we recommended that budgeting and accountability practice should be made more proactive by imbibing the culture of timely auditing and reporting standards as stated in sections 49 and 50 of the Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2007. Okegbe, T. O. "Effect of Fiscal Responsibility Act on Budgeting and Accountability Practice in Nigeria" Published in International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development (ijtsrd), ISSN: 2456-6470, Volume-3 | Issue-5 , August 2019, URL: https://www.ijtsrd.com/papers/ijtsrd26639.pdfPaper URL: https://www.ijtsrd.com/management/accounting-and-finance/26639/effect-of-fiscal-responsibility-act-on-budgeting-and-accountability-practice-in-nigeria/okegbe-t-o