1. The Role of Accounting Ethics in National
Development
By
Madayese John Oluwashola
Student, Department of Management and Accounting, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife
j.madayese@student.oauife.edu.ng
08181576559

2. ABSTRACT
The professional accounting organizations, such as ICAN and ANAN in Nigeria, establish codes of ethics
and standards that their members must adhere to in their practice. At the core of these ethics is the strict
adherence to the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and the fundamental principles that
make accountants to act in the interest of the public. This essay takes into account the roles various
accounting ethics play in stimulating the development of a nation, with an emphasis on Nigeria.
Keywords: Ethics, accounting, role, national development, public interest, professional and competence.
INTRODUCTION
Ethics refers to a code of conduct that guides an individual in his/her dealings with others. It has to do with
personal behavior and moral duty. It is concerned with what is right and wrong. In work situation it is
concerned with principles and practices of moral and good conducts in business life. The practice of
accounting profession is based on certain ethical principles which serve as the drivers of the performance
of the accounting function in a nation’s economy. Just like in management it is believed that a good
manager should be able to plan, organize, direct and coordinate, it is also expected of accountants to have
good professional behavior, integrity, independent mind, objective mind and professional competence.
These ethics among others are not only useful to the firms that employ accountants but they are necessary
for the development of a nation as a whole.
Promoting the development of a nation through good accounting ethics is one of the tactics increasingly
adopted in recent times by governments around the world who want to encourage economic development
at all levels. Over the years accounting ethics have fostered the development of cities, trade, and the
concepts of wealth and numbers. Accountants invented writing, participated in the development of money
and banking, invented double entry bookkeeping that fuelled the Italian Renaissance, saved many
Industrial Revolution inventors and entrepreneurs for survival, helped develop the capital markets
necessary for big business so essential for capitalism, turned into a profession that brought credibility for
complex business practices that sparked the economic boom of the 20th century, and are central to the
information revolution that is now transforming the global economy (Tudor and Mutiu (2007).

3. THE ROLES OF FIVE KEY ACCOUNTING ETHICS IN NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
A distinguishing mark of the accountancy profession is its acceptance of the responsibility to act in the
interest of the public. Therefore, a professional accountant’s responsibility is not exclusively to satisfy the
needs of an individual client or employer. In acting in the public and individual interests, a professional
accountant shall observe and comply with certain ethical principles. These accounting ethics are basically
five in number, i.e. integrity, objectivity, professional competence and due care, confidentiality and
professional behavior. These aforementioned ethics have major roles to play in the development of a nation
as examined in subsequent paragraphs.
Firstly, the ethics of integrity imposes an obligation on all accountants to be straightforward and honest in
professional and business relationships. Integrity also implies fair dealing and truthfulness. Accounting
profession is distinct from other occupations in virtue of its access to a large body of distinctive, largely
theoretical knowledge, and a group of related skills, which are attained through specialized education and
are therefore not available to the general public. This state of affairs brings with it a corresponding need for
the public to trust accounting professionals both to be competent and to act ethically. ANAN President, Mr.
Anthony Nzom, during the association’s 4th session of the 2015 Mandatory Continuing Professional
Development Program held in Umuahia, Abia State enjoined members to shun temptations by chief
executives and politicians to falsify figures and corruptly enrich themselves. He said that no fraud could
successfully occur in a system without the collusion of accountants. Integrity is key in the accounting
ethics and it is required to make accountants truly successful in the nation’s business. If all accountants in a
nation like Nigeria employ this ethics of integrity in their dealings in the public sector for example,
corruptions and other menaces which have been plaguing national development gradually will be brought
to an end.
Secondly, the principle of objectivity imposes an obligation on all accounting practitioners not to
compromise their professional or business judgment because of bias, conflict of interest or the undue
influence of others. The purpose of objectivity along with all of the other GAAPs is to make financial
statements more useful to investors and end users, the objectivity principle, specifically aids to ensure that
financial statements are reliable and verifiable. Reliability means that the financial information is consistent
and trustworthy to investors and end users, while verifiability means that the financial information can be
proven with evidence and the findings can be duplicated. A good, truthful and useful financial statements

4. developed by accountants objectively across the nation can stimulate foreign investors to invest the various
sectors of the nation and this would increase the nation’s Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and the GDP
and increases in these indicators signify growth and subsequent development in the nation’s economy.
Thirdly, the ethics of professional competence and due care imposes the following obligations on
accountants: one, to maintain professional knowledge and skill at the level required to ensure that clients or
employers receive competent professional service; and two to act diligently in accordance with applicable
technical and professional standards when providing professional services. This ethics helps to make
accountants work in a public interest by promoting accountability. Mrs. Toyin Ademola, head of ACCA
Nigeria in a chat with Vanguard Nigeria in the year 2013 identified this ethics of professional competence
as what will make professionals in Nigeria valuable especially in the field of accounting and this will
establish values such as accessibility, opportunity, accountability and innovation in them. She also
stressed that what will do a nation proud is that all professionals should be competent and exercise due care
in the performance of their duties in the various industries in the nation.
Fourthly, the ethics of confidentiality imposes an obligation on accounting professionals to refrain from
using confidential information acquired as a result of professional and business relationships to their
personal advantage or the advantage of third parties. Confidentiality should be maintained even in a social
environment. Personal information confidential to reporting earnings and monies are expected to be kept
properly by accountants without any falsification.
Lastly, the principle of professional behavior imposes an obligation on accountants to comply with relevant
laws and regulations and avoid any action that may bring discredit to the profession. This includes actions
that a reasonable and informed third party, weighing all the specific facts and circumstances available to
the professional accountant at that time, would be likely to conclude adversely affects the good reputation
of the profession. In marketing and promoting themselves and their work, professional accountants are not
to bring the profession into disrepute. They should be honest and truthful and not make exaggerated claims
for the services they are able to offer, the qualifications they possess, or experience they have gained; or
make disparaging references or unsubstantiated comparisons to the work of others. If accounting
practitioners fail to uphold this good professional behavior, this negligence might lead to a great financial
loss, not only for the owners of funds and the accountants but for the development of the nation as well.
CONCLUSION

5. As with other professional disciplines, understanding and upholding ethics is very important in the
accounting field. Small-business investors and leaders consistently rely on the ethical collection and
delivery of financial information, and are sometimes placed at risk if accounting ethics are not preserved.
For a small-business owner, investor or manager, learning the basics of accounting ethics and their function
is a good way to avoid legal and financial trouble in the nation’s economy. As businesses rely heavily on
accounting ethics, so does the nation, whether the nation is aware of it or not. Unless the private and public
sectors can be reasonably confident that the financial recordkeeping practices of their accounting
professionals are honest, straightforward and consistent with industry standards, it is unlikely they can trust
their records’ accuracy.
REFERENCES
1. The Certified National Accountant, A quarterly journal of ANAN (December, 2010)
2. Exposure Draft, A Publication of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), (July, 2012)
3. Chartered Institute of Management Accountants: Code Of Professionalism: www.cimaglobal.com
4. Code of Ethics For Chartered Accountants, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (ICAP),
(May, 2008)
5. Punch Nigeria: http://www.punchng.com/news/politicians-lure-accountants-to-steal-money-anan-
president/
6. Vanguard Nigeria: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/08/acca-to-train-globally-competitive-
finance-professionals/