How the colonial legacy frames state audit institutions in Benin that fail to curb corruption
How the colonial legacy frames state audit institutions in Benin that fail to curb corruption
Supreme audit institutions are an important pillar of governance and government resource management, particularly for controlling corruption. Francophone African countries inherited these from their former colonial power, France, but their role and function are limited. This paper argues that this is partly a legacy of their colonial experience. It investigates the Chamber of Accounts in Benin, the country's supreme audit institution, using the lenses of Ekeh (1975) two publics and legitimacy theory. Nonetheless, Ekeh's theory needed extending to incorporate changes affecting governance after Benin's independence. The amorality of political officials, accepted by much of Benin society, rendered the institution largely ineffective in controlling corruption. Nevertheless, civil society organizations, donors, and the World Bank and International Monetary Fund have attempted to redress this. Politicians and government officials responded by engaging in symbolic compliance to meet stakeholders’ expectations. A separate audit institution – the General Inspectorate of State – was established under the sole control of the President to gain external legitimacy and retain donors’ budget support, whilst persistent corruption and rising poverty continue. Benin's auditing institutions have become empty crates, which sometimes facilitate rather than control corruption.
Africa, Benin, accounting, civic public, corruption, donor, supreme audit institutions
1-23
Lassou, Philippe J.
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Hopper, Trevor
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Ntim, Collins
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Lassou, Philippe J.
b72d8384-7fd6-4cdd-9605-6d3b8d6b17e9
Hopper, Trevor
50f49e00-50fb-4a54-9a48-86aafcccea54
Ntim, Collins
1f344edc-8005-4e96-8972-d56c4dade46b
Lassou, Philippe J., Hopper, Trevor and Ntim, Collins
(2020)
How the colonial legacy frames state audit institutions in Benin that fail to curb corruption.
Critical Perspectives on Accounting, , [102168].
(doi:10.1016/j.cpa.2020.102168).
Abstract
Supreme audit institutions are an important pillar of governance and government resource management, particularly for controlling corruption. Francophone African countries inherited these from their former colonial power, France, but their role and function are limited. This paper argues that this is partly a legacy of their colonial experience. It investigates the Chamber of Accounts in Benin, the country's supreme audit institution, using the lenses of Ekeh (1975) two publics and legitimacy theory. Nonetheless, Ekeh's theory needed extending to incorporate changes affecting governance after Benin's independence. The amorality of political officials, accepted by much of Benin society, rendered the institution largely ineffective in controlling corruption. Nevertheless, civil society organizations, donors, and the World Bank and International Monetary Fund have attempted to redress this. Politicians and government officials responded by engaging in symbolic compliance to meet stakeholders’ expectations. A separate audit institution – the General Inspectorate of State – was established under the sole control of the President to gain external legitimacy and retain donors’ budget support, whilst persistent corruption and rising poverty continue. Benin's auditing institutions have become empty crates, which sometimes facilitate rather than control corruption.
Text
Accepted_CPA_22_February_2020_SAI Manuscript - R2
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 22 February 2020
e-pub ahead of print date: 20 March 2020
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
The authors acknowledge funding from:
Funding Information:
The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) of Canada: (Grant No. 430-2018-00851).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 Elsevier Ltd
Keywords:
Africa, Benin, accounting, civic public, corruption, donor, supreme audit institutions
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 437956
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/437956
ISSN: 1045-2354
PURE UUID: 2569d988-4ea5-4264-9f62-2ab61dfaf8b2
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Date deposited: 24 Feb 2020 17:31
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 05:22
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Author:
Philippe J. Lassou
Author:
Trevor Hopper
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