IPSAS aims to improve the quality of general purpose financial reporting by public sector entities, leading to better informed assessments of the resource allocation decisions made by governments, thereby increasing transparency and accountability.
This objective is to be delivered by developing and maintaining IPSAS and other financial reporting guidance, and by raising awareness and adoption of accrual-based accounting in the public sector.
Observers on the IPSASB meetings include ADB, EU, IASB, IMF, INTOSAI, OECD, UN, UNDP and the World Bank.
In undertaking that process, the IPSASB attempts, wherever possible, to maintain the accounting treatment and original text of the IFRS unless there is a significant public sector issue which warrants a departure.
The IPSASB Handbook has been translated from English into a number of languages, including French [1], Spanish [2], German, Russian and Chinese.
Other sources of revenue for the development of IPSASs include funding from international, national and regional government entities.
The main problem is the key requirement to produce consolidated financial statements for all controlled entities.
In December 2007, Mike Hathorn (then chair of the IPSAS Board) said that only six governments across the world had actually issued financial statements on the full accrual basis (at the FEE Public Sector meeting, Brussels).