Development of accounting in Fiji, 1801–2016

Sharma, Umesh; Samkin, Grant

doi:10.1177/1032373218798645

Cited by 5 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 94 publications

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“…Knapman (1985) highlighted how Fiji's colonial government kept overall spending down and how companies repatriated sugar profits to Australia and New Zealand, but he did not examine how companies' indentureship payments funded a key part of the colonial administration. In their discussion of accounting in Fiji's history, Sharma and Samkin (2020) did not analyse transportation costs and also incorrectly allocated the cost of repatriation to the Colonial Sugar Refining Company, an Australian multinational and major sugar business in Fiji, rather than to the state.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Colonial companies and the cost of introducing Indian immigrants into Fiji, 1884–1916

Persaud

2023

Asia‐Pacific Economic History Review

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Using Fiji as a case study, I conduct the first cost accounting of government‐run Indian indentureship in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. I analyse multiple official data sources and estimate the total cost of bringing Indians to Fiji was £926,851, roughly a fifth of Fiji's reported expenditure. Businesses funded 92.6% of this cost. However, business payments to the government do not appear in official Blue Books. Incorporating business payments shows that both official revenue and expenditure were underestimated by 15%. My results show how one part of colonialism was funded and how colonial fiscal capacity may be underestimated more broadly.

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Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Colonial companies and the cost of introducing Indian immigrants into Fiji, 1884–1916

Persaud

2023

Asia‐Pacific Economic History Review

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“…Developmental benefits from accounting reforms were expected and structural reform advocates envisaged investments in restructuring accounting systems, including the harmonisation of accounting standards as a conditionality of structural adjustment loans (Sharma & Samkin, 2020). These development models are underpinned by neoliberal policies that have been incorporated into the Pacific island economies and supported through Official Development Assistance (Ravuvu & Thornton, 2016 been criticisms on the relevance of these for Pacific island economies and whether they yield sound impacts in practice (Jayaraman & Ward, 2006;Overton et.…”

Section: Neoliberal Reforms For the Pacificmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Politics of Accountability and Participation: A Case study of Samoa's Land Reform

Chan¹

2021

Preprint

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<p>The objective of this study is to advance understanding of the politics of accountability and participation in a development context. Both the accounting and development literature have highlighted the limitations of the ‘neoliberal development’ paradigm’s methods for accountability and participatory practices which often neglect and exclude less powerful voices. This study addresses this shortcoming by reconceptualising accountability and participatory initiatives through a critical dialogic accounting lens and providing a framework for evaluating these practices in the context of Samoa’s land reform. To achieve this, the study draws on the work of critical dialogic accounting scholars (Brown, 2009; Dillard & Vinnari, 2019) and of development scholars (Cornwall, 2008; Goetz & Jenkins, 2005; McGee & Gaventa, 2013; Newell & Wheeler, 2006) working within the ‘deepening democracy’ paradigm. In a case study of Samoa’s land reform project, the study employs both semi-structured interviews and documentary analysis of media reports and policy documents to critically examine accountability and participatory practices, examining the political contestation between dominant powerholders and marginalised voices. It also considers the potential of critical dialogic accounting to contribute to the ‘deepening democracy’ paradigm in fostering more democratic and participatory governance in the Pacific context. The findings indicate that current approaches to accountability and participation are shaped by the ‘neoliberal development’ paradigm, favouring more powerful actors over other interested groups and consensus-based methods that stifle debate. These findings extend current accounting research that highlights the possibilities of critical dialogic accounting to critique neoliberal approaches and to facilitate democratic participation within the context of developing countries (Alawattage & Azure, 2019; Tanima, Brown & Dillard, 2020). In surfacing the political contestations surrounding Samoa’s land reform and drawing on Dillard and Vinnari’s (2019) proposals for responsibility networks, the study also provides a basis for developing more effective ways of ensuring accountability to, and participation of, less powerful groups.</p>

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“…These studies consider the imposition of western values-based accounting regimes upon Indigenous populations and the role of accounting as a tool of dispossession and control. There is also a growing body of research on the influence of colonisation on accounting standards and rules (Boolaky, 2004; Boolaky et al, 2018; Sharma and Samkin, 2020). This work emphasises the adoption of accounting standards by one country from another and in the case of Sharma and Samkin (2020), here, too, the presence of accounting is seen as a mechanism of control.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is also a growing body of research on the influence of colonisation on accounting standards and rules (Boolaky, 2004; Boolaky et al, 2018; Sharma and Samkin, 2020). This work emphasises the adoption of accounting standards by one country from another and in the case of Sharma and Samkin (2020), here, too, the presence of accounting is seen as a mechanism of control. Similarly, Lassou et al (2019) note the role of accounting as a tool of dominance and control exercised from a distance.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Accounts from the backwoods: The role of accounting in an early Upper Canada settlement

Baker

2022

Accounting History

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The founding of the town of Guelph, Ontario, was uncommon in that the town was established prior to the development of surrounding agricultural lands. This was done through an arrangement between the British government and a private, for-profit company. Grounded in agency theory, this study examines the establishment of the town and the role of accounting in its early development. The results show how the absence of accounting created a space in which the company's agent could operate in a way that promoted the well-being of the local population while adopting a long-term approach to shareholder wealth creation. This study highlights the insights that can be gained by investigating where accounting is absent and the importance of aligning accounting techniques with organisational and social objectives, particularly in the context of private companies acting on behalf of governments.

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Development of accounting in Fiji, 1801–2016

Cited by 5 publications

References 94 publications

Colonial companies and the cost of introducing Indian immigrants into Fiji, 1884–1916

Colonial companies and the cost of introducing Indian immigrants into Fiji, 1884–1916

The Politics of Accountability and Participation: A Case study of Samoa's Land Reform

Accounts from the backwoods: The role of accounting in an early Upper Canada settlement

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