Heritage Assets in Malaysia: Perspectives of Malaysian Government Agencies

Abstract

Purpose: This study discovered how the government agencies in responding to the accounting for HA, particularly the valuation and disclosure aspect of it.
 Methodology: This study adopted a semi-structured face-to-face interview for data collection. Two government departments were identified as these departments have unique, special, and rare assets as compared to other government departments.
 Main Results: Their perspective towards accounting for HA revealed that they were ready for HA valuation and in the process to recognize and value their HA. On top of that, policymakers needed to provide clear accounting guidelines and strengthen the recognition and measurement process, as well as the disclosure part of HA. Other factors, such as lack of technical knowledge and understanding among the factors could lead to the distortion of the accounting process. The agencies perceived that recognizing HA and disclosing it is important for public knowledge and the exposure towards the valuable national HA.
 Implications: The finding of this study contributed to the existing literature on HA and could be the guideline to policymakers and preparers of public sector financial statements.

Issues and Challenges in Accounting for Infrastructure Assets in the Malaysian Government and the Way Forward

“…In the context of Malaysia, published literature specifically on accounting for governmental infrastructure assets is limited. Most studies on government assets generally reported the challenges and issues in accounting for governmental assets, such as obtaining sufficient information, determining ownership and control, complying with the MPSAS, dealing with the information systems, and resolving human resources issues (Abu Hasan et al, 2022;Rosli et al, 2020;Rosli et al, 2019;Ismail et al, 2013).…”

“…Accounting for assets was found to be the most challenging in the early stages of accrual accounting adoption. Issues varied from asset identification, recognition, valuation, and disclosure (Abu Hasan et al, 2022;Rosli, Kasim & Kamaluddin, 2020;Rosli, Hasbolah & Yahya, 2019;Ismail, Abdullah & Zainuddin, 2013). Many trainings and human resources development were conducted to support the accrual accounting adoption.…”