Accounting is concerned with the processing of financial information of an entity. It generates and communicates the necessary financial information to its users. It is, therefore, a process of recording classifying, and summarizing the financial transactions, and communicating the results of its operations.
Definition of Government Accounting
Government accounting is the process of recording , analyzing , calssifying, summarizing, communicating and interpreting financial information about government in aggregate and in detail, reflecting all transactioks involbing the receipts, transfer and disposition of government funds and property.
-Oshisami and Dean
There are several different branches of accounting. One such branch is government accounting. Government accounting. Government accounting is that branch of accounting, which is used in government institutions. Government accounting is different from other branches of accounting such as commercial accounting.
Meaning of Government Accounting
The accounting system used in government offices to record and report their financial transactions is known as government accounting. It is concerned with the systematic and scientific recording of government revenues and expenditures. It is the systematic process of collecting, recording, classifying, summarizing, and interpreting the financial transactions relating to the revenues and expenditures of government offices. It reveals how public funds have been generated and utilized for the welfare of the general public. Therefore, government accounting may be defined as an accounting system used in a government institution for the purpose of recording, classifying, summarizing, and communicating financial information regarding the collection and utilization of public funds and properties.
It is clear from the above definition that government accounting is the systematic process of recording, classifying, summarizing, analyzing, interpreting, and communicating the financial transactions of government organizations. It is concerned with keeping records of government revenues and their expenditure in different development and administrative works. It reflects the receipt a payment position of the public funds.