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New Trends in Public Sector Reporting:

Integrated Reporting and Beyond


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PUBLIC SECTOR
FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

New Trends in Public


Sector Reporting
Integrated Reporting and Beyond

Edited by
Francesca Manes-Rossi
Rebecca Levy Orelli
Public Sector Financial Management

Series Editors
Sandra Cohen
Athens University of Economics and Business
Athens, Greece

Eugenio Caperchione
University of Modena and Reggio Emilia
Modena, Italy

Isabel Brusca
University of Zaragoza
Zaragoza, Spain

Francesca Manes-Rossi
University of Naples Federico II
Napoli, Italy
This series brings together cutting edge research in public administration
on the new budgeting and accounting methodologies and their impact
across the public sector, from central and local government to public
health care and education. It considers the need for better quality account-
ing information for decision-making, planning and control in the public
sector; the development of the IPSAS (International Public Sector
Accounting Standards) and the EPSAS (European Public Sector
Accounting Standards), including their merits and role in accounting har-
monisation; accounting information’s role in governments’ financial sus-
tainability and crisis confrontation; the contribution of sophisticated ICT
systems to public sector financial, cost and management accounting
deployment; and the relationship between robust accounting information
and performance measurement. New trends in public sector reporting and
auditing are covered as well. The series fills a significant gap in the market
in which works on public sector accounting and financial management are
sparse, while research in the area is experiencing unprecedented growth.

More information about this series at


http://www.palgrave.com/gp/series/15782
Francesca Manes-Rossi
Rebecca Levy Orelli
Editors

New Trends in Public


Sector Reporting
Integrated Reporting and Beyond
Editors
Francesca Manes-Rossi Rebecca Levy Orelli
Department of Economics Department of Management
Management and Institutions Alma Mater Studiorum
University of Naples Federico II University of Bologna
Napoli, Italy Bologna, Italy

Public Sector Financial Management


ISBN 978-3-030-40055-2    ISBN 978-3-030-40056-9 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-40056-9

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature
Switzerland AG 2020
This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the
Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of
translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on
microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval,
electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now
known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are
exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information
in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the
publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to
the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made.
The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and
institutional affiliations.

This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature
Switzerland AG.
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
Contents

Contemporary Challenges in Public Sector Reporting  1


James Guthrie and Ann Martin-Sardesai

The Rise of Integrated Reporting in the Public Sector: An


Analysis of Transnational Governance Interactions 15
Caroline Aggestam Pontoppidan and Amanda Sonnerfeldt

Assessing Universities’ Global Reporting Initiative G4


Sustainability Reports in Concurrence with Stakeholder
Inclusiveness 35
Judith Frei, Melanie Lubinger, and Dorothea Greiling

Public Sector Reporting: Lessons Learnt from Participatory


Budgeting 57
Peter C. Lorson and Ellen Haustein

New Reporting Tools at the Central Government Level:


Experiences in Light of a Budgeting and Accounting Reform
in Austria 81
Iris Saliterer and Sanja Korac

No Longer Only Numbers: An Exploratory Analysis of the


Visual Turn in Reporting of Public Sector Organisations105
Pasquale Ruggiero

v
vi Contents

Are Romanian Higher Education Institutions Prepared for an


Integrated Reporting? The Case of Babeş-Bolyai University129
Adriana Tiron-Tudor, Gianluca Zanellato, Tudor Oprisor, and
Teodora Viorica Farcas

Determinants of Environmental, Social, and Governance


Reporting of Rail Companies: Does State Ownership Matter?153
İsmail Çağrı Özcan

Integrated Reporting in Municipally Owned Corporations: A


Case Study in Italy175
Spiridione Lucio Dicorato, Chiara Di Gerio, Gloria Fiorani, and
Giuseppe Paciullo

Reflections on New Trends in Public Sector Reporting:


Integrated Reporting and Beyond195
Francesca Manes-Rossi and Rebecca Levy Orelli

Index207
Contributors

Caroline Aggestam Pontoppidan Department of Accounting and


Auditing, Copenhagen Business School, Copenhagen, Sweden
Chiara Di Gerio University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Rome, Italy
Spiridione Lucio Dicorato University of Rome “Tor Vergata”,
Rome, Italy
Teodora Viorica Farcas Babeş-Bolyai University of Cluj-Napoca,
Cluj-­Napoca, Romania
Gloria Fiorani University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Rome, Italy
Judith Frei Institute of Management Accounting, Johannes Kepler
University, Linz, Austria
Dorothea Greiling Institute of Management Accounting, Johannes
Kepler University, Linz, Austria
James Guthrie Macquarie Business School, Macquarie University,
Sydney, NSW, Australia
Ellen Haustein Center for Accounting and Auditing, University of
Rostock, Rostock, Germany
Sanja Korac German University of Administrative Sciences,
Speyer, Germany
Peter C. Lorson Center for Accounting and Auditing, University of
Rostock, Rostock, Germany

vii
viii CONTRIBUTORS

Melanie Lubinger Institute of Management Accounting, Johannes


Kepler University, Linz, Austria
Francesca Manes-Rossi Department of Economics, Management and
Institutions, University of Naples Federico II, Napoli, Italy
Ann Martin-Sardesai School of Business and Law, CQ University,
Sydney, NSW, Australia
Tudor Oprisor Babeş-Bolyai University of Cluj-Napoca, Cluj-­
Napoca, Romania
Rebecca Levy Orelli Department of Management, Alma Mater
Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
̇
Ismail Çağrı Özcan Department of Aviation Management, Ankara
Yıldırım Beyazıt University, Ankara, Turkey
Giuseppe Paciullo University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Rome, Italy
Pasquale Ruggiero University of Siena, Siena, Italy
Brighton Business School, Brighton, UK
Iris Saliterer University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
Amanda Sonnerfeldt School of Economics and Management, Lund
University, Lund, Sweden
Adriana Tiron-Tudor Babeş-Bolyai University of Cluj-Napoca, Cluj-­
Napoca, Romania
Gianluca Zanellato Babeş-Bolyai University of Cluj-Napoca, Cluj-­
Napoca, Romania
List of Tables

Assessing Universities’ Global Reporting Initiative G4


Sustainability Reports in Concurrence with Stakeholder
Inclusiveness
Table 1 Studies reporting on TCRs of specific coverage rates 43

Public Sector Reporting: Lessons Learnt from Participatory


Budgeting
Table 1 Summary of implications for reporting 73

New Reporting Tools at the Central Government Level:


Experiences in Light of a Budgeting and Accounting Reform
in Austria
Table 1 Gap analysis between the standard, and the old and new tools in
financial reporting 91

Are Romanian Higher Education Institutions Prepared


for an Integrated Reporting? The Case of Babeş-Bolyai
University
Table 1 Disclosure index checklist design based on IR Framework 138
Table 2 Analysis results 142

ix
x List of Tables

Determinants of Environmental, Social, and Governance


Reporting of Rail Companies: Does State Ownership Matter?
Table 1 Regression results where the dependent variable is the
ESG disclosure score 163
Table 2 Sample railway companies 167
Table 3 Descriptive statistics 168
Table 4 Correlation matrix 169
Contemporary Challenges in Public Sector
Reporting

James Guthrie and Ann Martin-Sardesai

Background
Public sector accounting scholarship has witnessed enormous develop-
ments over the last three decades (e.g. Broadbent and Guthrie 1992,
2008; Lapsley 1988; Steccolini 2019). One area of scholarship is public
sector accountability and public service accounting and reporting.
Accountability in the public sector is a different, complex, chameleon-like
and multifaced concept encompassing several dimensions (Barberis 1998;
Mulgan 2000; Sinclair 1995). The public sector with its multiple stake-
holders requires a much broader set of accountability forms which goes
beyond the scope of financial dimensions, by also including political (or
democratic), public, managerial, bureaucratic, professional and personal
accountability (Sinclair 1995). Public services are created in a complex

J. Guthrie (*)
Macquarie Business School, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia
e-mail: james.guthrie@mq.edu.au
A. Martin-Sardesai
School of Business and Law, CQ University, Sydney, NSW, Australia
e-mail: a.sardesai@cqu.edu.au

© The Author(s) 2020 1


F. Manes-Rossi, R. Levy Orelli (eds.), New Trends in Public Sector
Reporting, Public Sector Financial Management,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-40056-9_1
2 J. GUTHRIE AND A. MARTIN-SARDESAI

environment, haunted by wicked problems (Jacobs and Cuganesan 2014)


and faced by diminishing resources, as well as the emergence of unex-
pected events and crises, such as the global financial crisis in 2008 (Bracci
et al. 2015).
In contemporary times the public sector needs to consider global and
emerging issues such as climate change, sustainable economic develop-
ment, modern-day slavery, taxation avoidance, biodiversity and ecological
accounts (Bebbington and Unerman 2018; Kastberg and Lagstrom 2019;
Steccolini 2019). These issues have been identified as being the guiding
principles bridging environmental and human developmental concerns
(Bebbington and Larrinaga 2008, 2014). Interdisciplinary accounting
scholars should explore how public sector accounting and accountability
can respond to the challenges posed by a shifting and increasingly intan-
gible publicness (Steccolini 2019); for instance, calling for alternative
accountability mechanisms such as integrated reporting (IR) (e.g. de
Villiers et al. 2014; Guthrie and Parker 1990; IIRC 2016), whereby
accounting provides the processes and operational ways in which the pub-
lic interest and public value are decided upon, planned and accounted for
in an abstract public space (Miller and Rose 2008).
In addition, in recent decades with the influence of new public manage-
ment (NPM) doctrines and related neoliberal ideologies, public sector sys-
tems have adopted a variety of hybrid governance and organisational forms
in their activities (Guthrie 1993). It has thus become common to provide
public services (such as infrastructure, utilities, education, port, health
care, art, culture and social services) through hybrid organisations operat-
ing at the intersection of the public sector and the market (Grossi et al.
2019). Hybrid governance is the inter-organisational relationships, roles,
calculative practices, performance measurement systems and accountabil-
ity and reporting systems that operate in the area between public, private
and non-profit sectors and have conflicting goals, institutional pressures,
complexity and accountabilities related to different institutional logics
(Hopwood 1996; Kastberg and Lagstrom 2019).
These significant advancements of NPM, neoliberalism, publicness and
hybridisation provide a context in which the following brief discussion on
contemporary challenges in public sector and services reporting, inte-
grated reporting and beyond take place. The purpose of this chapter is to
provide an overview of developments over the past decades and highlight
seven frameworks that have been used by the public sector for reporting.
In this introduction to the book, we do not engage with the contributions
as this is done in the last chapter.
CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGES IN PUBLIC SECTOR REPORTING 3

Seven Critical Public Sector Reporting


and Accountability Frameworks

Seven critical reporting and accountability frameworks are identified, and


the chapter proceeds as follows. First, traditional financial reporting as
represented by financial statements is discussed. Second, management
accounting systems as described by performance management systems,
budgets and various output and outcome metrics are covered. Third, the
general area of non-financial reporting is represented by the European
Commission directive. Fourth, the IR framework and the practices of IR
are presented. Fifth, the area of reporting in social and environmental
accounting is described. Sixth, the United Nations sustainability goals and
the various mediums used to disclose this information are explained.
Finally, the area of public value reporting is analysed. Of course, this is not
exclusive and the only reporting models available, as cultural norms, laws
and regulations and previous practice would determine which frameworks
are used at certain points in time within nation states and the public sector
and services organisations.
The purpose of this introduction is to highlight several of the issues and
challenges facing public sector interdisciplinary accounting researchers
and these reporting frameworks.

Financial Reporting
For the public sector, with the influence of NPM and the neoliberalism
ideology, a private sector accrual model of financial reporting has become
popular over the past decades. The traditional financial statements included
four basic financial statements: balance sheet, income statement, state-
ment of changes in equity and cash flow statement. Different countries
have developed their accounting principles over time: for instance, the
American gap principles—Generally Accepted Accounting Principles
(GAAP)—that set guidelines for the preparation of financial statements.
However, the volume of information available has reached levels not pre-
viously seen and continues to grow as reporting requirements become
more extensive and voluntary disclosures are made for a variety of reasons.
The global movement to standardising accounting rules was made by
the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). The IASB devel-
oped the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), which have
been adopted by Australia, Canada and the European Union (for public
4 J. GUTHRIE AND A. MARTIN-SARDESAI

sector organisations). These financial statements and reports are based on


accrual of information. Accrual-based financial statements contain a range
of accounting-based information different from traditional cash account-
ing systems (Guthrie et al. 1999). Some research has criticised the adop-
tion of accrual accounting to the whole government sector, especially
when it comes to budgets, financial reporting by departments and account-
ability for public services (Guthrie et al. 1998; Gigli and Mariani 2018).
Over the years, various financial reporting models have emerged, and
public sector financial reporting has evolved into many different forms.
For instance, Kuroki et al. (2018) provide evidence of different perspec-
tives of the International Public Sector Accounting (IPSA) conceptual
framework model indicating the changes in accounting practice in the
public sector space. An analysis of these findings reveals that the account-
ing profession, as an integral part of the capital market system, exerts pres-
sure to drive standardisation of financialised accrual accounting practices.
In contrast, government agencies support accounting systems aligned
with conventional accountability principles aligned with jurisdiction-­
specific contexts (Vivian and Maroun 2018). The interaction of these
opposing perspectives is a primary determinant of changes in an account-
ing practice and financial reporting in the public sector space. Research
studies make a strong representation that concentration on just the tradi-
tional financial accrual report underrepresents the value and contribution
of the public sector and this should be supplemented by developing stan-
dards and reports on social benefits and public value (Brown et al. 2018).

Public Sector Management Accounting


Guthrie’s (1998) critique of NPM and the adoption of accrual accounting
identified two streams in management accounting. The first—accrual
management systems (AMS)—identified that internal information systems
needed to create and record information about revenues, expenses, assets
and liabilities. This was important as calculative practices of public sector
moved from cash and fund basis to accrual basis. The second—accrual
budgeting (AB)—traditionally required government agencies to prepare
budgets and seek appropriations on a cash basis. There is a suggestion that
these should now move to an accrual basis, which would imply the inclu-
sion of such costs as depreciation or accrued employee entitlements in the
annual government budget. This would result in an emphasis on resource
allocation based on accrual numbers and not on appropriations of cash by
CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGES IN PUBLIC SECTOR REPORTING 5

parliaments. A critical reporting and accountability document for the pub-


lic sector is public budgets and various budgeting activities.
Saliterer, Sicilia and Steccolini (2018), in their excellent review of the
changing nature of public budgets over the last decades, have observed
how this vital reporting tool has altered. Traditionally, budgeting has
involved the processes through which governments decide how much to
spend on what, limiting expenditures to the revenues available and avoid-
ing overspending. Over time, budgeting has increasingly been expected to
perform different roles and functions, becoming an essential political
medium, a tool for providing stimulus to the economy and to society, a
fundamental governance and management device, and a central account-
ability channel. This multiplicity of functions has translated into a variety
of different budget accounting and reporting formats and increasingly
complex budgeting processes.
The idea of ‘more with less’ has become a slogan, as managers seek to
maintain or improve the quality of public service delivery. This has been
an international trend and there has been no escape for public service
managers (Arnaboldi et al. 2015). The financial crisis of 2008 intensified
the need for making best use of reduced resources in public services, and
accentuated the longstanding need for effective performance management
of public services. It has attracted the attention of key world institutions
such as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
(OECD) (Curristine 2008; Perrin 2003) on the fostering of performance
budgeting and monitoring systems and the World Bank. However, the
sheer complexity of and the over-simplistic approach to performance man-
agement in the public sector makes performance management quite diffi-
cult. This is a big challenge facing public services.

European Commission Non-financial Reporting Directive


​ irective 2014/95 of the European Union regulates the disclosure of
D
certain practices and organisational performances. The Directive provides
that non-financial information helps measuring, monitoring and manag-
ing the undertakings performance and their impact on society (EU 2014).
The non-financial reporting directive requires public disclosure docu-
ments such as annual reports, sustainability reports and integrated reports
to include five topics: (1) environmental matters; (2) social and employee
aspects; (3) respect for human rights; (4) anti-corruption and bribery
6 J. GUTHRIE AND A. MARTIN-SARDESAI

issues; and (5) diversity on board of directors (Martin-Sardesai and


Guthrie 2020).
The Directive requires organisations to report on impacts, develop-
ments, performance and position relating to a set list of non-financial
issues. Organisations are given the freedom to disclose this information in
any reporting model they wish to use or in a separate report. In preparing
their statements, companies may use national, European or international
guidelines, such as the UN Global Compact, the OECD guidelines for
multinational enterprises or the ISO 2600 according to the EU
Commission. An important point here is that while countries encourage
the use of voluntary frameworks, now organisations are required to dis-
close which framework was used if any. These standards have increased the
awareness and the importance in the public sector as well as improved
internal processes (Habek and Wolniak 2013). Many voluntary frame-
works exist which can be followed to report on these topics. Notably, the
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards can be used for each topic
and are globally the most commonly used framework (Dumay et al. 2010).

Integrated Reporting
IR is gaining popularity among public sector organisations. The
International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) claims that more than
1000 businesses worldwide have prepared a form of integrated report
(IIRC 2016). As of March 2017, the IIRC lists 477 organisations (includ-
ing some public sectors) whose reports refer to the IIRC. The IIRC and
its supporters predict that IR represents the future of corporate reporting
and will become the “corporate reporting norm” (IIRC 2013, p. 2).
At the heart of IR Framework is a belief that a wide range of factors
determines the value of an organisation—some of these are financial and
are accounted for in financial statements (e.g. property, cash), while many
such as intellectual capital, greenhouse risks and energy security are not.
The belief is that if the IR Framework is used to construct an IR, it will
articulate ways to generate and preserve value in the short, medium and
long term, helping investors to manage risks (Guthrie et al. 2020).
It is, therefore, necessary, to extend the reporting of not only financial
data with ecological data, for example, about carbon dioxide emissions
that an organisation generates. The 2015 Paris climate agreement requires
that carbon dioxide emissions need to be reduced. IR, therefore, needs
two sides—the financial data as well the non-financial ecological data—and
it must aim at two achievements: annual financial profit as well as account-
ing for nature (e.g. reductions in CO2 emissions) (Parvez et al. 2020).
CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGES IN PUBLIC SECTOR REPORTING 7

Social and Environmental Accounting


Social and environmental accounting (SEA) is a process of accounting for
social and environmental effects of organisations’ actions to particular
stakeholder groups within society and to society at large (Guthrie and
Parker 1990). SEA emphasises the notion of corporate accountability. It is
an approach to reporting an organisation’s activity which stresses the need
for the identification of socially appropriate behaviour, the determination
of those to whom the organisation is accountable for its social perfor-
mance and the development of appropriate measures and reporting tech-
niques (Adams and Guthrie 2005).
Modern forms of SEA first produced widespread interest in the 1970s.
Its concepts received severe consideration from professional and academic
accounting bodies (e.g. the Accounting Standards Board’s predecessor,
the American Accounting Association and the American Institute of
Certified Public Accountants). Interest in social accounting cooled off in
the 1980s and was resurrected in the mid-1990s, partly nurtured by grow-
ing social, ecological and environmental awareness. SEA is a broad field
that can be divided into narrower fields. Environmental accounting may
account for an organisation’s impact on the natural environment.
Sustainability accounting is the analysis of social and economic sustain-
ability. The International Standards Organization (ISO) provides a stan-
dard, ISO 26000, of the seven core areas to be assessed for social
accounting.
SEA challenges conventional accounting, in particular financial account-
ing, which provides a small image of the interaction between society and
organisations, and thus artificially constraining the subject of accounting.
It points to the fact that organisations influence their external environ-
ment (sometimes positively and many times negatively) through their
actions and should, therefore, account for these effects as part of their
standard accounting practices and reporting (Guthrie and Parker 1989).
SEA offers an alternative account and reporting for public sector entities.
SEA for accountability purposes is designed to support and facilitate the
pursuit of social objectives, such as public good. These objectives can be
manifold but can typically be described in terms of social and environmen-
tal desirability and sustainability. SEA for management control is designed
to support and facilitate the achievement of an organisation’s objectives
(Farneti and Guthrie 2009).
8 J. GUTHRIE AND A. MARTIN-SARDESAI

The Sustainable Development Goals


The role of accounting in furthering sustainable development has expanded
and become more sophisticated. In 2015, 193 countries of the UN
General Assembly adopted the 2030 Development Agenda titled
“Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”
and selected 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that are intended
to stimulate action in areas of critical importance for humanity and the
planet. As a framework, the SDGs extend the previous Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs) in many ways, but particularly by seeking to
profoundly link the social, economic and environmental aspects of goals.
Nations need to take action in their own ways to help ensure that the
implementation is coordinated, and provide a far greater chance of success
in this lofty and vital endeavour (Stafford-Smith et al. 2017).
The idea of SDGS has quickly gained ground because of the growing
urgency of sustainable development for the entire world. Although spe-
cific definitions vary, sustainable development embraces the so-called tri-
ple bottom line approach to human well-being (Sachs 2012). The SDGs
have recently emerged into the policy arena as an exposition of how devel-
opment ambitions and environmental limits can be integrated into a
coherent framework. The SDGs are connected to the work of academic
accountants and have rapidly gained traction among stakeholders, includ-
ing corporations and the accounting profession (United Nations 2019).

Source: United Nations (2019)


CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGES IN PUBLIC SECTOR REPORTING 9

Bebbington and Unerman (2018) are raising awareness of the SDGs


among accounting academics to help in the initiation, scoping and devel-
opment of high-quality research projects in this area. The SDGs need the
unprecedented mobilisation of global knowledge operating across many
sectors and regions. Governments, international institutions, private busi-
nesses, academia and civil society will need to work together to identify
the critical pathways to success, in ways that combine technical expertise
and democratic representation (Sachs 2012). The SDG framework pro-
vides both an opportunity and a need for accounting and reporting in this
area to advance, refocus and become more impactful, especially in the
public sector (Bebbington and Unerman 2018; Guthrie et al. 2020).

Public Value Accounting and Reporting


Public value is value for the public. Value for the public is a result of evalu-
ations about how basic needs of individuals, groups and the society as a
whole are influenced in relationships involving the public. The definition
that remains equates managerial success in the public sector with initiating
and reshaping public sector enterprises in ways that increase their value for
the public in both the short and the long run (Moore 1995).
Public value accounting and reporting describe the value that an organ-
isation contributes to society. The concept of public value is widely dis-
cussed in the literature (see Alford and O’flynn 2009; Moore 1995), as is
its realisation, measurement and reporting (Moore 2002; 2014; Talbot
1998, 2010, 2011). Since late last century, the debate on public sector
reform has been marked by the emergence of theories, concepts and values
around the paradigm of NPM (see Broadbent and Guthrie 1992; Guthrie
et al. 1999) and now on network governance and public services
(Broadbent and Guthrie 2008). The concept of public value has been
increasingly associated usually within the expression ‘public value manage-
ment’ with public administration.
There have been two significant recent developments in the literature.
First is Moore’s (2013) book, which poses several basic questions (and
answers many of these using North American case studies) about how,
when and why public agencies can and should use public value perfor-
mance measurement and management systems to enhance organisational
performance, strengthen public accountability and create conditions that
allow citizens, elected officials and public managers to align and pursue a
vision of public value creation. Second is the number of calls for more
10 J. GUTHRIE AND A. MARTIN-SARDESAI

studies of the application of public value in practice (Van Helden and


Northcott 2010) and adopting action research (Cuganesan et al. 2014).
The combined view of how public value is conceptualised and practised is
an important question (Cuganesan et al. 2014). Therefore, the contem-
porary debate has shifted to how the public sector can meet community
expectations regarding issues of fiscal crisis, sustainability and providing
public services. However, an equally important topic is how public value
is identified, managed, measured and reported.

Conclusions
The purpose of the chapter was to provide an overview of several develop-
ments in the past decades and briefly review seven frameworks used for
public sector reporting. We outlined the importance of context in which
public sector organisations and governments must engage with critical
global issues such as climate change and social inequality. We propose that
public sector accounting and reporting provide one means by which pro-
cesses and operational ways can be decided upon, planned and accounted
for in the public space. As indicated in the various chapters within the cur-
rent book, there is much work that has been done. However, there is still
a lot of accounting academic research into essential topics that needs to be
undertaken.

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14 J. GUTHRIE AND A. MARTIN-SARDESAI

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James Guthrie, MA, FCPA, is Distinguished Professor of Accounting, Macquarie


Business School Macquarie University, Australia. He is the joint founding editor of
Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal consistently ranked in the top
five. Guthrie has published 180 articles, 20 books and 45 chapters in books. As a
researcher, he has had a significant impact in his fields of particular expertise—
audit, non-financial reporting, public sector, intellectual capital, knowledge man-
agement, and social and environmental accounting. He has over 25,000 citations
to his work as measured by Google Scholar. Guthrie has been actively involved
with the OECD, European and wider academic communities.

Ann Martin-Sardesai, CPA, is Senior Lecturer in Accounting at CQ University,


Sydney, Australia. She has been serving on the editorial board of Accounting,
Auditing and Accounting Journal since 2017. Her research interests are in the
area of management accounting with a specific focus on performance management
systems in the higher education sector. Her other areas of research interest include
integrated reporting, intellectual capital, and social and environmental accounting.
The Rise of Integrated Reporting
in the Public Sector: An Analysis
of Transnational Governance Interactions

Caroline Aggestam Pontoppidan and Amanda Sonnerfeldt

Introduction
The global political agenda is today dominated by discussions on financial
stability and sustainable development.1 The quest for new reporting mod-
els incorporating environmental, social, and governance (ESG)
performance has been driven forward through debates on the role and
accountability of corporations in society. This debate is also becoming

1
As an example research, already a decade ago, considered voluntary sustainability report-
ing (SR) in public sector organisations using the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
Sustainability Reporting Guidelines (Guthrie and Farneti 2008).

C. Aggestam Pontoppidan (*)


Department of Accounting and Auditing, Copenhagen Business School,
Copenhagen, Sweden
e-mail: cap.acc@cbs.dk
A. Sonnerfeldt
School of Economics and Management, Lund University, Lund, Sweden

© The Author(s) 2020 15


F. Manes-Rossi, R. Levy Orelli (eds.), New Trends in Public Sector
Reporting, Public Sector Financial Management,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-40056-9_2
16 C. AGGESTAM PONTOPPIDAN AND A. SONNERFELDT

increasingly prominent within the public sector. Biondi and Bracci (2018)
highlight that “despite the attempts to harmonize and improve public sec-
tor accounting, traditional financial reporting is not considered capable of
fulfilling the accountability needs of the wider non-expert citizenry”
(p. 1). Public sector accountability has been characterised by its complex,
elusive, and multifaceted character, which goes beyond the financial and
stewardship dimensions (Almquist et al. 2013; Sinclair 1995). While gov-
ernments in recent years have become more dependent on societal actors
to achieve their goals due to the complexity of the challenges they face
(Klijn 2012), broader forms of accountability and enhanced transparency
are in turn being demanded by their stakeholders. As such, we observe
new multidimensional external reporting being embraced by the public
sector to provide relevant decision-useful information to its different
stakeholders using methods such as sustainability reporting (SR), popular
financial reporting (PFR), and more recently integrated reporting (IR).
The IR framework defines six ‘capitals’, with each representing forms of
value for an entity’s value creation process.2 These capitals are classified as
financial capital, manufactured capital, intellectual capital, social and rela-
tionship capital, human capital, and natural capital. IR is founded on the
premise of integrated thinking that results in a periodic integrated report
by an organisation about value creation across these capitals. The frame-
work provides guidance on thinking holistically regarding the resources an
entity uses as well as the connectivity and trade-offs between them as value
is created for both the entity and others. Though the primary purpose of
an integrated report is to explain to financial capital providers how an
entity creates value over time, the multi-capital, long-term approach and
the guiding principle of connectivity both facilitate a focus on a broader
set of values, including sustainability development. Although IR has thus
far been largely oriented towards corporate reporting needs, the idea of IR
has recently been included in a global agenda to strengthen the perfor-
mance of government agencies and entities such as cities, local govern-
ments, health and educational institutions, as well as non-governmental
organisations (Manes-Rossi 2017). IR has been put forward as a frame-
work to help public sector entities address diverse, and often conflicting,
accountability requirements while gaining a greater understanding of the

2
Note that the concept of value creation in itself is worthy of examination. Haller (2016)
has examined the literature on the value concept, arriving at a comparison and analysis of:
shareholder value, stakeholder value, shared value, and, what is more relevant to this chapter,
public value.
THE RISE OF INTEGRATED REPORTING IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR… 17

ways in which they create value. Furthermore, the IR approach provides


more holistic disclosures and a sharper focus on how sustainable outcomes
will be delivered for a range of stakeholders over time (IIRC 2016).
In the course of public sector reforms focused on the modernisation of
governments, private sector actors, foundations, and other agencies have
come to be involved in determining the requirements for new governance
and accountability mechanisms (Almquist et al. 2013; Christensen and
Lægreid 2007). The emergence of IR in the public sector can be seen as a
component of regulatory governance and an outcome of a multi-­
stakeholder, public-private initiative targeted at shaping public sector con-
duct and, more specifically, public sector reporting.
This chapter has a strong focus on this multi-stakeholder approach
from a governance perspective in relation to IR. More specifically, the
chapter is to deepen our understanding from a governance perspective of
how governing mechanisms from the private sector diffuse into the public
sector. In support of this goal, the study analysed the roles and interac-
tions of various actors included in relevant policy-making or the process of
transferring IR to the public sector. Additionally, attending to how gover-
nance interactions embed IR in the public sector serves to highlight the
meaning of the term ‘public value’ and how this meaning is orchestrated
in governance interactions. Meynhardt (2009) suggests that the notion of
public value attracts a need to engage in dialogue about values, value con-
flict, and the role of the public sector in changing societal contexts.
Drawing on the theoretical perspective of transnational business gover-
nance interactions (depicted more accurately in this chapter as transna-
tional governance interactions, TGI), focus is placed on how the
governance actors and networks engage with and react to one another; the
driving forces, mechanism, and modalities of interaction; as well as the
character of such interaction in the process of construing and shaping a
private sector tool to fit the public sector (Eberlein et al. 2013). This chap-
ter contributes to a discussion on the role of networks and partnerships
within networks, especially their role in terms of an emblematic shift from
‘government’ to ‘governance’, or from hierarchical to networked gover-
nance (Bäckstrand 2008) in public sector reporting. In doing so this sheds
further light on “network-type patterns of collaboration” (Almquist et al.
2013) that drive forward new reporting initiatives such as IR.
The chapter is structured as follows: a brief review of literature pertain-
ing to IR in the public sector, an introduction to the transnational gover-
nance interaction analytical framework, an analysis addressing the
18 C. AGGESTAM PONTOPPIDAN AND A. SONNERFELDT

agenda-setting for IR as a governance tool for non-financial reporting in


the public sector, and finally, the conclusion.

Integrated Reporting in the Public Sector


The broader practice of IR has been situated within the broad organisa-
tional field of corporate reporting (Humphrey et al. 2017). A predomi-
nant focus in the literature on IR has been on studying this, admittedly
rather new reporting phenomena, in a private sector context. However, an
emerging body of research has attended to the latest key developments
and implementation of IR in the public sector (Veltri and Silvestri 2015;
Cheng et al. 2014; Bartocci and Picciaia 2013; Cohen et al. 2014). This
has extended the debate on the future form of reporting in the public sec-
tor by examining alternative forms of reporting, hereunder the framework
of integrated reporting, by exploring whether and how these reports could
be related to each other in order to fulfil the needs of a core user group,
namely citizen. As an example of the foregoing, Oprisor et al. (2016)
address IR in the context of public sector accountability, teasing out
dimensions which are embedded in public value3 creation before address-
ing questions on the suitability of IR for public sector entities and its
potential to enhance accountability for such entities. Researches have also
raised the need for a focus on the accounting change processes that drive
integrated reporting in the public sector (Katsikas et al. 2017). It is argued
in this regard that examining integrated reporting as an integral part of
accounting change processes and as a driver for change can stimulate a
deeper understanding of the challenges and benefits in terms of public
value creation.
The public sector has for the past few decades been subjected to multi-
tudinous processes of change, such as is typified by the New Public
Management (NPM) agenda4 (Hood 1991). Despite stark criticism of
NPM (English et al. 2005) the movement has continued to evolve, more
recently being labelled as in a ‘transitory stage’ (Osborne 2006) and thus
giving rise to another designation as ‘New Public Governance’ (NPG)
3
For a definition and elaboration of public value see, as an example, Moore’s text on
‘Creating Public Value’.
4
The first New Public Management (NPM) developments can be traced back to the late
1970s and early 1980s under Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in the United Kingdom
(‘the Financial Management and Next Steps initiatives’). In addition to this, it also had a start
among selected municipal governments in the United States (Groot and Budding 2008).
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
after hunting an enormous male elephant for five hours, they had at
length brought him to a stand, near Bree, about ten miles north-east
of Kouka. Mr. Toole and myself instantly mounted our horses, and,
accompanied by a Shouaa guide, we arrived at the spot where he
had fallen, just as he breathed his last.
Although not more than twenty-five years old, his tusk measuring
barely four feet six inches, he was an immense fellow. His
dimensions were as under:
ft. in.
Length from the proboscis to the tail 25 6
Proboscis 7 6
Small teeth 2 10
Foot longitudinally 1 7
Eye 2 by 1½
From the foot to the hip-bone 9 6
From the hip-bone to the back 3 0
Ear 2 by 2 6
I had seen much larger elephants than this alive, when on my last
expedition to the Tchad; some I should have guessed sixteen feet in
height, and with a tusk probably exceeding six feet in length. The
one before me, which was the first I had seen dead, was, however,
considered as of more than common bulk and stature; and it was not
until the Kanemboo of the town of Bree came out, and by attracting
his attention with their yells, and teasing him by hurling spears at his
more tender parts, that the Shouaas dared to dismount; when, by
ham-stringing the poor animal, they brought him to the ground, and
eventually despatched him by repeated wounds in the abdomen and
proboscis: five leaden balls had struck him about the haunches, in
the course of the chase, but they had merely penetrated a few
inches into his flesh, and appeared to give him but little uneasiness.
The whole of the next day the road, leading to the spot where he lay,
was like a fair, from the numbers who repaired thither for the sake of
bringing off a part of the flesh, which is esteemed by all, and even
eaten in secret by the first people about the sheikh: it looks coarse,
but is better flavoured than any beef I found in the country. Whole
families put themselves in motion, with their daughters mounted on
bullocks, on this occasion, who, at least, hoped as much would fall to
their share as would anoint their heads and persons plentifully with
grease at the approaching fsug. The eyes of this noble animal were,
though so extremely small in proportion to his body, languid and
expressive even in death. His head, which was brought to the town, I
had an opportunity of seeing the next day, when I had it opened; and
the smallness of the brain is a direct contradiction to the hypothesis,
that the size of this organ is in proportion to the sagaciousness of the
animal. His skin was a full inch and a half in thickness, and dark
gray, or nearly black, hard, and wrinkled: his ears, large and
hanging, appeared to me the most extraordinary part about him,
particularly from the facility with which he moved them backwards
and forwards: his feet are round, undivided, and have four nails, or
hoofs, for they cannot be called toes, two in the front of the foot,
about an inch in depth, and two inches in length, which join each
other, with two smaller ones on each side of the foot. In Africa they
are scarcely ever taken alive, but hunted as a sport, for the sake of
their flesh; and also in order to obtain their teeth, which, however, as
they are generally small, are sold to the merchants for a very trifling
profit. The manner of hunting the elephant is simply this: from ten to
twenty horsemen single out one of these ponderous animals, and,
separating him from the flock by screaming and hallooing, force him
to fly with all his speed; after wounding him under the tail, if they can
there place a spear, the animal becomes enraged. One horseman
then rides in front, whom he pursues with earnestness and fury,
regardless of those who press on his rear, notwithstanding the
wounds they inflict on him. He is seldom drawn from this first object
of his pursuit; and, at last, wearied and transfixed with spears, his
blood deluging the ground, he breathes his last under the knife of
some more venturesome hunter than the rest, who buries his dagger
in the vulnerable part near the abdomen: for this purpose he will
creep between the animal’s hinder legs, and apparently expose
himself to the greatest danger: when this cannot be accomplished,
one or two will ham-string him, while he is baited in the front; and this
giant of quadrupeds then becomes comparatively an easy prey to his
persecutors.
Jan. 12.—Karouash came to us this evening, with his dark Arab
eyes, sparkling with somewhat more than vivacity; and it was not
long before we found out the cause. The people of Gulphi, who
inhabited a town close to the banks of the Shary, had no other
means of raising their grain (the land surrounding their walls being all
tributary to the sheikh) than by planting it on the south bank of that
river; reaping in the season, and carrying the produce to their city by
means of their flat-bottomed boats. They had, of late, been so little
interrupted in their agricultural pursuits, by the boats of the
neighbouring towns, that a village of huts had sprung up on this
portion of land; and labourers, to the number of three or four
hundred, resided there constantly. The hostile movements of the
Begharmis had, however, made the sheikh’s people more on the
alert than formerly; and passing over the river in their own boats,
accompanied by several deserters from Gulphi, who, traitor-like,
consented to bear arms against the land that gave them birth, and
lead its enemies to the pillage of their brethren, the people of
Maffatai and Kussery had, a few nights before, made an attack on
this village, putting to death all the males, even while they slept; and,
as usual, dragging the women and children to their boats, returned to
their homes without the loss of a man, after setting fire to all the huts,
and more than four hundred stacks of wheat and gussub. The effects
produced by this midnight expedition, and which was celebrated by
singings and rejoicings throughout Kouka, were indeed of a nature
favourable to my prospects, notwithstanding the shock humanity
received from the cause. The Begharmis, who had occupied the
southern banks of the Shary for months, obliging even the Loggun
people to supply them with provisions, took such alarm at this attack
of the sheikh’s people, that they struck their camp, and retired
immediately on the news reaching them; and the Loggun nation as
quickly sent off to the sheikh a deputation, with sixty slaves, and
three hundred bullocks, congratulating him on the event.
I determined on making immediate application for permission to
visit this country; so full of interest, both from its situation, and the
waters by which it was reported to be bounded. No time was to be
lost, for the return of the enemy might be as sudden as his flight; and
again I might have my intentions frustrated. I had been eleven
months endeavouring to visit this country—but to climb steep hills
requires a slow pace at first.
Jan. 18.—The sheikh, who had never, on any one occasion,
neglected making every possible arrangement for carrying my
wishes into execution, had not only instantly complied with my
request to seize this opportunity of visiting Loggun, but sent this
morning Karouash to advise with me as to my proceedings, and to
recommend my going without loss of time. “Bellal shall go with you,”
said he; “who has been in my confidence for seventeen years, and to
whom I could trust my own life, or that of my children, who are even
dearer to me than life itself.”
But in the morning we found a brown horse, which had carried Mr.
Toole from Tripoli, dead within our inclosure: both this and a black
one, which his Arab had been mounted on by the bashaw, had
scarcely eaten any thing since their arrival here. Our departure was
therefore put off for this day. Troubles, however, never come alone.
In the evening the camels I intended to take with me were missing;
and although the people were out looking for them until midnight, we
had no tidings. In the night I was called up, as Mr. Toole’s other
horse was dying: no blood could be got from him; and after
staggering about, in a way resembling intoxication, he died before
daylight.
Jan. 22.—Karouash, Ben Taleb, and even the sheikh, now
exclaiming against our going out, “Wonderful! Wonderful!” said they,
“it is written you are not to go.” The delay perplexed me, although to
go, and quickly, I was determined; the time was precious, for I did
not wish the news of my intentions to precede me. Towards night my
camels were found; and the sheikh, hearing that we had been
inquiring for a horse to purchase, sent a very smart black galloway to
Mr. Toole as a present. We had now seen die on our hands, in the
space of nine months, thirty-three camels, six horses, and one mule.
On the 23d I intended being off by daylight; but it was the
afternoon before I could accomplish my wish. The sheikh had given
me Bellal: “He will obey your orders in every thing,” said he; “but you
are going amongst people with whom I have but little influence.”
Bellal, who was one of the handsomest negroes I almost ever saw,
and a superior person, was attended by six of his slaves, two of
whom were mounted; these, with ourselves and two camels, formed
our party. While I was waiting to take leave of the sheikh, a note was
brought me from Dr. Oudney, by a Bornouese from Katagum: it had
no date, and was indeed his last effort. The acknowledgment of
being weak and helpless assured me that he was really so; for
during the whole of his long sufferings a complaint had scarcely ever
escaped his lips. On the sheikh’s saying to him, when he first
expressed his wish to accompany the kafila, “Surely your health is
not such as to risk such a journey?” he merely replied, “Why, if I stay
here, I shall die, and probably sooner, as travelling always improves
my health.”
His letter, though short, expresses great satisfaction at the
treatment he had met with on his journey, and also from the
inhabitants of the country.
FOOTNOTES:

[34]The most beautiful Jewess in Tripoli is called Mesrouda-


eyum el Oubara (Mesrouda, with the eye of the Oubara).
[35]The anniversary of Abraham’s offering up Isaac, or the
meeting of Pilgrims at Mecca.
[36]Strips of cotton, so many fathoms of which go to a dollar.
[37]Abyssinian hornbill.
[38]In Tripoli, the father or mother is generally the executioner,
to avenge the sin, and at the same time wipe the stain from the
family, and prevent public execution.
[39]Marry her.
[40]The horn of one of these animals measured two feet, six
inches, and three-quarters, in circumference.
[41]On these occasions the sheikh merely moves his finger,
which is the signal for immediate execution.
[42]Black Mameluke.
[43]A religious mendicant: the name is nearly the Arabic for
poverty.
[44]Soon after this, I made an offer to two Arabs, both of whom
had formerly been at Waday, that I would give them each two
hundred dollars, if they would accompany me: this is a sum for
which an Arab will almost do any thing; but they refused, saying
“No! no! what is money without life? the Waday people will kill us
all.”
[45]Governor of the palace.
[46]A town near Mesurata.
CHAPTER VI.
EXCURSION TO LOGGUN, AND DEATH OF MR. TOOLE.

Jan. 1824.—We passed the night of the 24th at Angornou, and


proceeded, without leaving the lake at any great distance, for two
days, when we arrived at Angala, one of the ancient governments
subject to Bornou. The present sultan was the first friend and
supporter of El Kanemy; and, twenty-five years ago, when he was
only a merchant, betrothed to him his daughter Miram in marriage,
with a large dower in slaves and cattle. The sultan, a most
benevolent-looking old black, received us with great kindness and
hospitality; and as soon as we were lodged in the house of the
delatoo (prime minister), bowls of milk, rice, flour, and honey, were
brought to us; an abundance of eatables were also sent in the
evening, and the next morning a very fine live sheep.
Miram (princess in the Bornou language), now the divorced wife
of the sheikh El Kanemy, was residing at Angala, and I requested
permission to visit her. Her father had built for her a very fine house,
in which she constantly resided: her establishment exceeded sixty
persons. She was a very handsome, beautifully formed negress, of
about thirty-five, and had imbibed much of that softness of manner
which is so extremely prepossessing in the sheikh. Seated on an
earthen throne, covered with a turkey carpet, and surrounded by
twenty of her favourite slaves, all dressed alike, in fine white shirts,
which reached to their feet, their necks, ears, and noses thickly
ornamented with coral; she held her audience with very considerable
grace, while four eunuchs guarded the entrance; and a negro dwarf,
who measured three feet all but an inch, the keeper of her keys, sat
before her with the insignia of office on his shoulder, and richly
dressed in Soudan tobes. This little person afforded us a subject of
conversation, and much laughter. Miram inquired whether we had
such little fellows in my country, and when I answered in the
affirmative, she said, “Ah gieb! what are they good for? do they ever
have children?” I answered “Yes; that we had instances of their
being fathers to tall and proper men.” “Oh, wonderful!” she replied: “I
thought so; they must be better then than this dog of mine; for I have
given him eight of my handsomest and youngest slaves, but it is all
to no purpose. I would give a hundred bullocks, and twenty slaves, to
the woman who would bear this wretch a child.” The wretch, and an
ugly wretch he was, shook his large head, grinned, and slobbered
copiously from his extensive mouth, at this flattering proof of his
mistress’s partiality.
We left Angala the following day, to the great distress of our host,
the delatoo, who would have feasted us for a week. A child had been
borne by one of his wives, just about the time Dr. Oudney had
passed through on his visit to Showy; which, in return for his
prescriptions, the delatoo had named Tibeeb, the Doctor’s travelling
name. Indeed, there was a liberality of feeling and toleration about
our host deserving most honourable mention; and when, on my
return from Loggun, worn out by fatigue and anxiety, I really required
nursing, he introduced his sister, a female of most matronly
deportment, who superintended the process of shampooing, which
was performed by one of her best looking and most accomplished
handmaids. On my expressing my thanks to the delatoo for these
unlooked-for attentions, he replied, “It grieved us all to see so great a
man as yourself, so far from home, a stranger and without women;
when in your own country, ‘gray hairs to you!’ you have, at least, a
hundred, I dare say!”
On the 23d we reached Showy, on the banks of the river Shary:
the magnitude of the stream drew from us both an involuntary
exclamation of surprise; it appeared to be full half a mile in width,
running at the rate of two to three[47] miles an hour, in the direction
nearly of north. In the centre of the river is a beautiful island, nearly a
mile in length, in front of the town. Showy forms part of the district of
Maffatai, and is governed by a kaid: and this person, who treated us
with great attention, proposed that we should proceed down the
stream to the Tchad, according to the sheikh’s directions.
On the 2d of February we embarked, accompanied by the kaid
and eight canoes, carrying ten and eleven men each: ploughing the
stream with their paddles, for nearly eight hours, they brought us, by
sunset, to a spot called Joggabah (or island, in the Mekkari
language), about thirty-five miles from Showy. The river, full as it is of
water at this season, had a highly interesting appearance: one noble
reach succeeded another, alternately varying their courses by
handsome sweeps, some of them three and four miles in length; the
banks were thickly scattered with trees rich in foliage, and all hung
over with creeping plants, bearing various coloured and aromatic
blossoms, amongst which the purple convolvolus flourished in great
beauty: several crocodiles, from eight to fifteen feet in length, were
slumbering on the banks, which, on our near approach, rolled into
the stream, and disappeared in an instant. The natives appeared to
fear them but little in shallow water, but dived in with great boldness
after the ducks we shot, and a large iguana that we struck while
sleeping on a tamarind tree, and which fell headlong into the river.
Joggabah is a beautiful feature in the scenery, as well as a
prominent one; and is seen for nearly six miles in proceeding down a
very wide, handsome reach, which we called Belle-vue Reach. The
river is here quite as wide as at Showy, which, with this exception, I
take to be the widest part.
Drawn by Captn. Clapperton. Engraved by E. Finden.

FISHING BOATS ON THE SHARY.


Published Feb. 1826, by John Murray, London.

This island is high ground, with steep and nearly perpendicular


banks, and a depth of ten feet water close to the edge: the canoes
moor up to the shore; the stream runs strong and clear; and the
landing is on a fine dry sandy beach: it extends to the Tchad north, a
distance of twelve or fifteen miles, and has two handsome streams
bounding it, which run north-east and north-west, and by which the
Shary takes its way into that immense lake. It abounds with game:
and we had fish in abundance, venison, the flesh of a buffalo, and
wild ducks, for supper, all roasted on wooden spits.
We pitched our tent on the jutting head, where, a few years ago,
stood a negro town: the inhabitants, however, were refractory,
committed piracies on the Showy people, and in consequence the
sheikh determined on exterminating them. They were in league with
the Biddoomah, who were now kept to their own islands. Joggabah
we found uninhabited, and covered with jungle and prickly
underwood, in that part where we passed the night: we saw thirty
porcupines, and killed a centipede and two scorpions under our
mats. We had two canoes rowing guard the whole night on account
of the Biddoomah. By daylight we re-embarked, and proceeded by
the north-west branch for more than two hours, keeping nearly the
same direction: we passed several marshy floating islands, covered
with rushes, high grass, and papyrus, apparently dividing the water
into different streams, when we found ourselves in that sea of fresh
water, the Tchad, which we named Lake Waterloo, and into which
the Shary empties itself. It was my intention to have proceeded quite
round the island to the east, and to have returned by the other
branch; but after making about two miles in the open lake, a heavy
swell from the north-east caused so much water to come into the
canoes, and so much labour to the men, that we gave up that idea.
After our return to the south side of the island we followed the north-
east branch, and found it vary but little in appearance. During our
passage, by keeping the deepest water, and avoiding the convexities
of the stream, we, at this season, met with no impediments; and had
nowhere less than three feet water. We passed many small islands,
all of which, near the mouth, were destitute of trees, but covered with
reeds (among which was the papyrus), bamboos, and very tall
grasses: the quantity of water-fowl was immense, of great variety,
and beautiful plumage. The nearest Biddoomah island is said to be
three days voyage on the open lake, from the mouth of the river, in a
north-east direction, say ninety miles, during two of which these
canoes lose sight of land: with an excellent telescope I could discern
nothing but the waste of waters to the north or east. The Biddoomah
are a wild and independent people, who carry on a piratical war with
all their neighbours: they send out fleets of sixty or one hundred
canoes; and they are reported as terrible kaffirs.
We now commenced our return, and a laborious business it was,
rowing or paddling against the stream: the paddles were only
resorted to when, now and then, a headland sheltered them from the
wind and current; and so cautious were the men of Showy, that it
was near midnight before we landed on a spot named Buffalo Bank.
We had endured two days of burning heat and exposure to the sun,
and a night of watchfulness and torture from the insects; added to
this, we had lived entirely on Indian corn, boiled in the canoes during
the day: we were also constantly ankle deep in water, from the
leaking of the canoes. The banks were here, for some miles inland,
thickly clothed with handsome trees encompassed by creeping
shrubs in full blossom, while large antelopes and buffaloes were
starting from the thickets where they had fixed their lairs. We
disturbed a flock of several buffaloes on our making the shore; and
hippopotami came so close to us as to be struck by the paddles:
here, and at the confluence of the two branches, we found the
greatest depth of water. The most desirable route for us now to have
pursued would have been to have gone from hence to Loggun by
water, but Gulphi lay in our way, and it was impossible. To follow the
direction of the river, therefore, as nearly as we could, by moving in a
line parallel to its banks, became our next anxiety.
Previously, however, we again embarked, and visited a spot
called Dugheia, within a day’s journey of Gulphi, higher up the
stream. Dugheia is a ford and a ferry, where the sheikh, with all his
people, pass the stream on their expeditions against the Begharmis:
the ford is in a slanting direction, and between two sinuosities. When
the river is at its greatest height, the water reaches up to the neck; it
was now not above the arm-pits of a good sized man. The infantry,
placing their spears and bags of corn on their heads, in their shields,
cross with ease: the cavalry are moved over in canoes, and the
horses swam at the sterns. The appearance of the river is similar
both above and below Showy: excepting that above there are more
picturesque islands; on one of which we passed the night, and
named it Red Heron Isle, as my poor friend shot there a bird of that
species.
On the 8th of February we returned to Showy, and the day
following pursued our route by Willighi and Affadai. Willighi is a
walled town of considerable strength; indeed the Begharmis always
pass it by on their predatory excursions. The walls are nearly fifty
feet high, with watch-towers erected on the salient angles, where
there are constant sentinels. The sultan also lives in a sort of citadel
with double walls, and three heavy gates in each wall, strongly
bound with iron. Borgomanda, the reigning sultan of Begharmi, and
Cheromah (which means heir-apparent), send annual presents to
Mai Dundelmah, the sultan of Willighi; but he is a hadgi, and holds
the sheikh of Bornou in too high estimation to forsake his fortunes.
Before arriving at Willighi, which is only a day’s journey from Gulphi,
we recrossed the Gurdya, a considerable stream running from the
Shary into the great lake.
Feb. 10.—We left Willighi, after presenting the sultan with two
knives, two pairs of scissors, a turban, and a red cap, and in about
two hours arrived at another ford of the water Maffatai. These fords
are known by the natives of the neighbouring towns only, who are
always hired as guides. The water was up to the body of the horse;
and a weak camel, by encountering the load of another, was thrown
off the causeway into twelve or fourteen feet of water. We crossed,
this day, three deep marshes, besides the river, which, the Willighi
guide informed us, extended to the river, at one of which we were
detained nearly an hour before we could venture a passage: the
water reached to our saddles. After the rainy season, canoes come
from Showy to the neighbourhood of Willighi, for a wood which is
here abundant, called by the natives kagam, and another called
korna, with which they build their canoes, and make their paddles.
The fruit, also, of a species of locust tree, which the natives call
kadellaboo, is here gathered. We rested under the shade of a
beautiful large tree of this description, bearing a flower of a deep
crimson colour; a yellow jessamine, with a delicious odour, was
creeping around it, while other delicate aromatic plants grew in wild
profusion. Nevertheless, the paths through these woods, though
literally strewed with flowers, were nearly impassable from the
overhanging branches of thorny shrubs, which not only tore our
shirts and cloaks, but were sufficiently strong to drag the loads from
the backs of the camels: we were nearly twelve hours in making
twenty-two miles. When we arrived at the town of Affadai, our people
were too tired to cook the rice we had with us, and the kadi merely
sent us flour and water paste, and leban (sour milk): at the same
time promising to kill a sheep the next day, if we would stay. We,
however, departed early on the following morning, and came,
towards evening, to a place called Kala, a wretched nest of huts,
although surrounded by a wall, and having strong gates.
On the 12th we moved on, and, after crossing a long and deep
marsh, we halted, about noon, for an hour or two, at a town called
Alph, which stood on a foundation of earth artificially raised in the
midst of a swamp extending for miles in every direction. We shot
several cranes; one of a beautiful white, with a yellow beak, and dark
hazel eyes, with a yellow rim. We now began to approach Kussery,
and again came to the banks of the river Shary, leaving Gulphi to the
eastward. This route is but seldom traversed: it is a continued
succession of marshes, swamps, and stagnant waters, abounding
with useless and rank vegetation: flies, bees, and mosquitos, with
immense black toads, vie with each other in a display of their peace-
destroying powers.
I had, with grief, for several days, observed in my companion
symptoms which gave me great uneasiness: his stomach constantly
refused our coarse food of fish and paste; but as he complained but
little, I hoped a day or two at Kussery would restore his wonted good
health and spirits. Kussery, however, unfortunately, was the last
place one should have chosen for rest and tranquillity: during several
hours in the day, the inhabitants themselves dare not move out, on
account of the flies and bees. The formation of the houses, which
are literally one cell within another, five or six in number, excited my
surprise; which was not a little increased when I found that they were
built expressly as a retreat from the attacks of these insects. Still I
was incredulous, until one of our people, who had carelessly gone
out, returned with his eyes and head in such a state, that he was
extremely ill for three days. Kussery is a strong walled town,
governed by an independent sultan, named Zarmawha, who has
twice been in rebellion against the sheikh. Bellal was obliged to take
off his red cap and turban, and enter the presence with his head and
feet bare—a ceremony which had previously been dispensed with on
our journey. The sultan merely peeped at us through a lattice-work of
bamboo, but inquired particularly, why I turned my face towards him
as I sat. I, of course, replied, that turning my back would be, in my
country, a gross affront; at which he laughed heartily. We had a
separate letter to this prince from the sheikh: he seemed, however,
to pay but little respect to it, or the bearer, Bellal, while to me he was
most attentive. We had ten dishes of fish and paste, which regaled
our attendants sumptuously; and one of his own household took up
his residence at our huts. The fish was stale, and offensive to more
senses than one, which the natives rather prefer, as we do game
that has hung some time. The sultan’s officer, however, seeing that I
could not touch these Kussery delicacies, quickly brought me a mess
made of fresh fish, which, though a little oily, was not unpalatable,
with a large bowl of leban. Salt is here scarcely known, and therefore
not eaten with any of their meals: out of the small stock I had
brought, the townspeople were always begging little lumps, which
they put into their mouths, and sucked with as much satisfaction as if
it had been barley sugar.
I gave the sultan, in the morning, a parcel of beads, two pairs of
scissors, a knife, two turkadees, and a turban; on which he said “we
were a great people, a race of sultans, and would bring good fortune
to his dominions!” I must not omit to mention a visit which I received
from the sultan’s sister. She had been some time divorced from her
husband, who had gone over to the Begharmis. The officer in
attendance on us announced her with great secrecy, about ten
o’clock at night. For the only light in our hut we were indebted to the
pale moonbeams which shone through the door-way, as we had
neither candles nor lamp; and I had been some time fast asleep
when she arrived. Her attendants, three in number, waited for her at
the entrance, while she advanced and sat herself down beside my
mat: she talked away at a great rate, in a sort of whisper, often
pointing to my sick friend, who was at the further end of the hut; and
did not appear at all to wish for any reply. After remaining nearly half
an hour, and feeling and rubbing repeatedly my hands, face, and
head, which she uncovered by taking off my cap and turban, she
took her leave, apparently much gratified by her visit.
Drawn by Major Denham. Engraved by E. Finden.

THE RIVER SHARY, FROM THE WALLS OF KUSSERY.


Published by John Murray, London. Feb. 1826.

The river here is a wide, handsome stream, and the walls extend
quite to the banks, and have two water-gates; the character is the
same as nearer its embouchure. I passed one of these water-gates
at sunset, and was much struck by the beauty of the landscape, with
the fishing canoes just returning towards Loggun: the stream sweeps
off to the south-south-west, and then to the south. Loggun was said
to be thirty miles distant by the river. Here my poor friend declared it
impossible to remain, and we moved on towards Loggun the next
morning. We could advance, however, but a few miles. Mr. Toole’s
sufferings were most acute; he twice fainted, and we lifted him on
and off his horse like an infant, so helpless had he become. What
added also to our distress was, that from this time until the evening
of the 16th, the Shouaa Arabs, who occupy the frontier of the
Loggun country, refused to allow us to pass until the sultan had been
consulted, and a number of his questions answered as to the
purpose of our visit. We were now close to the river, and
notwithstanding the heat, the only means we had of defending either
ourselves or our animals from the torture of the millions of insects
that beset us, was by lighting fires at the entrance of our tent, and
constantly supplying them with weeds and wet straw: the thick
suffocating smoke arising from this description of fire afforded us
temporary relief. I rode down to the river, which here flows with great
beauty and majesty past the high walls of this capital of Loggun; it
comes direct from the south-west, with a rapid current. We entered
the town by the western gate, which leads to the principal street: it is
as wide as Pall Mall, and has large dwellings on each side, built with
great uniformity, each having a court-yard in front, surrounded by
walls, and a handsome entrance, with a strong door hasped with
iron: a number of the inhabitants were seated at their doors for the
purpose of seeing us enter, with their slaves ranged behind them. At
first they took but little notice of us: indeed, our appearance could not
have been very imposing: one of our party was laid on a camel, and
another supported on his horse by two persons, who walked on each
side of him, while he raved most incoherently from the violence of
the fever by which he was consuming. At length, however, a person
of apparent consequence advanced towards my horse, bending
nearly double, and joining his hands (the first salutation of the kind
that I had seen), followed by his slaves stooping still lower than
himself. After explaining that he was deputed by the sultan to
welcome kab n’jaffy (the white man), and repeating frequently that
he was kaffama (my friend), he preceded our party; and, as we
moved on, each assembly that we passed rose from the ground,
advanced towards us, and saluted us in the same manner as I have
already described. We were at length conducted to our habitation,
which consisted of four separate huts, well built, within an outer wall,
with a large entrance hall for our servants: in the most retired and
quiet spot I spread the mat and pillow of my patient, who was in a
sad state of exhaustion and irritation.
The next morning I was sent for to appear before the sultan: ten
immense negroes, of high birth, most of them gray-bearded, bare-
headed, and carrying large clubs, preceded me through the streets,
and I was received with considerable ceremony. After passing
through several dark rooms, I was conducted to a large square court,
where some hundred persons were assembled, and all seated on
the ground: in the middle was a vacant space, to which they led me,
and I was desired to sit down also. Two slaves, in striped cotton
tobes, who were fanning the air through a lattice-work of cane,
pointed out the retirement of the sultan. On a signal, this shade was
removed, and something alive was discovered on a carpet, wrapped
up in silk tobes, with the head enveloped in shawls, and nothing but
the eyes visible: the whole court prostrated themselves, and poured
sand on their heads, while eight frumfrums and as many horns blew
a loud and very harsh-sounding salute.
My present, a red bornouse, a striped cotton caftan, a turban, two
knives, two pairs of scissors, and a pair of red trowsers, was laid
before him: he again whispered a welcome, for it is considered so
extremely ill-bred in a Loggun gentleman to speak out, that it is with
difficulty you can catch the sound of their voices.
He examined me very minutely, when the shade was again
drawn. I begged for permission to embark on the Shary, and was told
he would consider of it. He particularly inquired if I wished to
purchase b’lowy, or handsome female slaves, which I assured him I
did not; “because,” said he, “if you do, go no farther: I have some
hundreds, and will sell them to you as cheap as any one.”
Loggun, the capital of which country (Kernuk) is on the banks of
the Shary, and in 11° 7′ north latitude, is a very populous country.
Kernuk has fifteen thousand inhabitants at least. They speak a
language nearly Begharmi. The Shouaas are all round them, and to
them they are indebted for the plentiful supply of bullocks, milk, and
fat, with which the market abounds: these necessaries are paid for
by tobes, and blue cotton in stripes, which the Loggun people make
and dye of a very beautiful colour. They have, also, a metal currency
in Loggun, the first I had seen in Negroland: it consists of thin plates
of iron, something in the shape of the tip with which they shoe race-

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