Issue #1 (Volume 15 2026)

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
This paper analyzes the determinants of municipal capital transfer allocation in North Macedonia using data for all 80 municipalities over 2018–2022. Capital transfers are a key investment instrument in fiscally decentralized systems, yet their fragmented and project-based delivery may weaken equalization. To test whether transfers follow developmental or fiscal-capacity criteria, the study combines baseline OLS estimates with a two-part (hurdle) model that separates access from transfer intensity, quantile regressions to capture distributional heterogeneity, and inequality measures. The results show no statistically significant association between municipal development level or fiscal capacity and the probability of receiving any capital transfer, indicating that entry into the system is not needs-based. Conditional on receipt, the development coefficient is negative but not robustly significant, indicating no systematic targeting of less-developed units among recipients. Inequality diagnostics reinforce this conclusion: the Gini coefficient for per-capita capital transfers (0.75) vastly exceeds that for municipal revenues (0.18), and Lorenz curves reveal a sharply more unequal transfer distribution. Overall, the evidence implies that unobserved institutional or political factors dominate the access margin and that capital transfers currently introduce an additional layer of territorial divergence rather than mitigating existing disparities.

Acknowledgments
The author gratefully acknowledges the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for providing access to data used in this research. The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not reflect the views of UNDP.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
Sustainable local revenue generation is fundamental for fiscal sustainability and effective service delivery within decentralized governance systems. This study investigates revenue trends, collection efficiency, the implementation of revenue-generation strategies, and ongoing challenges influencing fiscal sustainability in the municipality of La Trinidad, Benguet, the Philippines. An explanatory sequential mixed-methods design was employed. Quantitative data were sourced from municipal records spanning 2014–2023 and surveys of 301 taxpayers and 24 revenue implementers. Qualitative insights were gathered through in-depth interviews with 10 key informants. The findings indicate a sustained increase in total municipal revenue, from PHP 278 million in 2014 to PHP 690 million in 2023, with locally sourced revenues comprising 45% of the total. Collection efficiency consistently surpassed annual targets, reflecting robust administrative performance. Nevertheless, the implementation of revenue-generation strategies was moderate. One-stop-shop systems and information campaigns were widely adopted, whereas electronic payment systems and enforcement measures, particularly property auctions, were implemented only minimally. Persistent challenges include unregistered businesses, inadequate monitoring of delinquencies, taxpayer resistance to reassessments, and institutional constraints in digital revenue administration. The results demonstrate that high collection efficiency may coexist with underutilized revenue measures and lenient enforcement, thereby constraining the full realization of revenue potential. This study contributes to the literature by underscoring the need to evaluate fiscal sustainability beyond target-based efficiency metrics and by highlighting the importance of institutional capacity, enforcement practices, and digital readiness in enhancing local revenue mobilization. These insights are pertinent for local governments in developing countries aiming to strengthen fiscal resilience within decentralized systems.

Acknowledgment
This study is made possible with the assistance of the local government of La Trinidad, Benguet, and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), which provided the stipend. Acknowledgement is likewise extended to the LGU implementers and taxpayers for the critical data and their time.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
This study examines the adoption and implementation of cost accounting practices in Saudi Arabian public universities following their shift from cash-based to accrual-based accounting. Guided by the resource-based view (RBV) framework, it tests four hypotheses related to drivers of cost adoption, cost tracking and allocation abilities, calculation method frequencies, and resources needed for successful cost implementation. Data from 171 financial managers and accountants across all 30 public universities were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlations, and regression models. Results reveal a negative correlation between cost adoption and organizational factors, with external pressures – including regulatory requirements and negotiations over funding – serving as the primary catalysts. Universities demonstrate a strong capacity to track and allocate direct costs, with over 90% able to manage them; however, indirect cost management remains limited, with only 12% able to allocate indirect costs, indicating early-stage development. Cost implementation is further positively associated with the use of detailed cost calculation and allocation methods and perceived organizational resource needs, including financial policies, skilled personnel, and advanced management systems. Findings suggest that, despite external pressures, resource constraints hamper full implementation. These findings support the RBV assertion that internal capabilities are crucial for gaining a strategic advantage. Successful cost implementation depends on internal resource development and organizational capacity-building, which can transform cost accounting from a symbolic compliance exercise into a strategic tool for transparency, decision-making, and institutional efficiency.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
Budget credibility is a critical indicator of fiscal reliability in local governments, yet the mechanisms through which digital transparency enhances credibility remain poorly understood. This study examines how digital budget transparency influences perceived budget credibility in Indonesian regency and city governments, using performance information (technocratic mechanism) and procedural justice (normative mechanism) as two parallel mediating pathways. The technocratic mechanism reflects the instrumental application of budget data in planning and decision-making, while the normative mechanism reflects perceptions of fairness and legitimacy in budgeting processes. Using partial least squares structural equation modeling with data from 362 public officials (specifically heads of planning agencies, budget officials, and financial managers) across 33 regencies and city governments in North Sumatera, Indonesia, the study tests these dual pathways. Results show that digital budget transparency has only a modest direct effect on perceived budget credibility (β = 0.118), but exerts far greater influence through mediation. Procedural justice proved to be the primary mediating mechanism (indirect effect β = 0.081), with the use of performance information serving as a secondary pathway (β = 0.035). Multi-group analysis confirms that these relationships hold across both regency and city governments. The findings suggest that digital transparency by itself will not improve budget credibility. Its influence hinges on whether disclosed information actually gets used in decision-making and whether budgeting processes are perceived as fair. Reforms should, therefore, target both information usability and procedural legitimacy if they are to strengthen fiscal discipline in decentralized governance systems.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
Improving fraud prevention processes requires systematic and ongoing efforts as part of implementing accountability, transparency, and integrity. By strengthening legislation and enhancing expertise, the government, audit companies, and financial management organizations must work together to establish an environment that lowers the likelihood of fraud. The goal of this study is to ascertain how internal audit, workload, and internal control affect auditors’ capacity to identify fraud. Seventy government auditors from Indonesia’s Supreme Audit Institution’s Principal Inspectorate, who had been employed for at least 2 years, were given Google Forms surveys to collect data for this study. Partial least squares (SmartPLS) with a significance level of 5% was used for the analysis. The results showed that internal audit (β = 0.419; p < 0.05) and internal control (β = 0.325; p < 0.05) had a beneficial effect on fraud detection. However, workload had no effect (β = 0.255; p > 0.05). The audit body can increase risk-based audit techniques by using the research findings about factors impacting fraud detection, which will enable auditors to concentrate more on areas with high fraud potential. In order to enable faster and more accurate fraud detection, the financial and development audit agency may also include these findings when developing technical audit standards based on information technology and data analytics. Consequently, this study directly aids the financial and development audit agency in improving the effectiveness and efficiency of the audit process in detecting fraud.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
Money laundering threatens global financial integrity, while digital governance is increasingly seen as a tool to enhance transparency and regulatory capacity. This study operationalized digital governance through the United Nations E-Government Development Index, which captures the scope and quality of online public services, telecommunications infrastructure, and human capital. The paper aims to examine whether improvements in e-government development are associated with measurable reductions in systemic money-laundering vulnerabilities at the country level. The study uses an unbalanced panel of 171 countries for 2012–2024 (982 observations). Fixed- and random-effects models with Box–Cox transformations were estimated, with the Hausman test guiding model selection and cluster-robust and Driscoll–Kraay standard errors ensuring reliable inference. The results demonstrate a statistically significant and economically meaningful inverse relationship between e-government development and money-laundering risk, measured by the Basel AML Index. In the preferred fixed-effects specification, the coefficient on the transformed EGDI is –1.56 (p < 0.001), indicating that within-country improvements in digital governance capacity are associated with substantial reductions in AML vulnerability over time. This effect remains robust across alternative error structures, with 95% confidence intervals of [–1.96, –1.17] under cluster-robust estimation and [–1.75, –1.38] under Driscoll–Kraay correction. The inclusion of country-specific fixed effects reveals considerable structural heterogeneity in baseline AML risk (approximately 1.15–3.90), while time effects display limited variation over the sample period (approximately 2.11–2.19), confirming that the risk-reducing role of digital governance is not driven by specific countries or particular years.

Acknowledgment
This article was prepared based on the results of a study funded by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, “GovTech for Ukraine: A Digital, Secure, Transparent, and Equitable State in Times of War and Post-War Reconstruction” (registration number: 0126U000544).

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
In emerging economies, the integration of environmental considerations into fiscal policy analysis has emerged as a priority of sustainable development strategies. This paper seeks to investigate the asymmetric short- and long-term impacts of the budget deficit on CO₂ emissions per capita in Morocco from 1974 to 2022. A nonlinear ARDL model is employed to identify asymmetric fiscal dynamics over the period under study. The estimation results indicate that, in the short run, an increase in the budget deficit immediately and significantly reduces CO₂ emissions per capita (−0.0046; p < 0.05), while the delayed effect of this increase significantly increases emissions in the following period (0.0068; p < 0.05), revealing opposing dynamics and instability in the short-term adjustment process. Conversely, the immediate and delayed effects of negative changes in the deficit do not exert statistically meaningful short-run effects (p > 0.10). In the long run, both increases and decreases in the budget deficit reduce emissions (−0.0075; p < 0.05; −0.0171; p < 0.01, respectively), with a stronger effect associated with deficit reductions. The results also show that urbanization significantly reduces emissions (–0.0168; p < 0.05), whereas fossil fuel consumption increases them (0.0003; p < 0.05). In contrast, GDP per capita, along with inward FDI inflows, fails to demonstrate statistical significance over the long-term horizon (p > 0.05). These results underscore the nonlinear and asymmetric nature of the fiscal policy and environmental quality nexus, suggesting that prudent budget management can promote sustainable environmental outcomes.