Search results

The practice of corporate environmental disclosure (CED) has been in existence for more than a decade now, rising to prominence as a result of the upsurge in environmental accounting in the 1990s. Ahmad (2004), by studying in the period of 1998‐2001, found that there is no evidence of environmental disclosure either in term of its quantity or in term of its quality, especially if the health and safety category is excluded; more than 5 years passed now. Some key changes happened in Libyan context such as establishment of Libyan Stock Market and issue of Libyan environmental law no, 15 of 2003. These changes may push CED in Libya steps forward. Thus, the objective of this study is to examine to what extent current CED practice in Libya has been improved. Content analysis is used in this study to investigate CED practices by all the 18 largest industrial companies quoted on Industrial and Mineralisation Secretary (IMS) in Libya. The results of this study reveal that CED in Libya, both in term of its quantity and quality, has been developed over the period between 2001 and 2007. Such development was explained in the shadow of reciprocal direct and indirect accountability model of industrial companies within the main central authorities especially, the relationship with IMS.

The purpose of this paper is to complement the literature reviews on corporate environmental disclosure (CED) with special focus on the developing countries. The paper focuses on the attitudes of accountants towards CED in Libya.

A desk-based research method, using a classification framework of two categories, has been applied in this study. These two categories are the methodologies used to capture empirical data and the results of studies.

The results of this study indicate that almost all previous studies related to the attitudes of accountants towards CED in Libya utilised the two-dimensional analysis, which combines a questionnaire with content analysis. This afforded a better understanding of the picture than that provided by the questionnaire alone. Moreover, the results indicate that most such studies show that whilst the accountants have positive attitudes towards CED, progress is limited, with a low level of CED practices.

Reviews of attitudes of accountants towards CED in different parts of the world are always welcome and are arguably somewhat very limited in developing countries in general and in Libya in particular. This paper provides a foundation for future research and development in the area of CED.

The consideration of corporate environmental responsibility (CER) has been in existence for more than a decade now, rising to prominence as a result of the upsurge in environmental auditing (EA). Despite the many international claims that auditors are positioned to play a pivotal role in the design and conduct of EA, no previous study has been undertaken in the Libyan context. The purpose of this paper is to gain insights into the preparedness of Libyan financial auditors to handle EA within the conventional auditing framework.

The paper comprises an exploration of the views and experience of 93 practitioners in the 27 largest auditing offices in Tripoli. A questionnaire was chosen for this study. It was pre‐tested by nine members of staff in accounting departments at Libyan universities and 11 practitioners. The final Arabic copies of the questionnaire were distributed in the final survey. The number of questionnaires distributed was 93 and the response rate was 87.1 per cent (usable questionnaires 81).

The results of this research are reflective of contemporary international studies, suggesting that, although the Libyan financial auditors recognised the influence of environmental issues on the different stages of auditing, they are conspicuously absent from EA. This can be attributed to: their lack of competence in such an area; a lack of professional standards and guidance; a lack of research in this area; EA not being required by laws; limited public demand for environmental reports; and the low level of environmental disclosure by Libyan companies.

It is envisaged that this initial study will add to the limited literature on EA in developing countries and provide a useful framework for further studies, especially those in the Arabic region.

The purpose of this paper is to reveal the level of compliance with Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) guidelines in general presentation and disclosure in the financial statements of Fashlowm Islamic branch of the Gumhouria Bank as the biggest bank in Libya.

The study used two-dimensional analysis, which combines a questionnaire with content analysis. It allowed a better understanding of the picture than would have been provided by the questionnaire alone.

The results of this study indicate that the level of compliance with AAOIFI guidelines regarding general presentation and disclosure in the financial statements is low. Many reasons were identified as being behind such a low level. The lack of training programmes on AAOIFI standards was at the forefront of these reasons.

The sample is limited to the Fashlowm Islamic branch of Gumhouria Bank. This is may not be true for other branches and banks. Further research is needed in this area.

The AAOIFI has existed for over 20 years, but little empirical research has been conducted into compliance with the standards developed by this body in the Libyan context. This paper helps to address this gap and provide a foundation for future research and development in this area. Moreover, the findings of this study may be useful to policy makers and legislators.