Introduction: Public sector accounting, IPSAS and performance management

The current international accounting harmonization movement has extended to the public sector where more and more countries have already been or are going to be involved in the reform of their accounting system, based on the adoption of accrual accounting. This reform trend participates in a more global public sector reform, marked by the introduction of new public management.Parallel to this movement, based on the idea that high quality standards are necessary to enhance consistent financial reporting, the IPSAS Board, the international standard-setter of public accounting, engages in the development of international public sector accounting standards (IPSAS). This development constitutes a further step in the direction of the international convergence of financial reporting systems. This situation raises important questions, both for academics and practitioners. The articles included in this special issue on IPSAS present some of these questions.