Western Imperialism and Eastern Accounting: the Story of Chartered Institute of Management Accountants in Sri Lanka

Abstract

This is a study of the growth of the management accounting profession in Sri Lanka. This questions whether western management accounting practice can be effective without taking into consideration the local needs. This is a previously unresearched topic. The study is archival with semi structured interviews with founder members of the local Association and practitioners of management accounting. There is evidence of a gap between management accounting techniques used in the West and management accounting practice in the East. The paper suggests several reasons for this gap. The main reason is that the context is different. It follows therefore that the practices in the west would not suit the requirements of a postcolonial developing country. The theory relates to the west while the practice relates to the east. This contributes to the debate whether western imperialism and the accounting that was imposed is useful for the needs of the indigenous accounting community. The paper contributes to the literature in providing an understanding of the way in which an accountancy body merges.