Financial Fraud Detection in Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in Nigeria: The Role of Forensic Accounting Skills

The prevalence of financial fraud within government agencies has become a pervasive challenge in the Nigeria public sector necessitating the need for empirical investigating on how to prevent it. Accordingly, this study examines the influence of forensic accounting skills application in thwarting financial fraud in Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in Nigeria. Employing a quantitative research method, the study utilizes a survey design method by administering 164 Questionnaire to some staff of 82 MDAs in Nigeria. Five hypotheses were advanced based on the various forensic accounting skills considered. These hypotheses were tested through cross-sectional regression analysis. All but one of the findings meet theoretical expectation and support the hypotheses formulated. In particular, one of the findings reveal that investigative and auditing skills positively influence financial fraud detection in MDAs. Likewise, the study found that legal and litigation skills influence fraud detection positively. It was also found that both analytical and technical skills were found to positively influence financial fraud detection in MDAs. Finally, the study found no significant relationship between ethical skill and financial fraud detection. Therefore, the study concludes that forensic accounting skills are key drivers to financial fraud detection in Ministries, Department and Agencies in Nigeria. All these revelations have some policy and theoretical implications. The outcome from this study will enable regulators, especially the Head of Service and Office of the Accountant General to put appropriate measures in place for continuous staff up-skills relevant to financial fraud detection. With regards to theoretical implications, the study contributes to the extant literature by lengthening the discussions on the usefulness of forensic accounting skills in fraud detection.