THE IMPACT OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY IN ACCOUNTING PRACTICE IN NIGERIA

1.0 Introduction

Information has been a vital tool in decision making process. Since the dawn of civilization, people have acquired information to aid them in their personal battle to survive as they attempt to manage their businesses. The increasing complexity of the society especially, as is manifested in social, political and economic institutions, has necessitated the more, man's quest for more relevant information on a more regular basis. The processing of facts that can be traced back to thousand years ago.

Every financial manager has been concerned with the processing of facts or data, about his businesses operation so as to provide the most accurate and timely information to management. In order to provide this accurate and timely information to management, financial manager continuously sought more improved means of processing data. With the advent of industrial revolution, the need for faster, more efficient and also other methods of processing data became apparent. To satisfy these needs, various types of automated devices were introduced into the business world. Of these, electric computer is the most efficient and foremost as will as the fastest, and mot sophisticated device built by man Charles Babbage, an English Mathematician, designed the first mechanical calculation machines that incorporated the concept of input, Processing, and output in its design. The machines were the difference and analytical engines.

The difference engine was originally designed for working out tables of logarithm, it was based on the concept of difference of polynomials, the more complex machine, it was a general ‘purpose information processing machine, which has the input, output and processing units.

The analytical engine closely resembled modern computer in the following ways.

(a) One part of the machine known as the mill was dedicated to calculations (similar to the arithmetic unit of the modern computer central processing unit CPU)

(b) It had a part that ensures that all operations were carried out in correct control unit of the modern (CPU)

(c) It had a series of cogs that ensured that numbers were not presented to the mill until they were required for calculation this is equivalent to the storage unit in the present day computers.

(d) Babbage's engine had a part that could be identified as input and output. A computer may be defined as an electronic machine that accepts data as input, processes the data and information as output it also stores data and information which can be retrieved in the future.

The use of computers is becoming diverse and wide-spread in all sectors of our society. At schools, homes hospitals, offices, banks etc. computers are used for one purpose or the other.

Information and communication technology (ICT) which is synonymous with computerization is that technology which aids activates such as creation, storage, processing and communication of information.

Accounting is an art of recording, identifying, classifying, summarizing, in a systematic manner and in terms of money, transactions and events which are in part list of financial character and communicating the results to the users.

This project therefore is to x-ray or highlight the impact of this information communication technology on accounting practices in Nigeria.

1.1 Background of the Study

The history of information and communication technology can be traced to computer which has now been with us for over half a century. They have gone from being experimental device found only in the university laboratory to being in every household in the world. Lesson that people learn in early development influence the modern data processing industry. Today, before the arrival of computer the people were gathering and manipulating data to run and daily affair. People in the past did not have any type computer to help them in their mathematics computation and other.

Situation that they will run into between 1870's and 1975, equipment was to processed data such as cash register and the adding and billing machine. The information processing industries now dominated by computer did not come existence until 1950's when the digital electronic computers were developed. The demand for this expensive price of equipment grew during the late 1940's. Demand increased so that the business stays ahead of the competitors. The data processing industry stray of worthless than one billion dollars in the mid 1950's but over 28 billion dollars in the late 1970's.

This helped to explain the growth of the computer and technology that was produced in 1050's. The most device information and communication technology system was the computer to been., the computer is one of the latest expensive component of the information and communication technology.

at a time in future is may be possible that computer held at a higher level than books, we are living in an age , of information and everyone need to know how computer are important to our society. Technology is most of the, important today, it will eventually change to something different.

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1.2 Statement of the Problem

The key issue of this research is to know the extent to which information and communication technology affects accounting practices either negatively or positively.

Accounting deals with source documents. Over the years, the challenges of accounting profession has always centered on how to provide timely and accurate information to meets the need of the end users.

As the organisation in size and volume in its transaction. The challenges storage, retrieval in its transaction and communication accounting manifest, its becomes self evident that the manual method of accounting information system cannot not address. The aforementioned problem. The issue is to found whether technology offer more cradle alternative method for effective accounting practice.

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1.3 Objective of the Study

The prime objective of the study is to carry out research in order to know the impact of information communication technology in accounting practice in Nigeria

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1.4 Research Questions

The research questions considered in this work are enumerated below.

(a) How do you assess the development of accounting information system within the 20th country?

(b) What are the contributions of information and communication technology in dealing with the accounting problems of storage, retrieval and communication of accounting information?

(c) What are the impacts of information and communication technology on accounting practices in Nigeria

(d) In what ways has information and communication technology contributed to the generation of timely and accurate accounting in formation to the users?

(e) In what ways has information and communication technology contributed in dealing with the problems of increasing volume of information?

(f) How can accounting practitioners cope with the growth in information and communication technology as it affects accounting practices?

(d) In what ways has information and communication technology contributed to the generation of timely and accurate accounting in formation to the users?

(e) In what ways has information and communication technology contributed in dealing with the problems of increasing volume of information?

(f) How can accounting practitioners cope with the growth in information and communication technology as it affects accounting practices?

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1.5 Significance of the Study

This research is because it will be beneficial to all organisation that are computerizes in their activities. This is because accounting practice is done in every organisation. It will found helpful to know whether information communication technology affect accounting practice negatively or positively.

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1.5 Scope and Limitations of the Study

The Scope of the Study

The scope of this project work will be limited only to Nigeria, that is, the research work will not be extended to other countries of the would.

The Limitations of the Study

This project work was limited by some inherent problems usually associate with research they are:

(a) CONFIDENTIALITY:

This is one of the factors that limited the research work as some key personnel of the organization visited reserved certain points to themselves without supplying some vital information.

(b) FINANCE:

This is another factor that limited the research work. There are more places that I ought to have visited and gathered some information but inadequacy of finance hindered me.

(c) TIME:

The time firm allowed for this research work was short that I could not afford exhausting the topic hence the need for further studies.

(d) LOW LITERACY LEVEL:

This made it extremely difficult for many people especially, the junior staff of the organization visited to understand and appreciate the essence of the research questions so as to answer them in a way that could be meaningful.

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1.7 Definitions of Terms

In order to help the reader or user of this project work understand it in details, certain rated terms have been defined a number of these related terms are as follows.

(a) Data:

These are raw facts that can be imputed into the computer for processing. They consist of a combination of numbers (o-9)

(b) Information:

this is a processed data now in a usable form. The information on the payroll of staff in management information system department comprising names dates, of birth etc, is a good example.

(c) System:

this is a group of components working together to attain the same goal. Automobile and computer systems are good examples.

(d) Data Base:

this is a common collection of data which is substantially non-redundant and program independent.

(e) File:

this is an organized collection of related records.

(f) Record:

this contains all the information for a particular person or item

(g) Program:

this is the service of coded instructions written in a particular programming language to control the operators of a computer.

(h) Value chain:

a value chain divides a company's activities into technological and economically distinct activities that it performs

(i) On-line:

this implies that a device which may be a computer, is active in receiving data, which is being transmitted down a line

(j) Coding:

this means writing instructions in a programming language

(k) Hardware:

The physical and functional components of a computing equipment these components include input, output devices, central processing unit and auxiliary storage device

(l) Software:

These are computer programs which are the logical instructions that fell the computer what to do

(m) Central processing unit (C.P.U)

this is the principal unit of the computer designed to perform calculations and to perform various parts of the computer system

(n) Disk drive:

an auxiliary machine which magnetically stores information on disk.

(o) Office automation:

this is an integrated collection of electronics devices which are used to increase office product. This may include contravisual of teleconferencing, e-mail, multi-media systems and integrated telephoning concepts.

(p) Floppy disk:

this is a soft coated disk used to store magnetically. It is removable and transportable unlike hard Disk but of less capacity in terms of data storage volume.

(q) GIGO (garbage in garbage out)

this means that errors entered by the users will falsely influence the results of processing and the output may be wrong. To ensure accurate results from computer process, all entries must be correct.

(r) Information revolution:

The change from physical labour to mental labour brought about by increased importance of information within our modern society.

(s) information processing cycle

The use of the activities of input process, output and storing of data to produce useful output from the computer

(t) information management:

this is the management and control, of data and information required within an organization for it to function effectively

The above defined computer related terms will help a reader of this work to understand it without much difficulty.