<![CDATA[Government accounting reforms promise more transparent, comparable, and decision-useful public financial information, yet evidence on their governance effects remains fragmented. This systematic literature review synthesizes 137 studies on IPSAS, accrual accounting, financial reporting, auditing, and related public-sector reforms. Following PRISMA 2020, records were identified across five scholarly sources, screened against predefined criteria, quality-appraised, and analyzed through descriptive mapping and thematic synthesis. Four recurrent themes emerge: IPSAS and accrual adoption; institutional implementation and decoupling; financial reporting and accountability; and auditing, internal control, and governance. The evidence shows that formal adoption does not automatically produce substantive implementation or stronger accountability. Outcomes depend on political commitment, administrative capacity, professional competence, audit quality, information usability, and the fit between imported standards and domestic institutions. Accrual reforms can improve information quality and governance, but they can also relocate discretion into estimates, valuations, and reporting choices. The review therefore develops a conditional reform-realization framework in which standards create potential value, organizational and institutional mechanisms convert that potential into practice, and accountability actors determine whether information becomes consequential. The study contributes a reconciled research map, identifies methodological weaknesses, and proposes a future agenda centered on longitudinal, causal, user-oriented, and sustainability-focused research.]]>
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