Explaining the consolidation of financial statements in the Swiss Federal Government

The growing development of decentralized entities has highlighted the limitations of the traditional annual reports of governments, which do not necessarily capture the financial consequences of subsidiaries, joint ventures and associates. There is a growing tendency to consider consolidated financial statements as essential to support decision-making processes and to ensure higher public accountability. This paper seeks to understand and to explain how the Swiss Federal Government has prepared its consolidated financial statements for the three fiscal years 2009–2011.

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