An innovative reporting approach in public sector: The Integrated Popular Reporting

Abstract

A growing literature is devoted to understanding how public entities can enhance their methods of reporting information to establish a genuine dialog with stakeholders in general and citizens in particular. In the current context, the challenge of achieving sustainable development has impacted various sectors. The public sector is implementing a series of actions aimed at ensuring transparency and environmental, social, and governance sustainability. Public entities disseminate information related to these actions through various reporting tools, attempting to meet the interests of citizens. However, typically, this kind of information is not included in traditional financial reports. The aim of the study can be summarized by illustrating the advantages of a relatively new reporting tool in Italy. Contributing to previous studies, we investigate, using a theoretical-deductive methodology, how governmental entities can improve institutionalization, legitimacy, and stakeholder relations through a new reporting tool known as “Integrated Popular Reporting”. The study highlights how Integrated Public Reporting (IPR) fosters citizen participation in budgeting, improves accessibility to reporting, and promotes accountability. It emphasizes the importance of IPR in enhancing quality of life and transparency, offering valuable insights for policymakers and standard setters.