The information content of published accounts of Nigerian public limited companies

All limited liability companies, whether public or private, operating in Nigeria are governed by the Companies Decree of 1968. Section I of the paper defines and examines relevant concepts. Section II discusses the substance of the sections of the decree specifying the scope of information to be disclosed in the published accounts. Section III appraises the adequacy of the information-content of accounting reports published within the provisions of the decree. On the basis of this appraisal the need for amending the decree is advocated in section IV. Section V then concludes and indicates areas where related research could usefully be carried out. The appendix exemplifies an account of a public limited company published within the provisions of the decree. Notes, appendix.