Examining the Extent of Compliance on Combined Assurance Reporting Quality: Evidence from Namibian State-owned Enterprises

Objective: the objective of this paper is to explore the extent of compliance on combined assurance model, which is an innovative corporate governance and management tool that integrates and optimizes all assurance services and functions to support the integrity of organizational external reports. Theoretical approach: based on this premise, this study analyzes the compliance of SOEs in Namibia with the requirements of the combined assurance model or how they have explained their non-compliance in their annual/integrated reports. Methods: we developed a combined assurance compliance reporting quality (CACRQ) checklist, which we applied using content analysis to the publicly available annual/integrated reports of Tier 1, 2, and 3 SOEs in Namibia. Results: the study found that most of the SOEs have not adopted the combined assurance model. Further findings indicate that the SOEs’ report on compliance with the combined assurance model lacks quality in terms of what a combined assurance report should entail, with the exception of the assurance strategy. Their reports may not convince stakeholders that internal controls have been adequately carried out, which is the main goal of a combined assurance report. Conclusions: we conclude by highlighting the policy implications of the findings and pointing to future research areas.