The Maltese government signed a deal last month awarding financial services firm Grant Thornton Malta the contract to implement the system, worth an estimated €11.6m.

Finance minister Edward Scicluna tweeted on the day:

A red letter day for MFIN - implementing very long time promise to switch to accrual system. We promise AND deliver. pic.twitter.com/Kil4g2XAp7

— Prof Edward Scicluna (@edward_scicluna) July 10, 2017

Rob Whiteman, chief executive of CIPFA, said: “Importantly, the Maltese government’s ambition is to make full use of the information it generates.

"The transition from cash to accrual accounting is a key part of strengthening a country’s public financial management and accrual based information should be used to inform the budgetary decision making which will improve fiscal sustainability, good governance and transparency.”

As well as implementing the Corporate Financial Management Solution system over the next 30 months, the Maltese government has promised to provide intense training for existing and new employees.

Scicluna said: “Ministries and departments will need to have their employees trained in necessary skills so this investment is fully exploited.”

Government employees will be expected to do operational work and help implement the system, the ministry of finance stated.

The Maltese government explained transferring from its current cash flow accounting system to accrual accounting will mean departments will have a “more transparent account of income and their expenditure”. 

Paulanne Mamo, Malta’s general treasury director, said the move was an “important step” that would “lead to the country have a transparent financial reporting system”, help ensure “government expenditure is under control” and make the “decisions necessary to continue to register a surplus”.

The deal was signed by Anthony Cachia, Malta’s director general of the department of contracts, Joseph Pullicino, a partner at Grant Thornton Malta on 10 July.

Work on a tender for the contract began in 2014.