The Impact of Forensic Accounting on Fraud Detection in the Public Sector With Focus on Ekiti State Ministry of finance

This study was designed to examine the impact of forensic accounting on fraud detection in the public sector with focus on Ekiti State Ministry of Finance. The study was guided with three research questions, the method employed in this study was a descriptive survey research design. The questionnaire was the only instrument used. 150 staff of Ministry of Finance Ado Ekiti were randomly selected from level 12 to 16 officers in the ministry. Chi-square analysis was used to test for relationship between variables at 0.05 level of significance. It was concluded that the impact of forensic accounting on fraud detection in the public sector cannot be overstated, and that the rising incidence of financial crimes in the public sector underscores the urgent need for experts in detecting fraudulent activities within and beyond organizations through forensic accounting. Also, from the conclusion it was stated that it is imperative to prioritize the adoption of forensic accounting practices to ensure the training of skilled practitioners and mandating forensic audits across public institutions. Several recommendations were raised for the study such as; forensic accounting should be applied in every aspect of accounting and the auditing process in Nigeria, there is need to formulate laws that would back the use of forensic accounting for all public and private organizations, the professional accountancy bodies should ensure that the forensic accountants are trained and used in the process of accountability and that auditors should ensure that forensic accounting is used in the auditing functions among others.