Micro Businesses: Do They Need Accounting?

The contribution of micro enterprises (MEs) is essential towards economy development in Malaysia. MEs provided job opportunities to the people, especially to those with low-incomes, and also offer more affordable goods and services to the public. Despite having advantages, current MEs are still unrecognised and it is hard to see positive development in terms of growth. This study aims to explore the current accounting record keeping practices among MEs owners in Kelantan, Malaysia, and the extent of use of accounting information in the business decision making. The data was collected through random sampling method of survey questionnaires to 500 micro-business owners, however only 150 were agreed to involved, given a response rate of 30%. Descriptive analysis was applied and the findings of this study revealed that the majority of the MEs owners do not keep complete accounting records with some of them not keeping any record at all. It shows lack of accounting knowledge and existence of unused accounting information in the business. This study recommends the development of a simple accounting module for MEs and provides training and continuous support to help the MEs. This study also recommends that the regulators enforce mandatory record keeping to improve accounting practices in Malaysia.