INTERNAL CONTROL SYSTEM FOR FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT IN THE CHURCH: A CASE OF PROTESTANT CHURCHES IN ELDORET MUNICIPALITY, KENYA.

Abstract

The study aims at evaluating the Internal Control System (ICS) which can be used for effective financial management in the Church. The objectives were to determine if ICS is in place, its role, challenges faced during implementation and its relationship with financial management among Protestant Churches in Eldoret Municipality. Using the descriptive statistics, 76.5% of the respondents confirmed that ICS was in place. However, only one type of internal control (control activities) existed in the Churches sampled which also plays a minimal role. ICS related challenges faced include lack of ICS knowledge, resistance to adapt ICS, shortage of staff to implement and Church’s management reluctance. This was shown by 76.5%, 52.9%, 52.9% and 58.8% respectively. In regards to ICS and financial management, majority of the respondents (76.5%) indicated their relationship to be positive. The researchers recommends more scholarly works to be done to make roles of ICS seen to crucial, how to address the challenges faced during development and implementation of ICS as well as how to make ICS an effective financial management technique.