The Integrated Financial Management System (IFMS) was created by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and was designed for use by government entities; however, over time, a lack of information for its effective management in local governments has been observed. The objective of this study is to identify the challenges in implementing the IFMS, considering a governance and institutional capacity approach in local governments. A systematic review of the scientific literature was conducted, following the PRISMA guidelines. The search process identified 671 documents from Scopus, 229 from Refseek, and 294 from Google Scholar. Twenty-five articles were then selected for the final analysis. The results show that the processes and practices carried out by local public institutions to make and regulate decisions, automation, digitization, internal control, and staff training are seen as challenges for the implementation of an IFMIS. Likewise, the lack of strategies, the use of analytical tools, regulations for financial management and collaborative work, corruption, territorial and psychosocial factors also limit the implementation of the IFMS. Consequently, improvised staff training, poor internal control, a lack of effective knowledge in the use of ICTs and electronic systems, and a lack of investment in digitalization become the main challenges for local governments in implementing this system.
Robles et al. (Tue,) studied this question.