Accounting for colonial domination in Liberal and Fascist Italy, 1912-1941

This paper addresses the role played by accounting in the government of the Italian colonies of Africa during the Liberal and Fascist periods. Drawing upon the work of Foucault, Scott and Said and their understandings of governmentality and colonialism, and using a wide range of primary sources, the paper contributes to the accounting history literature by showing how calculative practices in the form of colonial budgets and the census of the population helped the Italian government to control activities in its colonies. The paper shows how accounting practices evolved under different political regimes in the achievement of different programmes of government. It also offers evidence of the way in which accounting can be mobilised to enable penetrating interventions in the life of indigenous populations.