Embedding Ubuntu Ethics and Professional Identity in Accounting Education at South African Universities: Challenges, Opportunities, and Implications From a PRISMA 2020

The increasing complexity of the accounting profession, driven by digital transformation, artificial intelligence (AI), sustainability reporting, environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting, and heightened ethical expectations, has intensified calls to reimagine accounting education beyond the development of technical competencies. Internationally, accounting educators are increasingly challenged to prepare graduates who demonstrate ethical judgement, professional identity, critical thinking, and socially responsible leadership alongside digital and analytical capabilities. Within South Africa, these global developments intersect with ongoing curriculum transformation, decolonisation, and the integration of indigenous knowledge systems, particularly Ubuntu philosophy, into higher education. Despite growing recognition of ethics and professional identity as essential graduate attributes, limited evidence exists regarding how Ubuntu ethics has been systematically embedded within accounting curricula and how its principles can inform accounting education more broadly. This study employs the PRISMA 2020 systematic literature review methodology to synthesise peer-reviewed studies published between 2020 and 2026, examining the challenges, opportunities, and implications of embedding Ubuntu ethics and professional identity in accounting education at South African universities. The review identifies key pedagogical approaches, curriculum innovations, implementation challenges, and emerging best practices. The findings indicate that Ubuntu-informed pedagogies strengthen ethical reasoning, professional identity formation, collaborative learning, social accountability, and graduate employability while supporting curriculum transformation and human-centred education. However, inconsistent curriculum integration, limited educator preparedness, assessment challenges, and inadequate institutional support continue to constrain implementation. Although grounded in the South African context, the review demonstrates that culturally grounded ethical philosophies can complement internationally recognised accounting competency frameworks by strengthening values-based education, ethical leadership, and responsible professional practice. The study therefore contributes to the international accounting education literature by providing an evidence-based framework that accounting educators, professional bodies, and higher education institutions can adapt to integrate local cultural values with global professional standards in preparing ethically grounded, socially responsible, and globally competent accounting graduates.