Corporate Governance Assessment

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  • Publication
    Report on the Observance of Standards and Codes: Corporate Governance Country Assessment - Pakistan 2018
    (World Bank, Islamabad, 2018-12-01) World Bank
    This report assesses Pakistan’s corporate governance policy framework. It highlights recent improvements in corporate governance regulation, makes policy recommendations, and provides investors with a benchmark against which to measure corporate governance in Pakistan. The report focuses on the governance of large and listed companies, but includes a special section on the governance of public sector companies. The report highlights that corporate governance framework for listed companies has improved in recent years as the government has enhanced the legal and policy framework, and key institutions have grown in sophistication and maturity. Much more can be done to address corporate governance in Public Sector Companies. The findings of the Report on the Observance of Standards and Codes (ROSC) are based on the Detailed Country Assessment (DCA) of the OECD Principles of Corporate Governance, which is summarized in the tables at the end of each section. According to the World Bank methodology used to assess compliance with the 72 OECD Principles, 20 Principles were fully implemented, 33 were broadly implemented, 16 principles were partially implemented, and three were not applicable. A comparison with the 2005 Corporate Governance ROSC shows the level of improvement in the corporate governance framework; in 2005 out of a total of 32 applicable principles, only 4 were fully implemented, 17 were broadly implemented, 10 were partially implemented and 1 was reported as not implemented. The report (and this summary) is organized into five sections: The commitment of the public and private sectors to reform; Shareholder rights; Disclosure and transparency; Boards of directors and Public sector companies.
  • Publication
    Corporate Governance Country Assessment : Vietnam
    (Washington, DC, 2013-08) World Bank
    This report assesses Vietnam's corporate governance policy framework. It highlights recent improvements in corporate governance regulation, makes policy recommendations, and provides investors with a benchmark against which to measure corporate governance in Vietnam. It is an update of the 2006 Corporate Governance ROSC for Vietnam. Good corporate governance enhances investor trust, protects minority shareholders, and encourages better decision making and improved relations with workers, creditors, and other stakeholders. Better investor protection can lower the cost of capital and encourage companies to list and raise funds through equity markets. Good corporate governance also helps to ensure that these companies operate more transparently and efficiently. Vietnam has undertaken important corporate governance reforms in recent years. However protecting minority shareholders, fully tapping the potential of capital markets, and professionalizing boards and management will require that reform continues. Key reforms include: Developing an action plan to address core failings of state owned enterprise corporate governance, including replacing the current state economic groups, or SEG oriented system with one that has more accountable state ownership; and Increasing transparency with greater auditor independence, better disclosure of ownership and control, and convergence of accounting standards with International Financial Reporting Standards, or IFRS.
  • Publication
    Corporate Governance Country Assessment : Russian Federation
    (Washington, DC, 2013-06) World Bank
    This report assesses Russia's corporate governance policy framework. It highlights recent improvements in corporate governance regulation, makes policy recommendations, and provides investors with a benchmark against which to measure corporate governance in Russia. Corporate governance has been a major policy issue in Russia since the beginning of its transition to a market economy. The privatization process of the early 1990s was put in place before most elements of the corporate governance and investor protection framework, and there were many widely publicized abuses, leading to very low asset prices. Most observers agree that the corporate governance environment has improved in recent years as the government has enhanced the legal and policy framework, and key institutions have grown in sophistication and maturity. Many major Russian companies have also voluntarily improved their financial and ownership transparency. A number of reform initiatives are currently underway. The report (and this summary) is organized into four sections: i) the commitment of the public and private sectors to reform; ii) shareholder rights; iii) disclosure and transparency; and iv) Boards of Directors. Policy recommendations are developed in detail at the end of each section. The report also includes a special annex that details the reform agenda focusing on related party transaction approval and disclosure, based on the approach of the Protecting Investors indicator developed in the World Bank's Doing Business report.
  • Publication
    Corporate Governance Country Assessment : Thailand
    (Washington, DC, 2013-01) World Bank
    This report assesses Thailand s corporate governance policy framework. It highlights recent improvements in corporate governance (CG) regulation, makes policy recommendations, and provides investors with a benchmark against which to measure corporate governance in Thailand. It is an update of the 2005 Corporate Governance Report on the Observance of Standards and Codes (CG ROSC). Good corporate governance enhances investor trust, protects minority shareholders, and encourages better decision making and improved relations with workers, creditors, and other stakeholders. Better investor protection can lower the cost of capital and encourage companies to list and raise funds through equity markets. It is crucial to protect retirement savings invested in listed companies. Good corporate governance also helps to ensure that these companies operate more transparently and efficiently.
  • Publication
    Corporate Governance Country Assessment : Malaysia
    (Washington, DC, 2012-07) World Bank
    This report assesses Ghana s corporate governance policy framework. It highlights recent improvements in corporate governance regulation, makes policy recommendations, and provides investors with a benchmark against which to measure corporate governance in Ghana. It is an update of the 2005 Corporate Governance ROSC. Good corporate governance enhances investor trust, helps to protects minority shareholders, and can encourage better decision making and improved relations with workers, creditors, and other stakeholders. Better investor protection can lower the cost of capital and encourage companies to list and raise funds through equity markets. Investor protection is also crucial to protect retirement savings as pension funds invest more in listed companies. Good corporate governance also helps to ensure that these companies operate more transparently and efficiently.
  • Publication
    Corporate Governance Country Assessment : Brazil
    (Washington, DC, 2012-06) World Bank
    This report assesses Brazil's corporate governance policy framework. It highlights recent improvements in corporate governance regulation, makes policy recommendations, and provides investors with a benchmark against which to measure corporate governance in Brazil. It is an update of the 2005 corporate governance Report on the Observance of Standards and Codes (ROSC). Brazil's experience over the past 10 years has shown the value of corporate governance reforms, both in Brazil and around the world. Good corporate governance enhances investor trust, helps to protects minority shareholders, and can encourage better decision making and improved relations with workers, creditors, and other stakeholders. It is an important prerequisite for attracting the patient capital needed for sustained long-term economic growth. This report is organized into four sections: section one is the commitment of the public and private sectors to reform; section two is shareholder rights; section three is disclosure and transparency; and section four is boards of directors.
  • Publication
    Corporate Governance Country Assessment : El Salvador
    (Washington, DC, 2012-06) World Bank
    This report assesses El Salvador s corporate governance policy framework. It highlights recent improvements in corporate governance regulation, makes policy recommendations, and provides investors with a benchmark against which to measure corporate governance in El Salvador. The OECD Principles focus on private-sector publicly traded companies, both financial and nonfinancial, but are also applicable to other public interest entities, including banks, insurance companies, and state-owned enterprises The equity market in El Salvador is small and has not showed much growth in the past five years. Most observers blame unwieldy approval processes for new share offerings, and the predominance in the economy of small- and medium-sized family-owned companies which do not have an interest in becoming public. Given the limited depth of the market, both regulator (SSF) and stock exchange (BVES) have taken measures towards regional integration. El Salvador today is participating in a regional initiative to develop an integrated Central American capital market with Panama and Costa Rica. Good corporate governance enhances investor trust, helps to protect minority shareholders, and can encourage better decision making and improved relations with employees, creditors, and other stakeholders. It is an important prerequisite for attracting the patient capital needed for sustained long-term economic growth.
  • Publication
    Corporate Governance Country Assessment : Togo
    (Washington, DC, 2009-03) World Bank
    The purpose of this ROSC assessment of corporate governance in Togo is to help improve corporate governance in the country by assessing law and practice, suggesting reforms, and supporting the country in its effort to implement changes for better corporate governance. Corporate governance refers to the structures and processes for the direction and control of companies. Corporate governance concerns the relationships among the management, board of directors, controlling shareholders, minority shareholders and other stakeholders. This definition focuses on company performance and shareholder value. For emerging market countries, improving corporate governance can serve a number of important public policy objectives. Good corporate governance reduces emerging market vulnerability to financial crises, reinforces property rights, reduces transaction costs and the cost of capital, and leads to capital market development. Weak corporate governance frameworks reduce investor confidence, and can discourage outside investment. In state-owned enterprises (SOEs), good corporate governance could improve performance and social service, and lessen impact on state budget. Due to the small market size for listed securities in Togo, the scope of the present report is broadened to include a corporate governance assessment of non-listed public limited companies, SOEs, as well as private and state-owned banks (SOBs).
  • Publication
    Bulgaria : Accounting and Auditing
    (Washington, DC, 2008-12) World Bank
    This report provides an assessment of accounting, financial reporting, and auditing requirements and practices within the enterprise and financial sectors in Bulgaria. The accounting profession is fragmented. There are four different professional associations in the country with the result being low institutional capacity. Furthermore, there is no quality assurance, investigation and discipline process on the work of accountants and financial statement preparers. The auditing profession is better organized with one association mandated by law to manage access to the profession, training, the code of ethics and quality control. Professional education and training on international standards of accounting and auditing requires much improvement for students, accountants, auditors and tax inspectors. This improvement is needed at each of the universities, the professional bodies and the government.
  • Publication
    Corporate Governance Country Assessment: Bulgaria
    (Washington, DC, 2008-06) World Bank
    This report assesses Bulgaria's corporate governance policy framework for publicly traded companies. It highlights recent improvements to laws and regulation, makes policy recommendations, and provides investors with a benchmark against which to measure corporate governance in Bulgaria. This report updates the 2002 Corporate Governance ROSC (CG ROSC). As Bulgaria continues its dynamic pace of reforms, all key stakeholders involved in the reforms process may wish to focus on the following four reform priorities: first, the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) should continue to strictly enforce existing laws and may wish to focus on how the following three groups "comply or explain" with the recently issued national code of corporate governance (NCGC): (i) holding companies, in which governance practices are considered insufficient; (ii) the largest ten issuers that make-up most of the trading and market capitalization; and (iii) principal issuers on the unofficial market that are driving much of the market's growth. Second, the task force that launched the NCGC may wish to eventually review the NCGC to offer more practical guidance on how to implement good practice. Third, the government and regulators may wish to make minor amendments to the legal and regulatory framework. Fourth and finally, the most important factor to improve corporate governance will be to train and thus, over time, build a cadre of qualified, experienced, and professional directors who are empowered to ensure that the "law on the books" translates into actual practice.