Roundtables on boardrooms
Full convergence with international accounting and audit standards, better protection of minority investors, stronger enforcement of existing laws and regulations, and improved bank governance: these are some of the key recommendations in the white paper on corporate governance in Asia, published by the OECD in Tokyo in June.
The recommendations come just a month after an OECD-led roundtable on corporate governance for Latin America finalised a similar white paper, identifying priorities for reform and putting forward a concrete action plan for improving corporate governance in the region.
Discussions covered areas including shareholder rights, boards of directors, and enforcing laws and regulations on corporate governance.
The Latin American and Asian white papers, as well as similar roundtables for Eurasia, Russia and south-eastern Europe, build on the OECD’s own principles of corporate governance (which are themselves now under review) while taking into account each region’s legal, cultural and economic diversity. They are the result of regional roundtables organised by the OECD and the World Bank, grouping policymakers, regulators, business leaders and experts, which have taken place since 1999. The aim is for white papers to kickstart a process that will allow each roundtable to focus on implementation and enforcement issues.
©OECD Observer No. 238, July 2003
•See also Spotlight on corporate governance (OECD Observer No. 234)
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