Advances in the corporate governance practices of Johannesburg Stock Exchange companies

Abstract

Since the 20th century, corporate governance mechanisms have been developed globally to curb the negative effects of the agency problem. South Africa was a pioneer with the publication of the first King Report on corporate governance in 1994. Given the paucity of research on corporate governance in the country, the researchers set out to investigate the corporate governance practices of 230 companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange over the period 2002 to 2010. Annual corporate governance scores were compiled by means of content analysis of the sample companies’ annual reports. The empirical findings revealed an increasing compliance trend towards 2010. Although the sample companies tended to improve the disclosure of their corporate governance practices over time, their practices were not per se acceptable (where acceptability implies meeting the King II recommendations). Inexperienced directors and managers might benefit from more training to enhance their understanding of the application of corporate governance principles.

Keywords: corporate governance, King II Report, South Africa, compliance, disclosure