During February’s meeting of a key steering group of the 30-nation Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, negotiations on the newly revised OECD Principles on Corporate Governance reached a crucial stage. The principles are to be finalized for adoption at May’s OECD ministerial meeting in Paris.
Commenting on the negotiations of the government experts, members of the OECD’s Business and Industry Advisory Committee(BIAC) asked their governments to sustain the notion that “one size does not fit all” in corporate governance standards.
Every national regulatory system has to find its own balance between regulation by governments and self-regulation, BIAC members said. A level of diversity is necessary for the maintenance of an internationally competitive environment, and companies welcome the new emphasis given to the effective enforcement of existing corporate governance rules. Business believes, however, that having clear, concise and understandable OECD principles is necessary for their effective enforcement.
The 38 business federations from all the OECD countries belonging to BIAC – and the companies they represent – will continue to take the discussions on corporate governance seriously and participate actively in the elaboration and revision of corporate governance laws and codes in their countries.
Staff contact: Ariel Meyerstein
