IFC, EBRD to hold workshop on governance codes

Microfinance Focus, Dec. 1, 2009: The IFC Global Corporate Governance Forum and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will hold a two-day workshop on Corporate Governance in Tbilisi this week to be attended by over 40 participants from 13 countries.
The conference will address issues including qualification of board members, disclosure of beneficial ownership, internal and external audits, and transparency disclosure.
The workshop will also provide  guidance on implementing corporate governance codes to help companies and banks improve their corporate governance practices and boost their confidence, competitiveness, and investor appeal.

IFC’s Georgia Corporate Governance Project will present its experience in developing a corporate governance code for banks, in close cooperation with the Association of Banks of Georgia and the Georgian Stock Exchange. Most Georgian banks have embraced the code.

The second in a series of workshops for senior industry and government representatives, the seminar is part of an effort to promote the private sector as an engine of growth and reduce vulnerability to financial crises.

“IFC has gathered reliable evidence that companies that adopted good corporate governance practices made it through the economic crisis with less financial damage than those that didn’t,” said Phillip Armstrong, Head of the IFC Global Corporate Governance Forum. “To further promote the principles of good corporate governance, we are glad to share with participants our global knowledge and facilitate the exchange of cross-country experiences.”

Gian Piero Cigna, Senior Counsel at the EBRD, said, “This project is an important step toward establishing improved standards of business conduct in the region. In Eurasia, the banking sector is well developed, and banks are in a position to influence their corporate borrowers’ corporate governance.”

The workshop is co-sponsored by EBRD’s Early Transition Countries  Multi Donor Fund.  Contributors to the  fund are Canada, Finland, Ireland, Japan, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom.

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