In New Delhi:
Minakshi Seth
Phone: +91 11 4111 1000
E-mail: mseth@ifc.org


New Delhi, India, July 30, 2009—IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is sharing knowledge and best practices with senior journalists through workshops and training programs in Delhi and Mumbai to help deepen understanding and sharpen reporting of corporate governance-related issues in India.

IFC, through its Global Corporate Governance Forum, is partnering with the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s National Institute of Securities Markets and the Confederation of Indian Industry to conduct programs to reach key players in corporate governance, including board directors, practitioners, academics, and the media. The  initiative in India is funded by the government of Japan.

“The media plays an important role in raising public awareness and supporting enforcement,” said Daiki Suemitsu, First Secretary, Finance, Embassy of Japan, who joined the program in Delhi. The workshops aimed at enhancing journalists’ knowledge and reporting  of corporate governance issues such as transparency and disclosure.

“Strengthening corporate governance has come into renewed focus the world over after the global financial crisis,” said Pratip Kar, advisor to IFC’s corporate governance initiative in India. Kar once was SEBI’s Executive Director.  

Eugene Spiro, Senior Projects Officer, IFC Global Corporate Governance Forum, said: “We see a tremendous opportunity in bringing corporate governance issues into sharper focus. IFC is engaging with stakeholders to help the corporate sector adopt governance best practices on a day-to-day basis.”

The workshops in Delhi and Mumbai each had almost 20 participants from India’s general and business print, electronic, and online media. As part of the program, V. Balalkrishnan, Infosys’ Chief Financial Officer, shared governance best practices and P. R. Ramesh, partner at India’s Deloitte and Touche, spoke about accounting and reporting principles.

IFC, the National Institute of Securities Markets, and the Confederation of Indian Industry will continue to hold training for trainers’ programs focused on building leadership skills of independent directors.

The IFC Global Corporate Governance Forum is a multidonor trust fund facility. It promotes sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction in low- and middle-income countries by helping improve corporate governance practices. Donors include IFC and the governments of Canada, France, Japan, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland. For more information about the forum, visit www.gcgf.org.

About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, creates opportunity for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. We foster sustainable economic growth in developing countries by supporting private sector development, mobilizing private capital, and providing advisory and risk mitigation services to businesses and governments. Our new investments totaled $15 billion in fiscal 2009, helping channel capital into developing countries during the financial crisis. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.

For more information about the Confederation of Indian Industry, visit www.cii.in.

For more information about the National Institute of Securities Markets, visit www.nismindia.com.