Guidelines, Reviews and Case Studies

Dec 10, 2021

IFC ESG Guidebook

IFC has created this guidebook as part of a broader effort to raise awareness of ESG issues among companies and investors in developing markets.

84 pages | © December 2021 IFC | Complimentary

Jun 4, 2021

Sustainability Case Studies: Lessons Learned on Leading Through Crisis and Recovering Stronger

This publication features practical guidance from successful women business leaders on how companies can build their resilience. It is based on survey data, first-hand experience, and lessons learned as these women—all working in emerging markets or fragile contexts—steered their organizations through the COVID-19 crisis.

Mar 31, 2021

Guidelines on Corporate Governance for Listed Companies

The Corporate Governance Guidelines for Listed Companies are intended to raise the corporate governance standards of listed companies in Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) to bring them in line with regional and global standards based on the latest G20/OECD1 Principles of Corporate Governance and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ (ASEAN) Corporate Governance Scorecard.

Feb 26, 2021

Special Guidance: Disclosure and Transparency in Crisis - Increasing Resilience and Building Trust During and After COVID-19

This Special Guidance is designed to help both listed and privately-owned companies disclose what they are doing to manage the economic, environmental, and social impacts of the pandemic, using IFC’s Disclosure and Transparency Framework, which is focused on strategy, governance, and performance.

Nov 11, 2020

Disclosure and Transparency During COVID-19 – Increasing Resilience and Building Trust During and After the Pandemic

This tip sheet provides guidance for both listed and privately-owned companies on how to disclose what they are doing to manage the economic, environmental, and social impacts of the pandemic, using IFC’s Disclosure and Transparency Framework, which is focused on strategy, governance, and performance. This framework promotes the issuance of standardized corporate reports and data – and provides investors and key stakeholders with the information they need to assess company resiliency, preparedness, and continued management of material environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues both during and after the crisis. It can also provide guidance for stock exchanges and regulators who are adapting their disclosure and transparency framework during COVID-19.

Apr 7, 2020

Tip Sheet for Company Leadership on Crisis Response: Facing the COVID-19 Pandemic

The publication provides company leadership tips on crisis response, from each level of a corporate structure, to ensure the best practices are adopted for short and long-term business implications.

Apr 7, 2020

Portrait of Bangladesh’s Independent Directors (March 2020)

The report is part of IFC’s efforts to recognize the skills, qualifications, and time commitment made by independent directors in Bangladesh.

Dec 3, 2019

Implementing Corporate Governance Practices - A Resource Guide for Microfinance Institutions in Myanmar

This Resource Guide for Microfinance Institutions in Myanmar is part of IFC’s efforts to support the development of a sustainable microfinance sector in Myanmar. This initiative is aligned with IFC’s Financial Institutions Group’s Global Microfinance and Digital Financial Services’ efforts to improve corporate governance for financial inclusion in the region and globally with Myanmar as a pilot country, and IFC’s Corporate Governance program in Myanmar which promotes the adoption of better governance practices in the private sector. The experience and knowledge gained through this initiative will serve to support improvements in corporate governance among microfinance institutions (MFIs) in a variety of contexts.

Oct 25, 2019

Partnering for Impact, IFC and CRMS Indonesia

With IFC’s support, Indonesia’s Center for Risk Management Studies (CRMS) has broadened delivery of its CG training programs to other countries in East Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa and Eastern Europe. Going forward, CRMS Indonesia will continue to build its capacity on ESG issues as it broadens its core services into governance, compliance, and sustainability.

Oct 4, 2019

SME Governance Guidebook

This Guidebook specifically addresses the challenges and opportunities faced by SMEs at the various stages of their lifecycles, offering tailored corporate governance recommendations. The Guidebook includes the Action Planning Tool to help SME owners, investors, and managers take a pragmatic approach to governance, as a means of strengthening their businesses over the long term.

Jul 30, 2019

Women on Board in Egypt - How Gender-Diverse Boards Bring Value to Egyptian Companies

A research study on the relationship between gender diversity on corporate boards and a company’s financial performance in Egypt. The study examines the barriers to female participation on boards, highlights opportunities to increase the number of women in boardrooms and proposes recommendations on how to achieve greater gender equality in the boardroom, build a pipeline of female business leaders, and promote gender-equality practices in the Egyptian labor market.

Jul 30, 2019

Women on Board in Lebanon - How Gender-Diverse Boards Bring Value to Lebanese Companies

The study examines the current status of gender diversity, the barriers to female participation on boards and obstacles preventing optimal performance once in these positions in the corporate world. It highlights opportunities to increase the number of women in Lebanese boardrooms and proposes recommendations on how to achieve greater gender equality in the boardroom.

Jul 23, 2019

Trailblazers - Portraits of Female Business Leadership in Emerging and Frontier Markets

The publication features the inspirational personal stories of 20 female business leaders and their advice to other female professionals aspiring to top positions, and highlights the positive impact of their leadership on private sector development in emerging and frontier markets. It also provides key gender facts and data on the status of women on boards and in business leadership around the world.

Jun 27, 2019

Women on Boards in Nigeria

The report seeks to answer questions about low level of female representation on Nigerian boards, initiatives that can improve it and how these initiatives can be implemented.

Jun 20, 2019

Board Gender Diversity in ASEAN

The study advances the case that having women in business leadership positions is good for company performance, confirmed through an analysis of more than 1,000 companies in six countries belonging to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN): Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Mar 28, 2019

We Lead: Five Women Who Drove Company Success in the Middle East and North Africa And How Good Corporate Governance Helped

The publication showcases current women directors from Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Yemen, and Morocco who went through various challenges to reach the leadership tier and to show how corporate governance knowledge helped them in their work.

Mar 5, 2019

The Case for Gender Diversity Among Sri Lanka’s Business Leadership

The publication makes the case for greater gender diversity on Sri Lanka’s corporate boards and in senior management by identifying a correlation between financial performance and gender diversity in Sri Lanka’s 30 largest listed companies. It also offers practical and relevant strategies to narrow the gender gap in the Sri Lankan context.

Feb 5, 2019

Corporate Governance Scores 2018

The third Indian Corporate Governance Scorecard presents the scores of 150 Indian companies and provides investors, regulators and stakeholders key information to help assess governance practices at the corporate level in Indian markets. The first India’s scorecard was issued in December 2016 and announced the scores of 30 companies. The second edition announced the scores of 100 companies.

Sep 28, 2018

Corporate Governance Case Studies in East Asia and the Pacific

A combined publication with East Asia and the Pacific Corporate Governance case studies in Cambodia, Indonesia, Timor-Leste and Vietnam.

Sep 25, 2018

Corporate Governance Case Studies in Timor-Leste

The report highlights IFC’s corporate governance work in Timor-Leste with Kaebauk Investimentu No Finansas, a microfinance institution that provides microloans to women in poor rural and urban populations and plans to expand into non-financial offerings like agriculture and business development training, financial literacy classes and environmental services.

Jul 26, 2018

Corporate Governance Case Studies in Vietnam

The report highlights success stories of IFC’s corporate governance work in Vietnam with TMG, the leading integrated travel and hospitality group in South Asia that specializes in destination management services, hospitality, aviation and online travel agent services; VPBank, a recently listed private joint-stock commercial bank that provides commercial and retail banking products and services in Vietnam; and Vinamilk, chosen as the first ever Vietnamese representative for Forbes’s 50 Best Listed Firms in the Asia Pacific 2016, that mainly produces and distributes condensed milk, powdered milk, fresh milk, soya milk, yogurt, ice-cream, cheese, fruit juice and beverage, and other milk-based products.

Jul 5, 2018

Synthesis Report: 6th International Research Conference on Corporate Governance in Emerging Markets

This synthesis report presents the outcome of the 6th International Conference organized by the Emerging Markets Corporate Governance Network

Jun 28, 2018

Family Business Governance Handbook in Amharic

This is an Amharic translation of the IFC Family Business Governance Handbook, which is a concise and practical description of essential family business governance components and suggested approaches to resolving common family business governance dilemmas.

May 24, 2018

Gender Diversity in Ghanaian Boardrooms

This publication provides a baseline exploration into gender diversity in the Ghanaian boardroom. It examines gender diversity—across sectors, ownership types, legal status, listing status, and a number of organizational and board-level characteristics—to provide empirical evidence to guide the development of organizational and national policy.

May 14, 2018

What We Learned about Corporate Governance and Code Development in Sub-Saharan Africa

The report presents 10 lessons learned attained over more than two decades of experience in code development in South Africa and other countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.