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Members of the International Corporate Governance Network (ICGN), led by investors responsible for assets valued at over $59 trillion, approved revisions to the ICGN Global Governance Principles (GGP) at the network’s Annual General Meeting on Thursday.  

First published in 2001, the GGP serve as ICGN’s primary standard for well-governed companies. The principles stand together with the Global Stewardship Principles as ICGN’s flagship member-approved policy documents.
 
“Many ICGN Members default to the GGP as a bellwether for their own voting policies and company engagements; and governments often use them to help inspire the evolution of national codes,” Kerrie Waring, ICGN Chief Executive, said. “This year, the GGP have been revised against a backdrop of Covid 19 and climate change exposing stark social inequalities and intergenerational inequity. Many of this year’s innovations reflect this with new principles on human rights, workforce safety, climate change, stakeholder engagement, sustainability reporting and much more.”
 
Last revised in 2017, the GGP are subject to periodic revision to ensure they remain relevant and generally aligned with regulatory and market-led developments relating to high standards of corporate governance globally. Over 40 members of the network provided recommendations contributing to the revisions as part of a comprehensive consultation process, ICGN said in a statement it sent to Financial Nigeria, today.
 
Commenting on the latest revision to the governance principles, George Dallas, ICGN Policy Director, said this latest version of the GGP includes the network’s focus on looking at companies and corporate governance holistically in terms of financial, natural and human capital. He said these are perspectives that both companies and investors must consider.

“We benefitted from excellent Member input into this review and have produced a revised set of Principles that is innovative and which should maintain ICGN’s GGP as a model of good corporate governance practices globally,” said Dallas.
 
Established in 1995 as an investor-led organisation, ICGN brings together companies and stakeholders to advance the highest standards of corporate governance and investor stewardship worldwide in pursuit of long-term value creation, contributing to healthy and sustainable economies, society, and environment, according to the network.

Lagos Business School is the only Nigerian organisation listed on the website of the network as a member. Other institutional members from Africa include South Africa’s Government Employees Pension Fund, Old Mutual Investment Group, and Ninety One. Institute of Moroccan Directors is the other African institutional member.