Phnom Penh, Cambodia, March 14, 2017
—IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, the National Bank of Cambodia, and the Securities and Exchange Commission of Cambodia today launched the Cambodia Corporate Governance Initiative (CCGI) to jointly promote good corporate governance standards and practices in the country. Enhanced corporate governance will improve the efficiency of the private sector and strengthen overall business climate, enabling more foreign investment and job creation.
The CCGI, initiated by IFC, is a working group that will collaborate and coordinate stakeholder efforts to improve capacity and enhance corporate governance by implementing international best practices.
“We strongly believe leveraging stakeholder expertise and resources will effectively bring Cambodia’s corporate governance practices closer to international standards,” said SECC Director General H.E Sou Socheat. “We encourage all market stakeholders to participate in this initiative and contribute to the healthy and sustainable development of Cambodia’s capital markets.”
The initiative will focus on raising awareness and sharing knowledge on corporate governance issues by delivering training programs, disseminating best practice materials, and building capacity of local trainers. The working group will support regulatory bodies to improve corporate governance-related regulations and standards, as well as provide direct assistance to companies to raise their governance quality.
“Corporate governance standards and practices are critical to increasing competitiveness and improving performance of the corporate sector and the whole economy,” said NBC Director General Rath Sovannorak. “For the banking sector specifically, improved corporate governance will help better manage risk and enhance internal control, ensuring sustainable growth for the sector.”
IFC and SECC have completed a country diagnostic, which is an analysis of Cambodia’s corporate governance legal framework applicable to large and listed corporations. Findings and recommendations will help market regulators bring the corporate governance regulatory framework on par with regional peers.
“CCGI is a move toward a stronger business landscape as it will help introduce good corporate governance practices to Cambodia’s emerging private sector,” said Kyle Kelhofer, IFC Country Manager for Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Vietnam. “Cambodian companies with good corporate governance are better positioned to attract external financing, increase profitability, and hire and maintain a quality workforce.”
IFC’s Corporate Governance program in East Asia and the Pacific is funded by Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. Working with 2,000 businesses worldwide, we use our six decades of experience to create opportunity where it’s needed most. In FY16, our long-term investments in developing countries rose to nearly $19 billion, leveraging our capital, expertise and influence to help the private sector end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity. For more information, visit
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About Cambodia Corporate Governance Initiative
CCGI is a working group established by IFC, National Bank of Cambodia, the Securities Exchange Commission of Cambodia and other partners to coordinate and collaborate on corporate governance activities in Cambodia. CCGI aims to improve corporate governance standards in four ways: raise public awareness and share knowledge of corporate governance by conducting seminars, distributing best practice materials, and training business journalists; build the capacity of our partners by developing and deploying corporate governance tools and curricula to improve the knowledge of company directors and managers; work with governmental entities to improve corporate governance-related regulations in order to strengthen the enabling environment; and provide direct assistance to companies on a fee basis to help them improve their corporate governance practices.
About the National Bank of Cambodia
The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC), the central bank of Cambodia, is the monetary and supervisory authority. The mission of the NBC is to determine and direct the monetary policy aimed at maintaining price stability in order to facilitate economic development within the framework of Cambodia’s economic and financial policy. As the supervisory authority, the NBC has the authority to license, delicense, regulate and supervise banks and financial institutions in Cambodia. The NBC also conducts regular economic and monetary analysis, publishes various publications, oversees the nation's payment systems, establishes balance of payments, and participates in the management of external debt claims.
About the Securities and Exchange Commission of Cambodia
The Securities and Exchange Commission of Cambodia (SECC) regulates the country’s securities industry to contribute to socio-economic development through capital mobilization from public/securities investors to meet the demand of financing for investors. SECC aims to develop and maintain the confidence of public investors in Cambodia by protecting their lawful rights and ensuring that the offer, issue, purchase and sale of securities are carried out in a fair and orderly manner; promote the effective regulation, efficiency and orderly development of the securities markets; encourage the varieties of saving tools through buying of securities and other financial instruments; encourage foreign investment and participation in the securities markets in Cambodia; and assist in facilitating the privatization of state-owned enterprises in Cambodia.
