Corporate governance in Libya: a systematic review and comparative analysis with UK standards

Rampant corporate collapses over the past few decades have put corporate governance issues in the spotlight. Shareholders have become increasingly participative over time; corporate boards are no longer passive, whilst regulators constantly seek to implement more effective corporate governance mechanisms. In the midst of these developments, post-apartheid South Africa has notoriously pursued an integrated corporate governance framework in the form of the King Reports. Within the South African corporate governance system, firms are required to disclose their compliance with recommended good corporate governance practices to shareholders and other stakeholders. Further, due to a long history of apartheid, board diversity has become a current and contentious corporate governance issue confronting South African firms. Using a hand-collected data set for 185 unique South African listed firms from 2008-2013, this thesis measures the level of compliance with 72 corporate governance (CG) provisions in the third CG code in South Africa. The thesis also examines the determinants of compliance and explores the interrelations between corporate governance quality, board diversity, and CEO compensation.

Boards of directors and corporate governance, more generally, continue to capture the attention of practitioners and scholars alike. There are now several reports, such as the Higgs Review, that offer both descriptions of past board structures and practices, and prescriptions for effective corporate governance practices going forward. This paper provides an overview of a series of research in which we have been involved that investigated the relationships between board structures (i.e. board composition, board leadership structure, board size and board member equity ownership) and firm financial performance. The paper demonstrates that not all current corporate governance ‘best practices’ are supported by empirical investigation. It also offer views on two means for installing independence in corporate boardrooms that hold considerable promise – installation of a lead independent director and reliance on an independent board of directors budget. Ultimately, however, no amount of structural prescription will guarantee effective boards of directors. Effective boards will install effective boardroom processes and be guided by individuals with the highest integrity and character.

We seek to bring to the core of the study of comparative corporate governance analysis the idea that within countries and industries, there exist multiple configurations of firm level characteristics and governance practices leading to effective corproate governance. In particular, we propose that configurations composed of different bundles of corporate governance practices are a useful tool to examine corporate governance models across and within countries (as well as potentially to analyze over time changes). While comparative research, identifying stylized national models of corporate governance, has been fruitful to help us think about the key institutional and shareholder rights determining governance differences and similarities across countries, we believe that given the financialization of the corporate economy, current globalization trends of investment, and rapid information technology advances, it is important to shift our conceptualization of governance models beyond the dichotomous world of common-law/outsider/shareholder-oriented system vs. civil law/insider/stakeholder oriented system. Our claim is based on the empirical observation that there exists a wide range of firms that either (1) fall in the wrong corporate governance category; (2) are a hybrid of these two categories; or (3) should be placed into an entirely new category such as firms in emerging markets or state-owned firms. In addition, as Aguilera and Jackson (2003) argue, firms, regardless of their legal family constraints, their labor and product markets, and the development of the financial markets from which they can draw, have significant degrees of freedom to chose whether to implement different levels of a given corporate governance practice. That is, firms might chose to fully endorse a practice or simply seek to comply with the minimum requirements without truly internalizing the governance practice. An illustrative example of the different degrees of internalization of governance practices is the existing variation in firms’ definition of director independence or disclosure of compensation systems.We first discuss the conceptual idea of configurations or bundles of corporate governance practices underscoring the concpet of equifinal paths to given firm outcomes as well as the complementarity and substitution in governance practices. We then move to the practice level of analysis to show how three governance characteristics (legal systems, ownership and boards of directors) cannot be conceptualized independently, as each of them is contingent on the strength and prevalence of other governance practices. In the last section, we illustrate how different configurations are likely to playout across industries and countries, taking as the departing practice, corporate ownership.

Higher education institutions are faced with many challenges in fulfilling their core mandate of teaching, research and community engagement. To achieve this, strong, sound and visionary institutional leadership is required, which should be embedded in sound corporate governance practices. The study aims to ascertain what registrars’ views on the effectiveness and value added by current corporate governance practices of higher education institutions (HEIs) in South Africa are. This was done through a literature review and supported by empirical evidence obtained from questionnaires addressed to registrars of public HEIs in South Africa, as well as follow up interviews held with participants. The study found strong support for sound corporate governance practices at HEIs in South Africa, and also indicates that these institutions are complying with and adhering to this, although room for improvement exists in certain areas. The value added to and contributions to corporate governance effectiveness by student representative council members and institutional forums were also investigated, and it was found that the evolving corporate governance role of the registrar, over and above the traditional academic and student affairs responsibilities, enjoyed much support. Additional reporting responsibilities, in accordance with current corporate governance developments, were identified as areas not meeting expectations.

Purpose The purpose of this study set out to introduce an alternative framework for explaining the formation of the innovation ecosystem based on the systematic literature review (SLR) and ecosystemic approach. Design/methodology/approach This paper is an SLR of studies from the year 2008-2018 that investigating startups’ innovation. SLR approach being used exploration, interpretation and communication method, which composed of seven steps as follows exploring topics, searching, organizing, evaluating and expanding, integrating and communicating. The output of this process is 63 documents that applied to synthesize the formation framework. Findings The systematic review of literature has shown that researchers in recent years have considered some entities such as incubators, financials suppliers, accelerators, universities and companies in relation to the startup innovations, which are described in this paper as key actors. The study of the relationship between these actors in the documents led to the identification of interactional necessities, including structures, infrastructures and networks. Finally, the processes studied in the literature were classified into three types of mechanisms, namely, the genesis, growth and development of startups innovations. Research limitations/implications The SLR approach is subject to limitations because some poor explanations amongst previous researchers may be repeated and reinforced. Also, in the protocol adopted in this paper, documents are limited in English. Practical implications The introduced frammework can be useful in identifying and understanding the requirements of startups and creating effective policies for their innovation development. Originality/value This paper reviews, summarizes and integrates the growing and scattered literature of the innovation ecosystem of the startups and delivers new facts for the future development of this field.

This paper uses the institutional theory framework to explain the current corporate governance reforms in Malaysia between 1998 and 2004. It explores the roles played by both existing and new institutions in promulgating regulations and voluntary codes on corporate governance. It is argued that 'coercive', 'normative' and 'mimetic' pressures have shaped current corporate governance practices in Malaysia. 'Normative' pressures from the accounting and legal professions and international developments have 'coerced' Malaysia into reforming and strengthening its existing corporate governance practices. This study further highlights that the Malaysian approach to corporate governance reforms is mostly geared towards regulation.

Manuscript TypeEmpiricalResearch Question/IssueWe explore how the combinations of firm‐level corporate governance (CG) practices embedded in different national governance systems lead to high firm performance.Research Findings/InsightsUsing fuzzy set/qualitative comparative analysis, we uncover a variety of findings. First, we show that within each of the stylized nationalCGmodels, there are multiple bundles of firm‐level governance practices leading to high firm performance (i.e., equifinality). Second, we provide evidence of complementarity as well as functional equivalence betweenCGpractices. Finally, we demonstrate that there can be heterogeneity (“differences in kind”) in firm governance practices within each stylized model ofCG.Theoretical/Academic ImplicationsWe build on the configurational and complementarity‐based approaches to make the following theoretical claims. First, governance practices within firm bundles do not always relate to each other in a monotonic and cumulative fashion as this entails higher costs and possibly over‐governance. Second, practices in bundles do not need to be aligned toward the insider or the outsider model (“similar in kind”). We argue that non‐aligned practices can also be complementary, creating hybrid governance forms. Third, we predict functional equivalence across bundles ofCGpractices which grants firms agency on which of the practices to implement in order to achieve high performance.Practitioner/Policy ImplicationsWe contribute to comparativeCGresearch by demonstrating that there are multiple governance paths leading to high firm performance, and that these practices do not always belong to the same national governance tradition. Therefore, our findings alert of the perils of “one size fits all” governance solutions when designing and implementingCGpolicies.

This article analyzes the Fraud Hexagon model as a framework for detecting financial statement fraud across various sectors and geographic contexts using the Systematic Literature Review (SLR) approach. The model incorporates six elements: pressure, opportunity, rationalization, capability, ego, and collusion. The study reviewed 12 SCOPUS-indexed articles focusing on the banking, manufacturing, SMEs, and infrastructure sectors in national and regional contexts. Financial statement fraud results in the highest financial losses among fraud types. The Fraud Hexagon, an evolution of earlier theories, provides a comprehensive approach to fraud detection. This study aims to evaluate the application of the Fraud Hexagon model across sectors to identify critical factors influencing fraud and offer strategic recommendations for improving internal and external controls. Using the PRISMA framework, the study employs the SLR approach to filter and analyze relevant SCOPUS-indexed literature. The study examined fraud detection through stages of keyword analysis, highlighting pressure and collusion in regulated industries. Corporate governance and audit quality enhance detection, but limitations include a lack of behavioral and sector-specific focus. Future research should integrate behavioral and cultural dynamics with advanced analytics.

Background and Purpose: Company secretary roles are increasingly gaining attention and recognition globally. However, research on corporate governance and board effectiveness lacks a comprehensive and systematic review from the company secretary role. Most research to date has been focused on the role of other corporate governance actors, namely, CEOs, directors, and auditors. In this present systematic literature review, we address this deficiency.
 
 Methodology: This paper adopted a systematic literature review approach. We used two indexed databases, Scopus and Web of Science, to analyse the articles written on corporate governance, company secretary and board effectiveness. A total of 121 articles published in these fields were examined, and after rigorous analysis, only 18 articles from which met the inclusion criteria were included.
 
 Findings: Our findings reveal that only a few corporate governance research has investigated the role of company secretary in enhancing board effectiveness (board structure, board process and board practices). The thematic analysis conducted identified seven key roles of the company secretary. The roles are to: (1) support the chairman of the board; (2) provide advice and act as a confidant to the board of directors; (3) facilitate and manage the board of directors and board committee process; (4) liaise between the board and management; (5) manage information asymmetry and enhance transparency; (6) ensure compliance with laws, regulations, corporate governance code and best practices, and (7) manage company relations.
 
 Contributions: The analysis in this paper presents four key findings - types of articles, geographical location, theory, and company secretary roles that reflect the research gaps present in the corporate governance literature, thus highlighting significant future research avenues.
 
 Keywords: Board effectiveness, company secretary, corporate governance, roles, systematic literature review.
 
 Cite as: Halim, S. A. A, Lokman, N., & Othman, S. (2023). Corporate governance and board effectiveness: A systematic literature review of the company secretary role. Journal of Nusantara Studies, 8(TI), 209-234. http://dx.doi.org/10.24200/jonus.vol8issTIpp209-234

Profitability assessment in agricultural financial institutions is sometimes less noticed by scientists, resulting in limited theoretical and empirical evidence in explaining the performance of financial institutions that focus on financing agricultural and agribusiness development. Meanwhile, the farm sector in several countries contributes significantly to creating macroeconomic growth. This study aims to present empirical evidence on the role of good corporate governance on the profitability of agricultural financing institutions and present important points in formulating a roadmap for future research that is useful in developing new theories. This study uses a systematic literature review approach from current journals. The journal search used the question keywords "Corporate Governance, Financial Performance, Agriculture", so 25 main journals were obtained that were indexed in international databases, and supported by 39 other journals to help explain the research findings. Based on the results of the analysis, it is known that research on corporate governance and financial performance in agricultural development was conducted in the period 2017-2024, with the largest number in 2021. The majority of researchers concluded that good corporate governance has been shown to have a positive impact on financial performance and profitability. This means that the development and sustainability of agricultural sector businesses must begin with strengthening corporate governance. The analysis results also found that the assessment of corporate governance and profitability against the macro economy has not been carried out, so the explanation and empirical evidence in agricultural development are very limited. Suppose there is a finding that GCG significantly impacts profitability, and another finding gives an insignificant negative effect. This agenda is certainly a roadmap for the future to conduct a more in-depth study, it will be very strong to analyze together the role of good corporate governance, macro economy, financial literacy, and profitability. The practical implication is that to improve financial performance in agricultural sector companies, GCG must be enhanced by determining the ideal proportion of management composition (board of directors and audit committee) and mitigating early on the potential for conflicts of interest or tensions between managers.

Corporate governance (CG) is a set of principles that should be included into every aspect of the firm in order to ensure accountability and responsibility. The purpose of this research is to look at the state of corporate governance (CG) in banking sector of conventional banks and Islamic banks. Because the rules, regulations, and operating processes of conventional and Islamic banks differ significantly, the corporate governance (CG) practices of these two banking sectors are likewise distinct. In this work, the authors attempt to give a clear comparative assessment of corporate governance (CG) practices in these two banking sectors. This research looked at four dimensions of corporate governance: board size, board diversity, board diversity, and CEO duality. Return on Equity (ROE) and Return on Assets (ROA) have been used to evaluate banking performance. Regression analysis is used to evaluate the banking performance of the said banking sectors. It is found that BS, IND and BD have positive impact on ROE in Islamic banks sample. On the other hand, in terms of the coefficient of independent variables from sample banks of conventional sector are found to be negative influence on ROE in where IND and CEO duality shows significant result. Both conventional and Islamic banks are under pressure to enhance their corporate governance (CG) practices, since both banking sectors are seeing considerable improvements. However, when compared to conventional banks, Islamic banks lag behind in terms of corporate governance (CG). Companies must comprehend the advantages of implementing strong governance techniques and accompanying activities that aid in enhancing financial performance.

Governance challenges in cooperative banking are the major issues in banking system. For the long run of cooperative banks it is needful of exploring the variables to uphold the governance of UCBs. This study provides an opportunity to understand the governance practices and mechanism in enhancing Cooperative Banking Business Efficiency. The extensive reviews addressed the governance in various sectors and its importance in industries. Several reviews identified concentrating on public, private and commercial banks governance implication and bank performance, board diversity, structure and size in banking performance. Only few states of India covered for cooperative bank governance research like Maharashtra and Tamilnadu, a very few studies have been found in Karnataka on Urban Cooperative Banking Sector. The present study focus on exploring governance mechanism and practices adopted by the UCBs of Karnataka and to analyse factors leading to achieve business efficiency. The study selected internal stakeholders (UCBs Directors, Managers, Employees and staff) for inspecting cooperative governance. Internal stakeholders such as CEOs, BODs, Audit Committee and employees are considered as Respondents to analyse and measure the cooperative governance. Transparency, Accountability, Responsibility, Fair practices, Risk Management, Management Efficiency, Fund Management, HRM, Change Management, Policies and Procedures, Ethical Practices and Governance Challenges are the independent variables used to study the governance mechanism of internal stakeholders. Secondary data has been collected for a period of five years from 2014-2018 from RBI (Urban Cooperative Bank Department) and Karnataka State Urban Cooperative Bank Federation, to analyse the Financial position of the UCBs of Karnataka. It has been found from the financial analysis that UCBs need to address the sensitive areas where they can increase their financial growth for long run sustainability and need to introduce competitive products and services where stakeholder’s retention possible. Stake holders (Member’s Empowerment) always prefers the innovated products and services, this makes them to loyal towards cooperative banking system (Business Efficiency). The primary data collected to analyse the Governance practices and mechanism on the business efficiency of urban cooperative banking. For this study Urban Cooperative Banks of Karnataka categorized as four divisions into Bangalore, Mysore, Belgaum and Gulbarga. There were 262 UCBs in Karnataka excluding its branches, Out of which 158 UCBs taken for the study. To measure the financial performance, percentage growth analysis, growth by division, per branch and per employee has been carried out. Primary analysis carried out with the usage of SPSS to find out the compliance level from both Member’s and officers analysis. To find out the variations of governance practices and mechanism based on demographical study Kruskal- Wallies test administered. To analyse the relationship between the governance mechanism and practices correlation study carried out, to find out the influence of dimensions of governance mechanism and practices on business efficiency of the UCBs regression analysis administered. To find out the contribution of governance challenges in model between governance mechanisms, practices, quality of the board and business efficiency regression model analysis adopted for the study. Findings of the study reveal that along with innovative products, there is need of maintaining the sound internal control system to enhance managerial effectiveness and managerial efficiencies. Adopting governance pillars for fulfilling cooperative banking objective should be prioritised. Transparency, Accountability, Responsibility, Fairness, Managerial Efficiency, Human resource management, Policies and Procedures, Ethical Practices, Change Management and Fund Management are crucial variables to resolve the governance issues. Business efficiency leads to Excellency of business and even helps member’s to enhance and create their investment values. The cooperative area and cooperative banking sector is the future scope of research, it is suggested to implement BODs assessment, 360O performance assessment sheet and governance index to circulation to strengthen the cooperative governance. Keywords: Corporate Governance, Governance practices and mechanism, UCBs, Transparency, Accountability, Responsibility, Fairness, Risk Management, Ethical Practices, Fund and Change Management, Policies and Procedures, Member’s Empowerment, Business Efficiency and Governance Challenges.

This study aims to examine the evolution of the study of hadith sanad criticism with the Systematic Literature Review (SLR) approach, especially in the context of the use of Lidwa Pusaka Hadith software as a tool in sanad analysis. The main focus of this research is how paradigm shifts and methods in sanad criticism occur along with the development of digital technology, as well as the extent to which Lidwa Pusaka contributes to the effectiveness and accuracy of sanad studies. The methodology of this study uses the Systematic Literature Review approach with steps of identification, selection, data extraction, and synthesis from various relevant literature published in the period 2016–2020. Inclusion criteria include journal articles, proceedings, and thesis/thesis/dissertation that discusses sanad criticism, digital hadith studies, and the use of Lidwa Pusaka software in Islamic studies. The data collection technique is carried out by examining scientific documents through academic databases such as Google Scholar, DOAJ, and Garuda. Meanwhile, the data analysis technique is carried out through thematic analysis, by grouping data into main themes related to the development of sanad criticism methodology and the role of digital software, especially Lidwa Pusaka, in supporting hadith research. The results of the study show that there has been a significant evolution in the approach to sanad criticism, from a conventional approach to a software-based digital approach. Lidwa Pusaka specifically acts as an effective means of accessing matan and sanad hadith systematically and quickly, thus helping to speed up the process of verification and classification of hadith. The conclusion of this study emphasizes the importance of integrating technology in Islamic studies, as well as opening up new space for the development of a more efficient, accurate, and inclusive methodology of hadith criticism.

The article synthesizes online impulse buying research conducted through a systematic literature review (SLR) approach. The present review covers the diverse range of literature, from 2001 to 2024, conducted using the SPAR‐4‐SLR protocol. Drawing upon the theory‐context‐characteristics‐method (TCCM) framework, a literature synthesis provides an overview of article's descriptives, underpinning theories, contextual overview and methodological aspects. The review also highlights the variables related to the antecedents, mediators, moderators and consequences of online impulse buying and proposes the integrated conceptual framework of the concept. Lastly, the review highlights the gap in the literature and offers insightful directions to advance research in online impulse buying domain. Overall, this review is an attempt to make significant theoretical and practical contributions to the field of online impulse buying research.

There is a risk of bias in the research since current literature review frameworks frequently lack measurement of the volume of literature, guidance on keyword inclusion, confidence in detecting knowledge gaps, and framing of research objectives. This calls into question the review's legitimacy and dependability. In order to overcome these difficulties, we want to enhance the systematic literature review (SLR) approach, which begins with a literature review and is then followed by another literature review. The researchers used a systematic literature review approach, the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA), to obtain relevant publications related to young people's marriage readiness. This process was divided into three main stages: identification, screening, and eligibility. Web of Science (WoS) and Scopus were the two main databases used in the study, containing over 33,000 journals spanning over 256 disciplines, such as psychology, environmental studies, developmental studies, and integrative social sciences. Primary research, psychological marriage readiness, readiness to marry, adolescent and young adult populations aged 1 to 25 years, and papers in English were the inclusion criteria for this study. Based on prior research findings, it has been shown that various aspects, including financial, emotional, sexual, personality, and mental readiness, are significant determinants of a person's marital readiness. This comprehensive literature review indicates that marriage readiness is influenced by three key aspects: individual, financial, and social factors. The results indicate a need for additional research on these factors.