The Caribbean Corporate Governance Institute calls for adoption of Corporate Governance in Budget

Port of Spain (Trinidad & Tobago) The Caribbean Corporate Governance Institute (CCGI) is calling on the Minister of Finance, Mr Colm Imbert to make it mandatory for all State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) to apply the principles of the Trinidad & Tobago Corporate Governance Code (TTCGC) and to report to the public how they have done this.

In November 2013 the CCGI together with its two partners, the T&T Chamber of Industry and Commerce and the T&T Stock Exchange, published the Trinidad and Tobago Corporate Governance Code (TTCGC). The TTCGC applies to all corporate bodies with public accountability. Adopting the code as the reference standard for corporate governance would be consistent with the recommendation by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in its 2015 Edition of the OECD Guidelines on Corporate Governance of State-Owned Enterprises.   

The CCGI therefore urges the new Minister of Finance, Corporate Sole, to add one line to the Budget and mandate that all State-Owned Enterprises to adopt the TTCGC as its reference standard and to ensure that all persons appointed to public boards have at least a basic certified foundation in corporate governance. In the case of Jamaica, similar plans are currently under active development. Says Dennis Brown, CCGI director based in Jamaica: “if the current plans for the public bodies are implemented, it could well be that in Jamaica the public sector will lead the private sector in terms of good corporate governance.”