Better performing companies in Ghana tend to have more gender-balanced boards, a joint study by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the University of Ghana Business School has shown.
The study reviews gender diversity on Ghanaian boards across various sectors to provide empirical evidence that guides the development of organisational and national policies intended to promote sustainable company performance and economic growth.
High performing firms based on return on assets (ROA) and sales growth were associated with higher gender diversity than low-performing firms.
The study also revealed that a high number of organisations surveyed did not have a policy on gender representation to guide the selection of top management and board positions. Women were found to be generally under-represented in board positions in most companies in Ghana.
The study titled ‘Gender Diversity in Ghanaian Boardrooms’ was carried out by the University of Ghana Business School.
The objectives were to examine the nature of gender diversity in public and private sector boards in Ghana; the factors that determine board diversity in Ghanaian organisation and the relationships between gender diversity in Ghanaian organisations and the relationship between gender diversity and organizational performance in Ghana.
IFC’s Country Manager for Ghana, Ronke-Amoni Ongunsulire, “As an investor, IFC encourages increasing opportunities for and participation of women on corporate boards and in other decision-making positions.
Women in these roles add value socially and economically and have the ability to play a significant role in institutional capacity building and private sector development,” she said.
Director General of the SEC, Rev Ogbamey Tetteh, says it’s high time the regulator implements a regulation which will ensure a balanced representation of women on boards of all business firms in the country.
Meanwhile, former CEO of the Chamber of Mines, Dr Joyce Aryee, is confident the achievement of the “Ghana Beyond Aid” agenda will be based on the capacity of the private sector to bridge the gender gap in the corporate world.
Speaking to JoyBusiness, Dr Joyce Aryee warned that the country risks losing a chunk of skilled human resource should the gender gap in the corporate world continue to widen.
The report calls on policymakers and regulators to develop policies that will encourage young women to serve on boards.
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