Thesis (PhD (Business Management)—University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / Corporate Governance has engaged the attention of academics and practitioners alike for some time now. It is sad to note, however, that most of the studies carried out in this area have been conducted in countries such as the USA and the UK. In recent times, interest in Corporate Governance on the African continent has assumed heightened proportions, probably as a result of the 1997 East Asian crisis and the relatively poor performance of Corporate Africa. Melvin Ayogu who researched into governance matters around the continent pointed out that corporate governance perhaps is nothing but a mirror image of political governance bridled with a lot of corruption. In spite of the recognition that corporate governance is critical for firm performance and for sustained macroeconomic growth coupled with the heightened interest in the area, research in corporate governance has not received the needed attention on the continent. This was the main motivation for the study. In carrying out this study we considered 103 listed companies drawn from Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa and 52 Microfinance Institutions from Ghana. Data consisted primarily of governance and financial variables. Though, most of the financial data was obtnaied through secondary sources, the governance data was essentially obtianed through questionnaire administration. Analysis of the data was done primarily within the Panel Data Framework and various shades of panel data estimations were run. This dissertation presents the results of the research work underlying seven stand-alone but related essays that focus on the relationship between corporate governance and various aspects of firm behaviour. Whilst, five of the essays dwell on corporate governance and firm attributes, one considers determinants of board size and composition by using data from Ghana and the last essay explores how corporate governance and stock market development affect economic growth. The first essay looks at corporate governance and firm performance and the second focusses on the determinants of board size and composition. The third essay concentrates on corporate governance and shareholder value maximisation. The fourth essay considers how corporate governance affects the financing choices of firms. The link between firms’ investment opportunity set and corporate governance is the subject matter of the fifth essay. While, the sixth looks at how corporate board diversity through gender affect the performance of microfinance institutions in Ghana, the last and seventh essay is devoted to an exploration of the linkage between corporate governance, stock market development and economic growth using board independence as the main governance indicator. The findings of the study indicate that large and independent boards enhance firm value and that when a CEO serves as board chair, it has negative effect on performance and such firms employ less debt. We also found that a CEO’s tenure in office enhances firms’ profitability while board activity intensity has a negative effect on firm profitability. The study also revealed that while larger boards employ more debts, the independence of a board has a significant negative relationship with short-term debt. The size of audit committees and the frequency of their meetings have a positive influence on market-based performance measures and institutional shareholding essentially sends a positive signal to potential investors thereby enhancing market valuation of firms. The study also confirmed the widely-held view that board size and its composition are functions of firm and industrial characteristics. Thus, while firm level risk has a positive relationship with board size, CEO tenure correlates negatively with board size and that firms with larger institutional shareholding employ fewer outside directors. Firms in the finance sector were seen to employ smaller board sizes and fewer outside directors partly due to the existence of other regulatory mechanisms in these institutions. More so, it was found that large board sizes enhance shareholders wealth and that both sector and country specific effects impact on shareholders value. The mining sector was seen as dominant in maximising shareholder value in terms of dividend yield. The study once again showed that shareholder value maximisation is also dependent on the level of country specific risk. Our results also point to the fact that firms with investment or growth opportunities employ large boards (high board and auditor fees), have longer CEO tenure and are profitable, and that the extent of growth response to governance structures is influenced by both country and sector specific effects. Findings again, suggest that board diversity through the inclusion of women is important for enhanced performance of microfinance institutions and the independence of corporate boards in particular is important for firm performance. These findings have important policy implications.

Text in English with abstract in English, Northern Sotho and Xhosa / This study investigated the determinants of expansion strategies that are adopted by MNCs that invest in African emerging economies. Literature suggests that expansion strategies have received little research attention, especially in the African context. Previous studies suggest that MNCs initiate their internationalisation process through exportation, and then explore other resource-committed expansion strategies (FDIs) at a later stage. A number of theories have been used to explain the behaviour and decisions of MNCs in this regard. One of the prominent theories in this regard is Dunning‘s OLI paradigm that has been the most influential and widely used, but this study was premised on internationalisation theory. For the purposes of this study, two expansion strategies of MNCs were identified as greenfield foreign direct investment (FDI) and exports. The study sampled six top African emerging countries rated by the stock size and volume of FDI inflow they had attracted. The study utilised the cross-sectional time-series data for period spanning 1996 to 2016. The data were accessed from statistical records of African Development indicators (ADI), a statistical arm of the World Bank. This quantitative research employed econometrics estimation technique to achieve its objectives, namely OLS regression. The study relied on Durbin-Watson statistics contained in ordinary least squares (OLS) regression to attend to issues of autocorrelation. To establish long run relationship, Johansen‘s cointegration approach was employed. / Thutelo ye e nyakišitše ditšhupo tša maano a katološo ao a amogetšwego ke dikhamphani tše di dirago dinageng tše ntši (diMNC) tšeo di beeleditšego ka go diekonomi tše di golago tša Afrika. Dingwalo di šišinya gore maano a katološo a filwe šedi ye nnyane ya dinyakišišo, gagolo kemong ya Afrika. Dithutelo tše di šetšego di dirilwe di šišinya gore diMNC di thome tshepedišo ya go oketša tiro ya feme boemong bja boditšhabatšhaba ka mokgwa wa kišontle, gomme ka morago di hlohlomiše maano a mangwe a katološo a boikemišetšo go fa ditlakelo le thušo tše di nyakegago go fihlelela dinepo tše di filwego tša feme nakong ye e tlo latelago. Diteori tše mmalwa di dirišitšwe go hlaloša mokgwa wa go dira le diphetho tša diMNC malebana le se. Ye nngwe ya diteori tše bohlokwa malebana le se, gape yeo e bego e le ye e nago le khuetšo ye kgolo gape e dirišitšwego ka bophara, ke dikgopolo ka ga ka moo dilo di šomago tša OLI go ya ka Dunning, eupša thutelo ye e begilwego bjalo ka matseno go teori ya kgodišo ya difeme gore di dire dinageng tše dingwe. Ka lebaka la morero wa thutelo ye, maano a katološo a mabedi a diMNC a šupilwe bjalo ka peeletšo thwi ge motho a hloma khamphani nageng e šele (FDI) le kišontle. Thutelo e tšeere dinaga tše tshela tša boemo bja godimo tšeo di golago tšeo di lekantšwego ka bogolo bja thoto le bolumo ya ditseno tša FDI tšeo di di tlišitšego. Thutelo ye e dirišitše tshedimošo yeo e hweditšwego ka go lemoga dinomoro tšeo di kgobokeditšwego dinakong tše di fapanego dinakong ka sebaka sa nako seo se lekanago pakeng ya nako ya 1996 go iša go 2016. Tshedimošo e hweditšwe go tšwa direkhotong tša Dipalopalo tša African Development Indicators (ADI), lekala la Dipalopalo la Panka ya Lefase. Nyakišišo ka go kgoboketša le go sekaseka datha yeo e hweditšwego methopong ye e fapanego e dirišitše dithekniki tša dipalopalo go kwešiša ditaba tša ekonomi le diteori tša teko go fihlelela maikemišetšo a yona, e lego tswalano go OLS. Thutelo e theilwe go Dipalopalo tša Durbin-Watson tšeo di lego ka tekanyo ya tswalano ka go fokotša palo ya go fapana ga disekwere gare ga dipalo tše di lemogilwego le tšeo di akantšwego go lebelela ditlhagišo tša nyalanyo Go hlola ditswalanyo tša nako ye telele, mokgwatebelelo wa Johansen wa tatelano ya dikhutlo tša datha ya dinomoro ka go latelana ga tšona o dirišitšwe / Esi sifundo siphande izinto ezilawula amacebo okwandisa enziwa ngamaqumrhu amazwe ngamazwe (MNCs) natyala imali kumazwe aseAfrika anoqoqosho oluntshulayo. Uluncwadi olukhoyo luthi amacebo okwandisa awanikwa ngqwalasela yaneleyo kuphando, ngakumbi kwiimeko zaseAfrika. Izifundo ezidluleyo ziveze ukuba iiMNCs ziyiqala ngokuthumela iimveliso zazo inkqubo yokufaka la mazwe kushishino lwamazwe ngamazwe. Emva koko zizama ukuncedisa ngezixhobo nemithombo yokusebenza njengecebo lokwandisa. Ziliqela iingcingane ezisetyenzisiweyo xa kuchazwa indlela yokwenza nezigqibo zeeMNCs ngalo mbandela. Enye yeengcingane eziphambili nesetyenziswe kakhulu kulo mba yekaDunning, neyaziwa ngokuba yiOLI paradigm, nangona esakhe isifundo sasisekele kwingcingane yokudibanisa amazwe ngamazwe. Kwesi sifundo kuchongwe amacebo okwandisa amabini asetyenziswe ziiMNCs. La macebo kukutyala ngqo imali nemithombo (greenfield foreign direct investment - FDI) nokuthumela iimveliso zazo kuloo mazwe. Esi sifundo sikhethe amazwe aseAfrika amathandathu naphambili xa kubalwa izinto anazo la mazwe, nomyinge wemali nezixhobo ezifakiweyo. Isifundo sisebenzise iinkcukacha ezingamaqela amanani anqumlezanayo (cross-sectional time-series data) kwixesha elisukela kunyaka we-1996 ukuya kowama-2016. Ezi nkcukacha zafunyanwa kwiingxelo ezigciniweyo zeZalathisi Zophuhliso LwaseAfrika (African Development Indicators - ADI), kwicandelo lezobalo kwiBhanki Yehlabathi. Olu phando lusekelwe kumanani, lusebenzise indlela yokusebenza ngokuqikelela nekuthiwa yieconometrics estimation technique ukuze siphumeze iinjongo zaso zobalo olwaziwa ngokuba yiOLS regression. Esi sifundo saxhomekeka kwizibalo zikaDurbin-Watson ezifumaneka kubalo lweordinary least squares (OLS) regression ukuze lujongane nemiba yokuzilungisa. Ukuze simisele ulwalamano oluqhuba ixesha elide, kwasetyenziswa indlela yokuhlanganisa iinkcukacha zikaJohansen. / Business Management / M. Com. (Business Management)