Title: The disclosure practice of governance element of integrated reporting in Ghana

Authors: Haruna Maama; Md Humayun Kabir; Mishelle Doorasamy

Addresses: Faculty of Accounting and Informatics, Department of Management Accounting, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa ' Department of Accounting and Economics, School of Economic and Management Sciences, Sol Plaatje University, Kimberly, South Africa ' School of Accounting, Economics and Finance, College of Law and Management Studies, University of KwaZulu Natal, Durban, South Africa

Abstract: Integrated reporting encourages firms to provide information on their environmental, social and governance activities. Studies on this area in developing countries concentrate on the environmental and social aspects of the phenomenon, thus neglecting the governance disclosure element. Given this, the study examined the disclosure practices of the governance element of integrated reporting among Ghanaian listed firms. The content of 410 annual reports of 33 firms was examined based on a checklist of 18 disclosure items. Moving average scores and Wilcoxon signed-rank test were employed to analyse the data. The study found that governance reporting is receiving attention in Ghana, suggesting that the firms have recognised its potentials. The findings imply that the firms employed governance reporting as a strategy to influence public perception and obtain their acceptance. This study provides insights into how firms address the governance aspect of integrated reporting that is neglected in the literature.

Keywords: integrated reporting; environmental accounting; governance reporting; legitimacy theory; Ghanta stock exchange; Ghana.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBGE.2023.132111

International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, 2023 Vol.17 No.4, pp.335 - 354

Received: 12 Jan 2021
Accepted: 18 Jul 2021
Published online: 11 Jul 2023 *

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