Does the corruption perception level of a country affect listed firms’ IFRS 7 risk disclosure compliance?

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to examine the relationship between corporate governance, corruption and compliance with International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS 7) risk disclosure requirements in listed firms in two Sub-Saharan Africa countries: Botswana and Ghana. This study tries to test whether the transparency level of a country has any impact on the transparency level of its firms. Design/methodology/approach The study uses 174 firm-year observations between the period 2013-2015 for listed firms in the two countries. Each annual report was individually examined and coded to obtain the disclosure of corporate risk disclosure index. Descriptive analysis was performed to provide the background statistics of the variables examined. This was followed by regression analysis, which forms the main data analysis. Findings The results suggest that the extent of risk disclosure compliance over the three-year period is, on average, 63 and 53 per cent for Botswana and Ghana, respectively. The differences in the disclosure levels in the two countries can be attributed to the different levels of corruption in the two countries. One way of hiding corrupt practices is for companies to disclose scanty information. Originality/value This is one of the few studies in Sub-Saharan Africa that tests the transparency levels of listed firms in the two countries by considering the impact of corporate governance factors on IFRS 7 risk disclosure compliance. The findings of this study will help market regulators in Ghana, Botswana, the Sub-Saharan Africa Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Sub-Saharan Africa exchanges in evaluating the adequacy of the current disclosure regulations in their countries.