Corporate Governance Practices in Developing Countries: The Case for Kenya

Abstract

This paper examines the concept of corporate governance from a historical perspective. The paper explores how the agency theory and stewardship theory affect corporate governance practices. The focus of the paper is on public universities in Kenya. An extensive review of literature indicates that the ideals of good corporate governance have been adopted by developing countries since the 1980s. Developing countries differ from developed countries in a wide variety of ways. Therefore, there is need for developing countries to develop their own corporate governance models that consider the cultural, political and technological conditions found in each country. This paper explores the challenges encountered by developing countries in the process of adopting the corporate governance ideals. The authors have identified knowledge gaps in corporate governance that can form the basis for future research projects.