Corporate governance and ethical standards in business: the Ugandan experience

Abstract

Ethics in corporate governance is very important as it gives companies focused and purposeful management, and a competitive edge in business. This is the first installment of a study of legislation and other literature relating to ethics and governance specific to Uganda. In this research the factors affecting good business ethics is considered, as well as the opportunities arising from good ethical practices. The study’s findings indicate that there are several factors affecting ethics in corporate governance in Uganda. These include the company’s internal environment, and the external environment because the company does not operate in a vacuum. Factors in the external environment include the socio-political, cultural and market environments, and the legal environment as well as regulatory environment. The main factors affecting good business ethics in Uganda are in the context of the socio-political environment. This study contributes to the drive by policy-makers towards promoting good corporate governance by drawing attention to the main factors affecting good business ethics in Uganda