Business ethics and corporate governance in the Second King Report: Farsighted or futile?

Abstract

The relationship between corporate governance and business ethics has always been ambiguous. Does corporate governance per definition have an ethical nature or is it merely self-interested? Is business ethics an integral part of corporate governance or is it marginalised or even excluded by the debate on corporate governance? Does corporate governance also include the governance of ethics?

This article will focus on the relationship between corporate governance and business ethics from the perspective of a developing country. More specifically, it will look at a recent development in South Africa where the Second Report on Corporate Governance for South Africa (IOD, 2002), also known as the Second King Report, gave particular prominence to business ethics. The motivation for its emphasis on business ethics as well as its guidelines for the corporate governance of ethics will be explored and, in conclusion, critically reviewed.