The effectiveness of the board of directors in public enterprises in Cameroon: an explanation by the composition of the members

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to explain the effectiveness of the board of directors through its composition in public companies in Cameroon. To achieve this, we used a quantitative approach. The sample is made up of 88 directors belonging to thirty-seven (37) Boards. The analyses show that the independence of board members and the presence and effective functioning of specialized committees significantly influence the effectiveness of the board. The disciplinary approach advocated by the theory of property rights and the theory of agency is therefore a determining factor in the analysis and explanation of its effectiveness. These results reinforce the premises of the disciplinary vision of the board of directors, which advocates the integration of independent external members into the board of directors. We therefore recommend that the State shareholders appoint more and more of this category of members, and ensure the creation of a greater number of specialized committees. However, it seems necessary to join to this disciplinary vision of the Board of Directors, the cognitive vision in order to reinforce the evaluation process of the effectiveness of the Board of Directors in public companies.

Keywords: Composition of the Board of Directors, independent directors, specialized committees, Efficiency, public enterprise, Cameroon.

JEL. Classification : G30, M10.

Paper type: Empirical research