The World Bank (WB) released a new working paper on the governance of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in the Middle East and North Africa.

Guided by the OECD Guidelines for Corporate Governance of SOEs, experts analyzed six aspects of corporate governance:

• Legal regulation
• Mechanisms for the functioning of state property
• Performance management system
• Organizational structure
• Financial reporting, accountability and transparency
• Public procurement practices
• Non-financial reporting (climate change response)

Based on the results of the analysis, the following problems were identified: low financial performance, opacity of financial reporting, high corruption risks, low level of professional competencies.

To improve the efficiency of GP management, it is recommended:

• Improving the legal regulation of state property management taking into account international standards
• Ensuring proper implementation of the provisions of the corporate governance code approved at the enterprise
• Establishing a state the institution responsible for coordinating and monitoring the activities of the State Enterprise
• Defining clear strategic priorities for the SOE, including financial goals and performance indicators
• Increasing transparency and accountability of SOEs (establish an internal audit department)
• Developing rules for the provision of non-financial reporting