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The purpose of this paper is to report the results of an investigation into the relationship between bank-specific, macroeconomic factors and bank profitability before (1999-2006), during (2007-2009), and after (2010-2013) the financial crisis.

Using the Economic Community of West African States’ bank panel data from 1999 to 2013, the paper used fixed effect models. The panel model includes bank-specific determinants (size, cost management, and liquidity), industry level, and macroeconomic variables.

Panel data analyses results show that there is a significant relationship between bank-specific determinants (size, cost management, and liquidity) and bank profitability (ROA) before, during, and after the financial crisis. However, the relationships between other bank-specific (capital strength, credit risk, and market power), macroeconomic (gross domestic product and inflation) determinants are sensitive to both periods of analysis (before, during, and after financial crisis) and bank profitability measure used (ROA or NIM).

Overall, these results suggest that the financial crisis did not affect the relationships between some bank-specific determinants and bank profitability.

The purpose of this study is to re-examine the factors that affect the level of environmental information disclosures (EID) following the issuance of the “Environmental Information Disclosure Guidelines for Chinese Listed Companies”.

The study is underpinned by stakeholder and legitimacy theories. Level of EID was measured for 100 Chinese companies using a scoring system and content analysis of their annual reports. The study explored the effect of ownership structure, managerial shareholding, economic power and industry classification on the level of EID using panel regression.

The study revealed that with clearly spelt out guidelines, Chinese companies are prepared to disclose environmental information regardless of their economic power. It was found that the overall level of EID in China remains lower than in developed economies. The findings are robust across several econometric models that sufficiently address various endogeneity problems.

This paper contributes to the existing literature by using new and updated data to re-examine the factors that affect the level of EID among Chinese listed companies. The study is important and timely as it covers the period 2014-2016, which is after the Chinese Government strengthened the enforcement of EID. It highlights the effects of new regulations and underscored areas that still require government attention to foster effective environmental protection.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the level of accounting development and the adoption of IFRS in the four foremost economies in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)—Egypt, Jordan, Libya and UAE. Through the lens of institutional theory, the study investigates the impact of economic, political, legal and cultural institutions on the development of these countries’ accounting practices and their readiness to use IFRS.

This research uses accounting development indices obtained from current literature as well as recent World Economic Forum and UNCTAD reports to examine the development of accounting in these MENA countries and their inclination to adopt IFRS.

The study identifies a number of impediments to the development of accounting practices and adoption of IFRS in these countries. It also reveals that three of the four MENA countries (Egypt, Jordan and UAE) could be placed on a level playing field with their principal trading partners (the US, the UK, Germany and Italy) given the formers’ business environments, methods of raising finance and levels of professional accounting practices.

Although limited to only four jurisdictions, findings from the study have important implications for investors and parties that are interested in improving the value relevance of the information presented by firms especially in a globalised economy with increasing cross-listing.

This study extends the frontier of knowledge on the development of accounting and IFRS adoption by focusing on the MENA region. It is the first effort that the authors are aware of to adopt such a multifarious approach.

Poverty is a plague which has continental manifestation, but its impact is heavily felt in several Muslim majority nations (MMNs), where unemployment, illiteracy, chronic diseases, food shortage, sectarian wars and wave of militancy are surging at alarming rates. The purpose of this paper is to develop a faith-based model (FBM) to complement the conventional poverty reduction models. Experiences have shown that FBMs find more acceptability among Muslim nations because they have theoretical and theological underpinnings from the Qur’an and Hadith, as opposed to conventional models that are often viewed with suspicion, sequel to Islamic revivalism.

This research adopts a qualitative research method relying on secondary data/information sourced from CIA Factbook, previous scholarly works, working papers, case studies and relevant internet resources. In line with methodological approach of qualitative research, the secondary data/information were subjected to content and thematic analyses (CTA) from which facts, figures and presumptions were derived to support the FBM.

The paper justified the plausibility of integrating corporate social responsibility (CSR), Waqf system (WS) and Zakat system (TZS) as FBM for poverty reduction, enterprise development and economic empowerment in MMNs.

The gap left behind by the paper is for future researchers to carry out an empirical investigation on the viability or otherwise of the FBM. This could include the governance structure, operational modalities and regulatory frameworks that would enhance the functioning of the FBM.

FBM framework is practically a corporate social investment (CSI), which would be heavily funded by Zakat payers, CSR donations and Waqf. The funds would be deployed to poverty reduction in a number of ways ranging from training, micro-credit support for SMEs, apprenticeships, setting up technology business incubation centres, cluster development, infrastructural development in industrial parks, as well as providing welfare support services to the poor, marginalised communities and other economically disadvantaged groups.

The theoretical research is a contribution to theory and practice of CSR in the field of management and Islamic economics. It has developed a FBM for adoption by MMNs who are hesitant in adopting western model for fear of compromising their ethical values.

The purpose of this paper is to examine modelling issues in the research of the relationship between audit and non‐audit fees by comparing the outcome of a single‐equation model of fees to the results of simultaneous equation model (SEM) of these interactions for a sample of UK listed companies and also by exploring the benefits of using a panel data approach.

The paper is an empirical analysis of audit and non‐audit fees for a sample of 2,072 UK companies. Three types of models, single linear equation, SEM and panel data, are compared and the strengths and weaknesses of each discussed.

The results indicate possible mis‐specification in the single linear equation model and the potential for simultaneous equation basis in the SEM. The panel data analysis confirms the findings of prior literature that there is a relationship between audit and non‐audit fees but statistically insignificant.

The implication of these findings is that previously published findings on audit fees, which used single equation, may have overstated the case for a relationship between audit and non‐audit fees due to problems in the econometric models.

The issues addressed in this paper are very pertinent to a better understanding of the role of the auditor in the corporate environment. In particular, the findings are relevant to the debate on auditor independence and corporate governance.

The study contributes to knowledge of the behaviour of audit fees and non‐audit fees, cross‐sectionally and through time and the most appropriate models for describing that behaviour.

The purpose of this paper is to identify dimensionality and evaluate effect of corporate human rights social responsibility (CHRSR) on employee job outcomes among three leading Kenya's horticultural exporters based in Naivasha, Kenya.

Exploratory and explanatory survey was utilized on a sample of 450 employees selected using a multistage sampling technique. Structured questionnaire was used to extract both nominal and ordinal data, the latter's items were anchored on a five-point Likert scale. Descriptive, principal component analysis (PCA) and multiple regression was used to analyze the data.

PCA of 32 items representing CHRSR yielded ten components while that of employee job outcomes yielded seven components reflecting the multidimensional nature of the constructs. Results showed that the selected firms have largely satisfied both HR and moral expectations. Regression results showed generally significant effect of CHRSR on employee job outcomes such as employee retention, satisfaction, commitment and pride.

A business case for CHRSR exists. This implies that compliance with the law, adoption of HR-related corporate social responsibility (CSR) is critical in enhancing employee job outcomes and overall organization performance.

The study integrates CSR and HR into CHRSR. It demonstrates its multidimensional nature and utilizes statistical analysis to explore its relationship with employee job outcomes in an African export sector context and argues that CSRHR is more critical in Africa than more regulated contexts.

The purpose of this paper is to revisit the determinants of audit committee activity in UK listed companies after over a decade since the last investigation of this matter and with numerous significant changes in the regulatory and corporate governance framework globally.

Underpinned by agency theory, the study undertakes a multiple regression analysis of listed companies in the UK in order to determine the determinants of the activity of the audit committees in these companies.

The study finds that audit committee activity is an increasing function of boards' independence and diligence. Interestingly, it also finds a significant negative relationship between audit committee activity and ownership structure. A higher number of large shareholders with at least 3 percent of the firm's issued equity share capital are associated with a decrease in a committee's activity. Audit committee expertise, size and the availability of an audit committee charter were not significant determinants of audit committee activity.

The findings from the study suggest the need for more research into the factors that can explain the determinants of the activity of the audit committees in the UK and elsewhere. It also opens up the discussion on the effects of changing global corporate behaviors on corporate governance mechanisms.

This study shows that there is a positive relationship between board independence and the activity of the audit committees. In other words, to improve the performance of the audit committees in UK listed companies, board independence should be increased. There also seems to be substitution between governance mechanisms. The presence of large shareholders slowed the activity of the audit committees, as evidenced in a significant negative relationship.

The study revisits the determinants of the audit committees after over a decade since the initial investigation in the UK. However, the study is undertaken in a very different context with far‐reaching changes in the corporate landscape and regulations.

This paper aims to reflect the argument that the impetus to engage in socially responsible actions is ultimately reinforced by the perceived belief that doing so will be beneficial to the corporation in the long run.

The paper uses a narrative‐inductive approach to make important contributions to the corporate social responsibility‐organizational effectiveness literature. Data were collected through a semi‐structured interview, and analyzed using qualitative analysis strategies.

The study reports a profound perceived usefulness of ethics and social responsibility for business in the insurance industry in Nigeria. Furthermore, the study presents evidence that indicates that consciousness about the role of ethics and social responsibility in organizational effectiveness in this context is low, but, nevertheless suggests a positive posture towards the constructs. This positive posture seems to have been driven by the negative image of the industry and the need to remedy the situation. It suggests that this can be achieved through a show of genuine concern for the needs of the consumers, and the need to reinforce their trust and confidence in insurance as a loss mitigating mechanism.

While shareholders' value maximization was shown as one of the considerations for ethical and social responsible behavior compromise, findings from the study also suggest that stakeholders' value maximization would be an effective consideration for the industry to improve the present low market penetration. The paper draws out the need to amend short‐term goals for long‐term goals by sacrificing short‐term profits for long‐term profits and survival.

Although the strategic importance of ethics and social responsibility has been investigated using the deductive approach in other industries, this work provides an alternative to this existing bulk of positivist investigations by using an inductive approach with subjects drawn from the insurance industry. The study also seems to the authors' knowledge, the first to investigate the strategic importance of this construct in a developing and apathetic market such as Nigeria.