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We investigate the effect of the adoption of formal board structure and board processes on firm performance in Colombian family firms, in a context where firms can choose specific aspects of board structure and processes. We deploy insights from the behavioral governance perspective to develop arguments about how family businesses may choose board elements based on their degree of control over the firm (absolute control or less), and its effect on firm performance.

We use an unbalanced data panel of 404 firm-year observations. The data was obtained from the annual financial and corporate governance reports of 62 Colombian stock-issuing firms for the period 2008–2014 – due to change in regulation, data could not be added beyond 2014. Panel data technique with random effects was used.

The results show that board structure is positively associated with financial performance, however, this relationship is negative in businesses where family has absolute control. We also found that there is a negative association between board processes and performance, but positive association in family-controlled businesses.

Our research contributes to research streams on effects of family control in firm choices and on the interactive effect of governance choices and institutional context and more generally how actors interact (rather than react) with their institutional context.

The purpose of this paper is to summarize what is known about corporate governance in family firms from Ibero-American countries based on published research.

The authors conducted a literature search to identify the articles that have been published about the corporate governance of family firms in Latin America, Spain, and Portugal between 1980 and 2014. The authors found 38 articles that provide the sample for this review.

The results indicate that research on governance in Ibero-American family firms has focussed on understanding structures and processes related to the business and ownership systems. However, generalization of results across the region is difficult because of the lack of systematic approach of studies and the focus on a small number of countries.

There are at least two limitations of this work: the small sample of projects identified for the review and the lack of systematic approach to research. Both of these may be due to the importance given to publishing the university context in this part of the world. As the culture of knowledge changes, the authors expect that research in this area will grow.

Although previous research indicates that cultural characteristics affect governance system choices and understanding of family firms, not many studies explore the importance of culture in governance choices of family firms. This paper provides a baseline of the understanding of governance in Ibero-American family firms, and identifies important area for future research.

La meta de este proyecto era resumir lo que sabemos acerca del gobierno corporativo en empresas familiares en países iberoamericanos.

Se realizó una búsqueda en la literatura para identificar artículos que se hubiesen publicado en el área de gobierno corporativo sobre empresas familiares en Latinoamérica, Portugal y España entre 1980 y el 2014. Se encontraron 38 artículos que representan la muestra en este resumen de la literatura.

Los resultados de esta investigación sugieren que la investigación sobre gobierno corporativo en empresas familiares iberoamericanas se ha centrado en entender las estructuras y los procesos relacionados a los sistemas de la empresa y la propiedad. Sin embargo, la generalización de estos resultados a través de toda la región es difícil porque falta de investigaciones sistemáticas sobre temas similares y por la concentración de estudios en países específicos.

Este trabajo tiene por lo menos dos limitaciones: el tamaño de la muestra y la falta de estudios sistemáticos en investigaciones de esta área. Estas dos limitaciones pueden están relacionadas con la importancia que se le da a la publicación de investigaciones en esta región del mundo. A medida que la cultura del conocimiento en esta región cambie, se notara la proliferación de más estudios en el área de gobierno corporativo en empresas familiares iberoamericanas.

A pesar que investigaciones previas indican que las características culturales afectan las decisiones sobre sistemas de gobierno corporativo y como entendemos las empresas familiares, no hay mucha investigación acerca de la importancia de la cultura en las decisiones de gobierno en empresas familiares. Este trabajo representa una base para entender el gobierno corporativo en empresas familiares iberoamericanas y para identificar áreas de énfasis en investigaciones futuras.

Chama microfinance models continue to be a safety net for many rural women in Kenya; however, their financial literacy remains largely unexplored. This study sought to explore the financial literacy of women entrepreneurs who are also members of Chama groups in rural Western Kenya, examine the specific indigenous practices and values that educators could draw upon to support and enhance the teaching of financial literacy to women, and also highlight the potential outcome of integrating indigenous knowledge and pedagogies to financial literacy. The study adopted critical participatory action research and African womanism methodology to centre learning on the experiences of rural Chama women. Based on in-depth interviews of six women in Western Kenya, the study found that the women's financial literacy can be explained and demonstrated through their relationships, connections and identity. On specific indigenous practices and methods the study found community engagement, centred learning and discovery learning, as relevant ways of engaging with the women. Integrating values, practices, and methods to inquire about the financial literacy from the Chama women's perspective cultivated an environment that encouraged mutual respect, sharing, participation and learning. Within the context of the findings, the study suggests that it is best to understand the women's financial literacy from their perspective. This study also contributes to knowledge on critical participatory action research and financial literacy from an Africana womanist perspective.

The resistance of the energy sector in recent time has been tried by COVID-19 as the occurrence has added to the dampening down demand for crude oil which has resulted in volatility in prices and dwindling production of crude oil at the global crude oil market. Dwindling demand and price decline can also be perceived as a trend in the electricity sector, the electricity price (ELECTP) and consumption. The consequences of individual policy response by countries in relation to the socio-economic impact of COVID-19 is yet to be known, and recent studies conducted in the continent are yet to document the impact of the pandemic on the oil-producing African countries. It is in the light of this that this study determined the effect of socio-economic shocks activated through the COVID-19 pandemic on the energy sector performance and economic development of Africa. Monthly data were sourced from the United States Energy Information Administration, COVID-19 geographic distribution worldwide, World Development Indicator and Trading Economics from 2019 (m12) to 2020 (m10). Seventeen oil-producing African countries were selected across the region based on data availability. The structural panel vector auto regression (SPVAR) analytical technique was used in estimating COVID-19 pandemic and socio-economic shocks on the energy sector performance proxied by oil production (OILP), ELECTP and economic development proxied by gross domestic product per capita (GDPPC) of the countries. Findings revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic transmits a negative shock to OILP and GDPPC while a positive shock is transmitted to ELECTP. The socio-economic variables also transmitted both the positive and negative shocks to OILP, ELECTP and GDPPC. Therefore, the study recommended that policies should be directed towards putting in place a shock-absorbing mechanism so as to cushion the effect of the identified shocks on the performance of the energy sector and the economic development of the countries.