Women representation on boards of listed companies hit 25% – Board Diversity Index

25% of Boards of listed companies are occupied by women, the Board Diversity Index has stated.

This is an increase of 3% from 2020.

At the same time, 27% of non-executive director seats of listed companies are occupied by women, an increase of 3% from the previous year.

The report said almost one-third or about 29% of Ghana’s listed companies have boards featuring at least 30% of female, an increase of 2% from 2020.

For most international standards, 30% is considered the minimum threshold to reap the benefits of boardroom diversity. This means Ghana is gradually getting to that level.

Similarly, 15% of the Board Chair are women, whilst 12% are Chief Executives and Managing Directors. 4% are Chief Finance Officers and 10 percent are Chief Operating Officers.

The report further said there has been an increase in the number of Board Chairs, CEOs and MDs by 9% and 4% respectively, from 2020. However, there has been a decrease in the number of Chief Finance Officers and Chief Operating Officers by 9% and 5% respectively.

Continuing, the report said women represent 75% of all Company Secretaries on Ghana’s listed boards, an increase of 3% from 2020.

The report added that female company secretaries can serve as a strong pipeline for future board directors. Presently, there are 38 companies listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange.

45.5% of companies still have one or no women on their boards. This metric has however decreased by 3.5% from 2020.

FMCG, mining and telecom sectors have more women representation on board

The fast-moving consumer goods, mining and telecommunications sectors are the best performing sector in terms of the percentage of women who make up board directors.

100% of all FMCG, mining/ natural resources, and telecommunications companies have more than 30% female directors.

However, in terms of aggregate value, the financial services sector has the highest number of female board directors in Ghana with a total of 27 women directors across all companies in the sector.

Meanwhile, businesses with female Chairs tend to have more females on their boards compared with businesses with male board Chairs.

80% of companies with female Chairs have 30% or more women on their Board, an increase of 30% from 2020, while only 28% of companies with male Chairs have 30% or more women on their Board, a decrease of 1% from 2020.

Source: Myjoyonline