Nigeria National Code of Corporate Governance - 2016

This Code is to be referred to as the National Code of Corporate Governance for the Private Sector in Nigeria 2016. It is the outcome of a directive given to the Steering Committee on the National Code of Corporate Governance on 17th January, 2013 by the Honourable Minister of Trade and Investment. This Committee was chaired by Mr. Victor Odiase and its focal remit was to harmonize and unify all the existing sectoral corporate governance codes in Nigeria. The sectoral corporate governance codes identifiable at the commencement of the Steering Committee’s work were the Code of Corporate Governance for Banks in Nigeria Post-Consolidation 2006, Code of Corporate Governance for Licensed Pensions Operators 2008, Code of Corporate Governance for Insurance Industry in Nigeria 2009, SEC Code of Corporate Governance in Nigeria 2011 and CBN Code of Corporate Governance for Banks and Discount Houses 2014. The need for harmonization and unification was informed by the fact that there were not too many nations, and in fact none was observed during the Steering Committee’s very extensive corporate governance literature reviews, that have adopted this sectoral multiplicity of governance codes. These Codes later became very confusing in view of their conflicting provisions on apparently same subject matters.