In South Africa, whilst internal audit functions play a critical role in good corporate governance, the King V report, which sets out South African corporate governance guidelines, does not recommend disclosing internal audit information to external stakeholders (Institute of Directors in South Africa [IoDSA], 2025). Thus, the South African public remains ill-informed about the work and activities of an important corporate governance body, such as the internal audit function. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate whether the corporate governance guidelines of the top-ranked countries recommend internal audit disclosures to external stakeholders and, if so, to further discuss the recommended disclosures. This study consisted of a literature review of studies supporting the need to disclose internal audit information to external stakeholders, and an empirical study comprising a content analysis of the corporate governance guidelines of the top-ranked countries regarding internal audit disclosures. It was found that limited guidelines are informing internal audit disclosures, with recommendations limited to description, structure, role, and principles. The findings of this study can serve as a starting point for regulators, practitioners, and institutions in South Africa to inform reforms that provide clear guidelines for internal audit disclosures to external stakeholders.

This paper aims to assess the role of forensic accounting in enhancing the quality of financial statement audits in Riyadh. Questionnaires were distributed to a sample of external auditors in Riyadh province in Saudi Arabia. The study revealed that there is a statistically significant relationship between the availability of forensic accounting services and the detection of cases of fraud and the illegal actions of the client. This includes verifying the continuity of the enterprise. In addition, there is a strong correlation between using the forensic accountant services and supporting the external auditing processes in the field, detecting fraud cases, detecting the illegal actions of the client, and verifying the continuity of the enterprise. The correlation value is near to one. The study concludes that forensic accountants must enhance their communication, interpersonal, critical thinking, accounting, auditing, and self-efficacy skills to improve efficiency. Academic and practical qualifications enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of forensic accounting services. The research recommends establishing an autonomous Saudi entity to supervise and accredit forensic accounting businesses. The research additionally recommends including forensic accounting in the curricula of Saudi institutions as an independent or associated subject.

Climate policy uncertainty (CPU) has emerged as a critical but understudied source of financial risk, particularly in foreign exchange (FX) markets. This paper examines how the CPU influences exchange rate volatility and cross-currency spillovers by analyzing daily data from 2015 to 2023 on six major currency pairs. The results show that periods of elevated CPU increase exchange rate volatility by up to 30 percent in carbon-intensive and emerging economies, with RUB/USD and CNY/USD consistently acting as net transmitters of risk. The total connectedness index (TCI) reaches 42.7 percent, indicating that the CPU generates systemic spillovers across currency markets rather than isolated shocks. These findings extend prior research that focused mainly on equity and bond markets, highlighting the unique vulnerabilities of FX markets to climate policy narratives. The study contributes to international finance by demonstrating how ambiguous or inconsistent climate policy communication can destabilize currency markets, offering insights for central banks, regulators, and investors seeking to manage risks in the low-carbon transition.

In today’s globalized world, governance and regulation issues in national economic sectors are of paramount importance. To ensure economic development, each country must continually implement appropriate measures in this area. We are proud to present this special issue of our journal. This special issue features 19 articles covering various scientific fields, written by authors living and working in various countries around the world.

This study examines the influence of labor force participation and demographic dynamics on government bond yields in Indonesia, focusing on the mediating role of economic growth. Understanding these relationships is essential for maintaining market stability and informing fiscal policy in emerging markets (Pinho & Barradas, 2021). Using quarterly data (2009–2023), this study employs regression, Sobel tests, cointegration, and impulse response analysis to examine effects on one, five, and ten-year bond yields. The findings reveal that while labor participation and demographic shifts do not have direct effects, economic growth significantly mediates their impact on short-term bond yields. The cointegration results confirm the existence of long-term equilibrium relationships across all tenors. Additionally, short-term yields demonstrate higher sensitivity to macroeconomic shocks compared to medium- and long-term yields (Michelson & Stein, 2023). These results highlight the critical role of promoting stable economic growth and managing demographic risks to sustain the performance and competitiveness of government bond markets in developing economies.

The study aimed to investigate whether regulatory mechanisms are effective in curbing greenwashing. The increasing prevalence of greenwashing casts doubt and scepticism on bona fide sustainability performance. This data was collected between 2019 to 2023. The questionnaire was sent to a cross-sectional sample of 150 employees involved in regulatory issues from three divisions within South Africa’s Department of Minerals and Energy (DMR). The questionnaire gathered perceptions of regulatory stakeholders about the sustainability performance (SP) and sustainability reporting (SR) practices of South Africa’s Mining Companies (SAMCs). The responses were ranked on a five-point Likert scale ranging from “Strongly disagree” to “Strongly agree”. Descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analysis (EFA), and structural equation modelling (SEM) were employed in the data analysis. Limited greenwashing tendencies were found in occupational health, safety and labour practices. Although there was no significant evidence of greenwashing in local enterprise development, some variables, like local housing, skills development, local infrastructure development, and environmental management activities, may require attention and enhancement. The results indicate that regulation alone has limited success in preventing greenwashing within the mining sector of South Africa. Future studies may investigate sector-specific laws and regulations to curb greenwashing.

Although there has been discussion about the possibility that individual characteristics play a meaningful role in the relationship between high-performance work systems (HPWS) and individuality, there has been a lack of attempts to empirically verify this. Thus, the goal of this study is to determine how corporate goal orientation influences the relationship between job performance and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) and the perception of a high-performance work environment. The research question includes how performance goal orientation can regulate the static relationship between the HPWS and the job performance system from the perspective of behavioral characteristics. The authors use a descriptive research design. A total of 1,722 team leaders and team members were sent a survey email, out of which 261 respondents replied. The authors also use exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and regression analysis. The results reveal that job performance and organizational citizenship conduct, as assessed by the team leader, are significantly positively correlated with team members’ perceptions of an HPWS. The research depicts that there was a strong positive association between goal orientation and the outcome variables, and it is difficult to verify causal relationships in studies designed as cross-sectional surveys.

This study examines corporate cash holding through the lens of the four motives in Keynesian theory (Schumpeter & Keynes, 1936): 1) transactions, 2) caution, 3) taxes, and 4) agency, (Roy, 2018). It explores the influence of financial performance, corporate governance, and political connections on cash holding, with political connections serving as a mediating factor. The research employs quantitative methods grounded in the philosophy of positivism, focusing on a specific population of 105 companies, with a final sample of 735 observations. The findings suggest that audit committees, current ratios, quick ratios, and political connections play a role in improving cash holding. The study concludes that financial performance, corporate governance, and political connections significantly impact cash holding. While financial performance and governance influence the formation of political connections, political connections do not mediate the relationship between financial performance, corporate governance, and cash holding. This study highlights the importance of liquidity and the interaction between political, debt, and asset connections in achieving corporate objectives. The dynamics of financial performance, corporate governance, and political connections are crucial to public interest.

This research examines the relationship between tone disclosure (TD) and debt financing (DF) in the Jordanian banking sector between 2010 and 2019. This research uses the agency theory since it explains TD behavior to reduce information asymmetry and conflict of interest. Based on this theory, the first hypothesis suggests a positive association between TD and DF. Furthermore, the second hypothesis suggests a bidirectional relationship between TD and DF. The sample consists of 15 banks in the Jordanian banking sector. This research calculates TD by dividing the number of positive words by the total number of words. Results show a positive relationship between TD and DF, and the relationship is bidirectional (Hui et al., 2024; Zhu et al., 2023), which proves our two hypotheses. The study results help external financial statement users, mainly financers, understand the use of TD in the annual report in Jordan, one of the emerging countries. Also, the results recommend using TD in a bank’s annual report to attract more debt financers.

The tourism industry faces significant challenges in achieving financial sustainability, particularly in addressing gender inequalities. This research investigates the intersection of gender and risk management practices within the tourism sector, focusing on the research questions of how gender perspectives influence risk management practices in tourism and what strategies can be implemented to promote equitable financial outcomes in the tourism industry. Using a comparative methodology and analyzing documents, reports, and institutional data, the study examines the role of gender-inclusive risk management practices in fostering financial resilience. Key findings reveal that companies incorporating gender perspectives in risk assessments demonstrate greater financial stability and adaptability to market fluctuations (Swart et al., 2024). The conclusion emphasizes the necessity of integrating gender considerations into risk management frameworks to enhance financial sustainability and contribute to more inclusive corporate governance in tourism. This research underscores the importance of gender-sensitive policies in advancing social equity and financial resilience within the industry (Ritchie & Jiang, 2021).