Image of the roof of a glass building that is on the cover of the report.

Business is the backbone of modern society which contributes to economic prosperity and raising the standard of living for ordinary people.  In order to flourish, business requires an infrastructure which can provide the right conditions for entrepreneurship and for multinational businesses to commit.  This report sets out that infrastructure by listing four principles and five enabling mechanisms which provide those right conditions for business.

The intention is for these principles to act as guidance to governments and other authorities engaged in facilitating the right conditions for business.  They can also serve as a common denominator for discussions between such authorities, professional advisors and businesses, to reach an understanding on what both parties need from each other to encourage business and economic success as well as social prosperity.

Whilst the principles are not meant to be exhaustive, they will all (to a greater or lesser extent) underpin success. The ACCA Global Forum for Business Law, which has been instrumental in drawing together these principles, will monitor and review the application of the Principles to ensure that the document remains relevant and useful for policymakers and businesses alike.

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ACCA believes there are four key tenets or principals of business law that underpin a good environment for doing business these are:

  1. Simplicity - the laws that govern businesses should be stringent but not complex.
  2. Openness and transparency - Lawmakers should be open and transparent with businesses when designing and implementing business law
  3. Fairness - business law must be applied consistently and equally among business enterprises.
  4. Accountability - business law should facilitate the accountability of business, fostering trust in businesses.

To ensure that these principles have real meaning in practice, the law must:

  • Provide dispute resolution mechanisms
  • Provide encouragement for business enterprises
  • Support an ethical approach to business
  • Maintain stability and confidence
  • Enable business to drive society’s prosperity.