Nations need to adapt to new ways of doing business, says PM

The corporate sector deserves a great deal of credit for the massive transformation of Asia as the world's growth engine despite the many challenges that business and industry face.

We now need modern, efficient and innovative companies, capable of competing with the best in the world and living up to the highest standards of corporate governance to sustain that growth momentum, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said today.

But for this, he said, governments in the region and more particularly India should ensure an enabling environment that ensures laws and regulation that suit global corporates.

''As Asian governments, we in the government have the responsibility to ensure that corporate laws match up to international standards, that the regulation of our stock exchanges comes up to the expectations of global investors and that our banking and financial sectors are exemplars of both efficiency and stability.

We must build a climate that attracts investment and encourages and rewards innovation while at the same time establishing fair and effective regulatory institutions and legal processes. Above all, we have the responsibility to ensure probity, transparency and accountability in the processes of governance,'' the prime minister said.

While Asian countries themselves are diverse, depending on the culture, history, geography, legal systems and institutions, he said, there is one common thread - we do share a common humanity and destiny - and this could help countries learn from each other even as they do things differently.