Practical implementation, including measurement, of core indicators for entity reporting on the contribution towards the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals: Review of case studies

The Intergovernmental Working Group of Experts on International Standards of Accounting and Reporting,

Underlining that sound enterprise accounting and reporting is a key factor in enabling the investment environment, as it plays an essential role in the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals, facilitation of investment and finance for sustainable development, promotion of responsible business practices and enhancement of transparency and good governance,

Taking note of recent trends in enterprise reporting, including the growing demand of users for sustainability information and increasing emphasis on the integration of sustainability information into companies’ reporting cycles,

Acknowledging an increasing role of enterprise sustainability and Sustainable Development Goal reporting for risk identification, assessment and mitigation, both for financial and non-financial risks and in internal control systems,

Recognizing that the harmonization and comparability of companies’ reporting on sustainability issues facilitates its usefulness for decision-making by stakeholders, including investors, the wider society and government agencies responsible for monitoring Sustainable Development Goal implementation at the national level,

Emphasizing the lack of standardization in the area of sustainability and Sustainable Development Goal reporting by companies; the need for common metrics in measuring the contribution of the private sector to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, including to facilitate the convergence of diverse reporting frameworks; and the need to align companies’ sustainability reporting with Sustainable Development Goal monitoring indicators at the national level,

Recalling the UNCTAD mandate to advance its work in the area of sustainability reporting, as articulated in the Nairobi Maafikiano,

1. Commends the UNCTAD secretariat for its work on Sustainable Development Goal reporting, as outlined in document TD/B/C.II/ISAR/89, and in particular for finalizing and publishing during the intersessional period the Guidance on Core Indicators for Entity Reporting on Contribution towards Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals as a useful toolkit for organizations to provide comparable baseline data on their contribution to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, and as a means to facilitate the comparability of companies’ reporting on sustainability issues in alignment with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;
    
2. Notes the usefulness of the pilot case studies conducted by the UNCTAD secretariat on the implementation of the core indicators on Sustainable Development Goal reporting by companies, as a means to validate the practical applicability of the core indicators and availability of the underlying accounting data, and commends the quality of materials and richness of discussions on this matter;
    
3. Requests the UNCTAD secretariat to conduct further case studies, including in francophone countries in Africa, among others, on the implementation of the guidance on core indicators for entity reporting on contribution towards implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, including for small and medium-sized enterprises, to facilitate wider use, raising awareness and dissemination of the guidance, as well as training and capacity-building, including in cooperation with relevant training institutions;
    
4. Welcomes the work of the UNCTAD secretariat in assisting Governments in measuring the contribution of the private sector to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, through the implementation of the activities of the Development Account project entitled “Enabling policy frameworks for enterprise sustainability and Sustainable Development Goal reporting in Africa and Latin America” and exhorts UNCTAD to share lessons learned and best practices with member States;
    
5. Welcomes the reclassification of Sustainable Development Goal indicator 12.6.1 (number of companies publishing sustainability reports) as a tier II indicator;
    
6. Encourages the UNCTAD secretariat to conduct further work required for the implementation of metadata guidance for Sustainable Development Goal indicator 12.6.1, in coordination with the United Nations Environment Programme as co‑custodian of this indicator;
    
7. Requests the UNCTAD secretariat, in coordination with other agencies of the United Nations addressing issues of measuring the private sector contribution to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, to convene a meeting with a view to facilitating the standardization of companies’ reporting on their contribution to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals;
    
8. Calls upon the UNCTAD secretariat to continue facilitating the identification and sharing of national and international best practice in enterprise reporting on sustainability and the Sustainable Development Goals, in partnership with other relevant stakeholders, including as part of the Honours initiative of the Intergovernmental Working Group of Experts on International Standards of Accounting and Reporting that was launched during its thirty-fifth session in 2018.