Overview
Company reporting can potentially be a primary source of information for the SDG monitoring framework by providing stakeholders with the means to assess the economic, environmental, and social impact of the private sector. From the companies’ point of view, measuring and disclosing their impact on the SDGs can help them to better engage stakeholders, enhance sustainable decision-making processes and strengthen their accountability. Yet, many countries lack the institutional and technical capacity to adapt their corporate reporting environments to the requirements of the 2030 Agenda. In addition, governments struggle to effectively assess the private sector’s contribution towards attaining the SDGs. To unlock the full potential of company reporting as part of the 2030 Agenda, further efforts are needed towards harmonization, comparability, and consistency of financial reporting and sustainability reporting. In response to this, the “Enabling policy frameworks for enterprise sustainability and SDG reporting in Africa and Latin America” project aimed at strengthening the capacities of governments to measure and monitor the private sector’s contribution to the 2030 Agenda. This project is an initiative based on the development and implementation of a strategic tool consistent with the SDG monitoring mechanism. This tool is meant to enable countries to coordinate efforts among different authorities (e.g., ministries, departments and/or institutions), and design and enforce policies linked to high-quality private sector reporting frameworks.