Major financial institutions have formed the Impact Disclosure Taskforce to establish voluntary guidance to help companies and sovereigns measure and disclose efforts to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Backers include JP Morgan, Citi, Amundi and Goldman Sachs Asset Management. The Taskforce also intends to explore mechanisms for disseminating and analysing entity-level impact information to promote transparency and accountability. While the guidance can be used by corporate entities and sovereigns of all jurisdictions, it is primarily designed for entities that operate in economies facing the largest SDG gaps and in jurisdictions without regulatory guidance for sustainability disclosures. Cedric Merle, Co-chair of the Impact Disclosure Taskforce and Head of the Center of Expertise and Innovation within Natixis’s Corporate & Investment Banking’s Green and Sustainable Hub, said: “Incentives are necessary for emerging market entities to further disclose their SDG footprint, including the harm caused. Data gaps must be filled in emerging jurisdictions where there are no sustainability reporting requirements, but this can only be a starting point. ‘Newcomers’ to sustainability also need guidance on how to set targets meaningful to their financiers.” The Taskforce anticipates releasing the voluntary Impact Disclosure Guidance for public consultation in April 2024.
