The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is drafting new guidelines to ensure consistency and uniformity in the reports by publicly listed companies (PLCs) on their sustainability measures. 

In a statement, the SEC said it will soon release a Memorandum Circular on the Revised Guidelines for PLCs, which will include the Sustainability Reporting (SuRe) Form to guide PLCs with their reports.

“This is a significant step towards consistent, comparable and reliable sustainability information, ending the so-called alphabet soup of voluntary adoption of various standards,” SEC Chairperson Emilio B. Aquino said. 

He added that, “the adoption of the IFRS S1 and S2 standards will complement the Commission’s adoption of frameworks under the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Global Reporting Initiative, Sustainability Accounting Standards Board, and United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)- International Standards of Accounting and Reporting Guidance on Core Indicators.”

The revised guidelines seek to further enhance the quality of sustainability reporting and ensure consistency of non-financial information submitted by PLCs.

The new guidelines will take into consideration global sustainability standards such as IFRS S1 (General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information) and IFRS S2 (Climate-related Disclosures), among others. 

These standards serve as an effective and proportionate global framework of investor-focused disclosures on sustainability and climate-related risks and opportunities. 

The International Organization of Securities Commissions has endorsed the said standards earlier this year, calling on its members to consider ways of adopting and applying them within the context of jurisdictional arrangements. 

Since the issuance of the Sustainability Reporting Guidelines in 2019, the SEC has seen a steady increase in the submission of sustainability reports by PLCs.

Compliance rate stood at 95 percent in 2021, compared to 96 percent and 93 percent in 2020 and 2019, respectively. 

Only around 22 percent of PLCs disclosed their sustainability reports to the SEC prior to the release of the guidelines in 2017. 

Earlier this year, the SEC also adopted the ASEAN Sustainable and Responsible Fund Standards (SRFS), which will allow both local and ASEAN-member investment companies and collective investment scheme operators to offer sustainable and responsible funds locally and across the region.

As a corporate regulator, the SEC is a leading voice in promoting good corporate governance and sustainability in the country, which has been recognized by both local and international organizations. 

This year, the SEC bagged the Global Good Governance (3G) Advocacy and Commitment to Corporate Governance Award 2023 conferred by London-based Cambridge International Finance Advisory, marking the third straight year of receiving the award. 

The SEC likewise received the 3G Championship Award in ESG Practices in 2023, and the 3G Transparency Award in 2022. 

The UNCTAD also named the SEC recipient of the ISAR Honours in 2022 and 2019, for elevating the standards of sustainability reporting in the corporate sector.