President Tinubu Supports Nigeria’s Efforts To Adopt Sustainability Reporting Initiative

President Bola Tinubu backed Nigeria's pledge to adopt top-tier sustainability reporting standards, noting that this move aimed to attract capital investments, revamp business models, and protect the environment within the country.

The president gave the assurance during a meeting with the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) Chair Emmanuel Faber held on Thursday in Abuja.

Tinubu's support comes as Nigeria launched its Adoption Readiness Roadmap, led by the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRC) in partnership with ISSB. This roadmap aims to help businesses embrace comprehensive sustainability reporting standards.

"As an administration, we are committed to adopting cutting-edge models for financial reporting and process standardization," he said, as per the X handle (formerly known as Twitter). "This applies to environmental regulation, where we are on the verge of significantly reducing the volume of gas flaring in the country."

He added, "We are more transparent than ever before, and we are doing everything possible to represent the continent in a way that will be beneficial to humanity as a whole."

During the meeting, Faber recalled Nigeria's dedication to sustainability reporting, mentioning that at COP27 in Egypt in 2022, the country pledged to be among the first to adopt strict new standards, and added that this commitment has now turned into reality.

ISSB Chairperson further expressed his happiness over Nigeria announcing its Adoption Readiness Roadmap, adding that "Nigeria is leading the pack in Africa and around the world, and these standards, which Nigeria is willingly adopting, will unlock sustainable capital inflows through foreign direct investments."

Furthermore, this will also promote inclusivity in value chains and facilitate the decarbonization of the national economy.

The executive secretary of the FRC Rabiu Olowo also spoke during the meeting and said that Nigeria's choice to join the global standard for sustainability reporting positions the country as one of the earliest supporters dedicated to improving transparency in financial information and business performance.

"The adoption readiness working group is set to pilot our affairs and roadmap to help us succeed on this journey. We are happy to inform the president that the work of the adoption readiness roadmap is ready, and we have the roadmap for businesses to follow," Olowo said.

He added, "We have five sets of early adopters, and we have a period for voluntary adoption leading up to 2028 for mandatory adoption of the standards."

Nigeria is focusing on foreign investment in the country as the African nation is going through an economic crisis.

Earlier this month, Tinubu and the Emir of the State of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani witnessed the signing of multi-sectoral agreements between Nigeria and Qatar in Doha.

The multi-sectoral agreements, signed over education, enterprise development, investment promotion, youth empowerment, mining, tourism and sports sectors, will allow Qatar to make investments in Nigeria.