The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), a United Nations Sustainable Stock Exchanges (SSE) Partner Exchange, has published Sustainability Disclosure Guidelines for the Nigerian market. The publication of these new guidelines fulfills a commitment made by the Nigerian Stock Exchange, as part of the SSE’s campaign to close the gap of environmental, social and governance (ESG) disclosure guidance by stock exchanges.

“We are supporting the global agenda of green and sustainable finance, which is so critical for Africa. As the first Exchange to list a sovereign green bond in Africa, our issuance of these Guidelines is to further enable investors ascertain their exposure to ESG risks whilst providing our Issuers a platform to disclose them along common themes for comparability. We encourage peer exchanges on the continent to continue to enhance information disclosure in their markets as this will help build trust,” said Chief Executive Officer of NSE, Mr. Oscar N. Onyema

“With continued global participation in our market, a shared framework of ESG principles with multi-stakeholder approach and metrics is imperative. The Guidelines set out recommendations for good practice in thirteen thematic areas under four core principles in ESG reporting. With the launch of these Guidelines, investors can look forward to a consistent approach to ESG reporting from Issuers listed on The NSE,” said Mr. Olumide Orojimi, Head, Corporate Communications at NSE.

In addition to launching its new guidance, the exchange also received approval from its regulatory authority to make it mandatory for all listed companies on its premium board to provide a sustainability report. This new requirement is effective in the Nigerian market starting 1 January 2019.

The guidance includes four main sections, covering the value proposition of sustainability, integrating sustainability, principles and core elements of a sustainability report and reporting requirements. With the publication of this new guidance document, there are now 40 stock exchanges around the world provide guidance on ESG reporting, and 17 markets with mandatory listing requirements on ESG reporting. For a list of all the guidance documents assisting issuers to report on ESG published by stock exchanges, visit this page. For a list of markets that require ESG reporting as a mandatory listing rule, use the SSE’s new searchable database here.