MASB welcomes the global sustainability standards


26 June 2023

MASB welcomes the global sustainability standards

The Malaysian Accounting Standards Board (MASB) congratulates the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) on the issuance of their first two IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards, IFRS S1 General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information and IFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures.

Similar to the MASB’s support for a set of globally accepted accounting standards, MASB welcomes IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 that provide a comprehensive global baseline of sustainability disclosures aimed to meet the information needs of investors and the capital markets.

MASB is also pleased to note that the ISSB has included various transitional reliefs to support companies applying the Standards. The pocket of transitional reliefs is important given the different level of development of sustainability reporting across jurisdictions. We also welcome the IFRS Foundation’s plans to support application of the new standards with capacity building initiatives.

For more information, please visit: https://www.ifrs.org/groups/international-sustainability-standards-board/

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Notes:

1. The Trustees of the IFRS Foundation announced the formation of the ISSB on 3 November 2021 at COP26 in Glasgow following strong market demand for its establishment.

2. The ISSB has set out four key objectives: a) to develop standards for a global baseline of sustainability disclosures; b) to meet the information needs of investors; c) to enable companies to provide comprehensive sustainability information to global capital markets; and d) to facilitate interoperability with disclosures that are jurisdiction-specific and/or aimed at broader stakeholder groups.

3. The ISSB builds on the work of market-led investor-focused reporting initiatives, including the Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB), the Task Force for Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), the Value Reporting Foundation’s Integrated Reporting Framework and industry-based SASB Standards, as well as the World Economic Forum’s Stakeholder Capitalism Metrics. 

4. The two Standards were issued as [draft] IFRS S1 and [draft] IFRS S2 for public comment for a 120-day consultation period in March 2022.