Malaysia will give companies an additional year to prepare for mandatory sustainability assurance.
Group 1 entities must obtain reasonable assurance for their Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions disclosures for reporting periods starting from 1 January 2028, a year later than planned.
The Advisory Committee on Sustainability Reporting (ACSR), chaired by the Securities Commission Malaysia, has also moved the deadlines for Group 2 and Group 3 entities to 2029 and 2030 respectively.
The decision follows a review of the first 91 Group 1 listed issuers reporting under the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards.
Conducted by the Minority Shareholders Watch Group and Climate Governance Malaysia, the review found that disclosure quality needed further improvement.
The extension gives companies more time to strengthen their reporting processes, internal controls and data quality.
Listed issuers must still state whether internal auditors have reviewed their sustainability disclosures or an independent provider has assured them.
Independent assurance must follow the International Standard on Sustainability Assurance 5000.
ISAE 3000 (Revised) and ISO standards will no longer be recommended.
The committee will also issue a guide to support assurance providers and promote consistent implementation.
Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Malaysia, based on image by rawpixel.com via Magnific
