What ESG covers in a UAE context
ESG spans the environmental, social and governance factors that affect an organisation's performance and how it is judged. In the UAE the practical question has narrowed considerably: what must be disclosed, on what basis, and can the numbers withstand assurance. That is a controls and data question as much as a strategy one.
What has changed for UAE organisations
ADX and DFM require sustainability disclosure from listed entities. The UAE Climate Law, Federal Decree-Law No. 11 of 2024, introduced greenhouse gas obligations for entities operating in the country. IFRS S1 and S2 have given the market a common reporting language, and investors have started asking whether reported figures have been assured. ESG has moved from the communications team to the finance function, and the data was not built for that.
How CLA Emirates approaches it
We treat ESG data the way we treat financial data, because that is where it is heading. That means establishing what is material, tracing each reported metric to a source and a control, and being honest about which numbers are currently estimates. Strategy work follows from that position rather than preceding it, since a target set on data you cannot evidence creates exposure rather than direction.
The services within this practice
- ESG Reporting & Disclosure
- ESG Strategy & Advisory
- ESG Assurance Readiness
