The second edition of the guide builds on the successful collaboration in 2019 and reflects the extraordinary pace of change in sustainability reporting and assurance, while also responding to the growing complexity and expectations facing organisations globally.

The guide positions assurance not simply as a compliance exercise, but as a strategic enabler of resilience, accountability and long-term value creation.

Assurance plays a critical role in driving credibility and comparability – two critical aspects of mandatory reporting.

As sustainability reporting matures across global markets, organisations that invest in trusted information and robust assurance will be best placed to lead with confidence, earn stakeholder trust and shape a more sustainable future. The guide aims to:

• Demystify assurance – by clearly explaining what assurance on sustainability information is, how it works, and what it means in practice for organisations.
• Empower buyers – through practical guidance, and tips, to help users understand, engage with, and commission assurance with confidence.
• Enable better decisions – by informing the buyer of key areas of focus across the assurance process, from defining scope to selecting an assurance practitioner.

Sustainability reporting is now shaped by global and regional standards, including the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) standards and the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), raising expectations for how information is prepared, presented and used. The standards define how sustainability information is presented, establishing the criteria needed to assess information and, where applicable, assure it.

While approaches vary across jurisdictions and standards, they share a common objective: to improve consistency, comparability and decision-usefulness of sustainability information for intended users.

Internationally-aligned standards for sustainability assurance, ethics and independence have also been developed by the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) and International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) to bring global consistency. At the same time, geopolitical uncertainty, supply-chain disruption and extreme weather events have brought sustainability-related risks and opportunities into focus for business strategy and governance. As a result, expectations around the quality, consistency and credibility of information used by boards, investors and regulators have risen significantly.

Peter Bakker, CEO WBCSD, said:

“As sustainability reporting continues to mature across global markets, those that invest in trusted information and robust assurance will be best placed to lead with confidence, earn stakeholder trust and shape a more sustainable future.

“The rapid pace of change in sustainability reporting and assurance has been extraordinary. This second edition of the Buyer's Guide reflects that acceleration, pinpointing sustainability information and assurance of that information, as tools to support decision-making, business resilience and long-term value creation. WBCSD member companies are leading the way, embedding sustainability into strategy and operations.” 

Alan Vallance, ICAEW Chief Executive, said:

“The accountancy profession plays a critical role, applying professional judgement, expertise and globally recognised standards to bring transparency, accountability and trust of reported information. This guide positions assurance not simply as a compliance exercise, but as a strategic enabler for resilience, accountability and long-term value creation. This second edition pinpoints sustainability information – and assurance of that information – as key tools to support decision-making, business resilience and long-term value creation.

“We are proud to drive the integration of sustainability into financial processes, reporting and assurance, strengthening the accountancy profession’s role in delivering trusted, high-quality information for markets and in the public interest.”

ENDS

Media contact:

David Jetuah
CP&A Communications Advisor
Email: consultant-jetuah@wbcsd.org