The draft guidance aims to assist corporate and sovereign entities in attracting sustainable pools of capital to address the SDG finance gap.
The Impact Disclosure Taskforce has released its draft impact disclosure guidance, which is designed to help corporate and sovereign entities committed to reducing global inequality attract sustainable capital.
The guidance aims to help issuers and investors by establishing credible frameworks for measuring and reporting impact.
Originally formed in April 2023 to plug the financing gap of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the taskforce is now seeking feedback on both the guidance and the first Sustainable Development Impact Disclosure (SDID) which is being piloted by logistics and supply chain solutions provider DP World.
The guidance will be especially relevant for issuers looking to tap capital markets for their financing needs, said Timothée Jaulin, head of ESG development and advocacy at Amundi.
“All capital market instruments, including equity, general purpose debt or sustainable debt instruments require high quality sustainability disclosure at issuer level,” said Jaulin.
Closing the SDG finance gap
Achieving the SDGs requires unprecedented levels of investment, particularly in emerging markets and developing economies (EMDE).
In its most recent report, the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) estimated a $4trn (€3.7trn) annual financing gap in EMDE to achieve the SDGs, a gap that the international community recognises cannot be fulfilled without mobilising private sector investment.
According to the UN, a failure to achieve the SDGs may fuel greater political instability, upend economies and lead to irreversible damage to the natural environment.
The pilot SDID focuses on DP World’s anticipated contributions to SDGs focused on health, education, equality and economic growth through emerging markets infrastructure.
“This guidance will help connect sustainable investors with entities that are accountable to tackling the development challenges in their countries. By connecting like-minded people and empowering them with relevant data, we can make strides towards achieving our global goals,” said Arsalan Mahtafar, co-chair of the Impact Disclosure Taskforce and head of J.P. Morgan’s Development Finance Institution.
The Impact Disclosure Taskforce is not to be confused with the Impact Taskforce, a G7-backed think tank founded in 2021, which aims to provide recommendations on how best to accelerate the volume and effectiveness of private capital targeting climate and other related UN SDGs.
Other participants in the Impact Disclosure Taskforce include AXA Investment Managers, Bank of America, BlueOrchard, Citi, Natixis Corporate & Investment Banking and Société Générale.
