Bahrain Bourse, CBB Showcase Sustainability Efforts in COP28

Dubai, Dec. 5 (BNA): Bahrain Bourse participated in the 28th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28) in Dubai.

 

Dr. Mohammed bin Mubarak bin Daina, Minister of Oil and Environment, and Special Envoy for Climate Affairs, showcased during his participation the sustainability efforts and advancements undertaken within the capital markets in the Kingdom. 

 

Bahrain Bourse alongside the CBB participated in the panel discussion titled: “Navigating the ESG Landscape: Insights from Bahrain Bourse and the Central Bank of Bahrain”.

 

The panel included the participation of Shaikh Khalifa bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, CEO of Bahrain Bourse, and Abeer Al Saad, Executive Director of Financial Institutions Supervision at the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB), and was moderated by Kalyan Subramanian, Head of Markets – KPMG Bahrain. 

 

The panelists highlighted the rising awareness of ESG issues in the region and the importance of ESG reporting to sustainable growth. 

 

They emphasised the role of regulatory authorities and exchanges in enhancing the implementation of ESG reporting requirements and ensuring sustainable and transparent capital markets. This has resulted in the recent introduction of the regulatory framework for ESG reporting by the Central Bank of Bahrain that applies to all listed companies and targeted CBB licensees and comes into effect for the reporting period ending December 2024. 

 

Shaikh Khalifa bin Ebrahim expressed his pride in highlighting the major milestones undertaken by Bahrain Bourse to enhance transparency and disclosure in Bahrain’s capital market by supporting listed companies’ alignment with Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030 and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

 

“We began our ESG journey with the issuance of the voluntary reporting guidelines for listed companies in 2020 to encourage and assist listed companies in disclosing ESG information. We strongly applaud the steps undertaken by the CBB for the introduction of a standardised regulatory framework for ESG reporting, which will bring greater consistency and comparability to ESG disclosures within the market particularly on climate change, as this forms a key milestone towards achieving a net-zero economy.”

“The announcements made by the CBB build upon Bahrain Bourse’s efforts in promoting sustainable capital markets and falls in line with the Kingdom of Bahrain’s commitment towards achieving net zero by 2060 and decarbonisation efforts.”

 

“The ESG mandatory disclosure also builds upon Bahrain Bourse’s commitment as a Partner Exchange Member of the Sustainable Stock Exchanges (SSE) initiative and a member of the World Federation of Exchanges, in which Bahrain Bourse has made a formal commitment to drive sustainability in the capital market of the Kingdom of Bahrain,” Shaikh Khalifa added.

 

 Al Saad affirmed that CBB recognises the importance of ESG reporting and our instrumental role in enhancing transparency and corporate governance across the Kingdom.

“By introducing the ESG Module, we are setting a clear framework and guidelines that will enable listed companies and financial institutions to effectively measure, report, and manage their ESG performance.”

 

 “The CBB acknowledges that there may be challenges in implementing ESG reporting, particularly in the initial years. However, companies are expected to make reasonable efforts to report Key Performance Indicators, and transparently explain any limitations in reporting and outline the steps being taken to address those limitations”, she added.

 

 

ZH