The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) called for faster adoption of global sustainability reporting standards across Africa's capital markets during a workshop held in Lagos on 8-9 April.
The Sustainability Reporting Adoption Roadmaps for Growth and Emerging Markets workshop, organised by the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) and the World Bank, drew sustainability experts and securities regulators from across Africa and the Middle East.
Hosted by the Securities and Exchange Commission Nigeria, the event focused on supporting jurisdictions in developing nationally tailored approaches to disclose sustainability using the IFRS Foundation's Roadmap Development Tool.
The Bank Group used the Lagos workshop to spotlight its Africa ESG Hub, which is designed to help regulators and companies adopt International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) standards in ways suited to their national contexts. The Hub works to promote consistent sustainability disclosures, provide tools and templates tailored to African contexts, and enhance the transparency and investor confidence that sustainable finance flows require (the Hub's inaugural Africa ESG Disclosure Survey findings are now available in English and French here).
Dr. Uche Duru of the Bank's Environmental and Social Safeguards Department attended the workshop which included discussions covering the policy, legal, and regulatory steps needed for countries to build nationally tailored sustainability disclosure roadmaps.
"The African Development Bank's contribution provided valuable insights into how continental initiatives such as the Africa ESG Hub can support jurisdictions in navigating evolving sustainability reporting frameworks," said Dr. Timi Agama, Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission Nigeria and Vice Chair of IOSCO's Africa/Middle East Regional Committee.
Dr Ndidi Nnoli-Edozien, member of the IFRS Foundation's International Sustainability Standards Board, said: 'We welcome the deepening collaboration with the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), the SEC Nigeria, World Bank and the African Development Bank to support jurisdictions and market participants in building capacity and expertise across Africa in implementing ISSB Standards as a foundation for high quality, decision-useful, comparable and proportionate sustainability disclosures, as part of general purpose financial reporting, enhancing entity's prospects to unlock capital at scale."
The Bank's participation aligns with its Ten-Year Strategy (2024-2033), which places sustainable finance, capital market development, and ESG-aligned investment at its core.
The Lagos event is part of a broader IOSCO initiative that has already convened regulators across Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and Europe. Stronger disclosure frameworks are seen as critical to unlocking the sustainable finance flows Africa urgently needs.
