In January 2019, the World Economic Forum issued a whitepaper entitled; "How to Set Up Effective Climate Governance on Corporate Boards: Guiding Principles and Questions". The Climate Governance Initiative is now a global network composed of 21 Chapters in currently 50 countries (with many more under development) bringing together a community of non-executive directors, Chairpersons and experts to promote the adoption of effective climate governance on their boards. 

Internal audit has evolved and will continue this path post-pandemic. The old ways of providing governance assurance have long gone. A cultural shift has happened with focus on remote auditing and providing the integrated assurance. The shift in mindset must continue for the Internal Audit function to remain relevant and a key business partner. The Board and Audit Committee plus Management must appreciate that Internal Audit’s rapidly changing landscape is necessary to support the level of corresponding changes in business priorities. 

The Inland Revenue Board (IRB) announced in April 2022 that Malaysia’s Tax Corporate Governance Framework (TCGF) pilot program would start in June 2022. It is a momentous step forward by the IRB to encourage an open discussion approach and foster transparency between taxpayer and tax authority, a departure from the traditional audit-oriented approach to compliance.

Delivering long-term performance on ESG requires more than good data collection and reporting. Driving broader positive social and environmental impact starts with integrating the purpose and values that underly good ESG across the entire organisation. This session will introduce the key 'softer' characteristics commonly amongst organisations that are leaders in ESG, specifically exploring required elements of resourcing, governance structures and culture. 

Climate change, and our response to it, is not just an environmental issue, it is consistently rated as one of the top threats to global socio-economic stability and viability. This session will contextualise the issues from a financial risk and disclosure perspective. The drivers for quantifying and managing an organisation’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions will be investigated across the value chain.

As ESG disclosure continues to mainstream across industries, managing sustainability is fast becoming a business case for long-term business performance. Companies increasingly see that ESG management can cater to the growing needs of their customers and stakeholders, but also bring strategic value to their business, and a sustainable economy. However, in reality ESG efforts today are often still adhoc and fragmented. Observers express concern that growth in the quantity of ESG reporting is creating further market confusion and adding to greenwash.

MAICSA Annual Conference 2022: Challenging the Challenges in Governance

The governance role, as we move to year 2023, is fast expanding and becoming more essential and challenging. It requires us to be more resilient in challenging the challenges that we face in governance. Hence, Company Secretaries, as advisors as well as Governance Practitioners, who are entrusted to lead the governance practices of companies need to step up to transform the challenges into opportunities.