Companies listed on Zimbabwe’s two stock exchanges will be mandated to report on environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters as of January 2024, The Herald reports.

The state-owned daily cited a notice by Justin Bgoni, chief executive officer of the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) and Victoria Falls Stock Exchange (VFEX) on November 21 as saying training of issuers' representatives on the new reporting requirements has been done. 

The minimum ESG disclosure requirements, he added, take into account the global reporting initiatives as well as international financial reporting and sustainability standards.

“The stock exchanges have developed core sustainability disclosure metrics for adoption as a minimum starting point, and other issuers have already made efforts to adopt and report on sustainability.  However, effective January 1, 2024, the requirement will be implemented by all listed entities,” Bgoni said.

“Issuers are, however, not limited to the core disclosure metrics and may provide additional information, including sector-specific metrics. Additionally, issuers are still required to conduct materiality assessments,” he added.

Zimbabwe has a fairly developed stock market. The ZSE, which is indexed on the local currency, started operating in 1893 and has 63 listings. The US dollar-denominated VFEX, a subsidiary of ZSE, was established in 2020 and now has 14 listings