Chapter 17 – Sustainability Assurance
ESG Reporting, ISSA 5000, and Assurance Beyond Financial Statements
01Key Concepts
ESG = Environmental, Social, Governance
- Environmental – climate change, emissions, waste, resource use
- Social – workforce, health & safety, community, human rights
- Governance – board structure, ethics, transparency, risk management
EER = Electronic Expenditure Reporting
Reports that go beyond traditional financial statements – sustainability reports, integrated reports, narrative reports.
02Assurance Standards
ISSA 5000 – International Standard on Sustainability Assurances
Governs sustainability assurance engagements. Replaces ISAE 3000 (Revised) for EER assurance.
03Level of Assurance
- Reasonable – Provides an opinion (like audit)
- Limited – Provides a conclusion (like review)
Key Message: It was decided NOT to create a new specific EER standard. ISAE 3000 (Revised) was considered sufficient.
04What Builds Credibility
4 things that build credibility and trust in an EER report:
- A sound reporting framework
- Strong governance & internal controls
- Consistent information (consistent with other sources)
- An independent assurance report
05Key Challenges Identified
- Evaluating the suitability of criteria
- Addressing materiality
- Form of the assurance report