Sustainability Reporting Services for UAE Businesses

• Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) Requirements:

The UAE's Securities and Commodities Authority has progressively strengthened ESG disclosure expectations for listed companies, moving toward mandatory sustainability reporting aligned with international best practices. These requirements affect all companies listed on UAE stock exchanges.

• Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) ESG Guidelines:

ADX has introduced comprehensive ESG reporting guidance requiring listed companies to disclose environmental, social, and governance performance across specific metrics. These disclosures directly impact investor confidence and company valuations in Abu Dhabi's capital markets.

• Dubai Financial Market (DFM) Sustainability Disclosure:

DFM has implemented ESG disclosure requirements for listed entities, emphasizing transparency on environmental impacts, social responsibility, and governance practices. Compliance affects trading eligibility and institutional investor access.

• Saudi Arabia Tadawul ESG Requirements:

The Saudi Stock Exchange has introduced mandatory ESG disclosure for listed companies, aligning with Vision 2030 sustainability objectives and international investor expectations.

• International Investment Pressures:

Beyond regional regulatory requirements, global institutional investors—pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and asset managers controlling trillions in capital—increasingly screen investments based on ESG performance. Without credible sustainability reporting, GCC companies face capital market disadvantages regardless of operational or financial performance.

• Water Scarcity and Management:

In the world's most water-scarce region, water consumption, wastewater management, and water efficiency represent material issues for virtually all sectors—from hospitality and real estate to manufacturing and agriculture. We help you assess water impacts comprehensively and address stakeholder expectations around this critical regional resource.

• Energy Transition and Climate Adaptation:

The UAE's transition toward renewable energy through initiatives like Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, alongside extreme heat and climate vulnerability, makes energy management and climate adaptation particularly material for regional businesses. We contextualize global climate issues within regional energy transformation dynamics.

• Labour Welfare and Working Conditions:

The GCC's substantial expatriate workforce creates unique labour and human rights considerations including worker accommodation standards, recruitment practices, wage protection systems, and heat stress management. Our materiality assessments address these region-specific social topics with cultural sensitivity and regulatory understanding.

• Emiratization and Nationalization:

UAE's Emiratization policies and similar nationalization initiatives across the GCC make workforce composition, local employment, and skills development particularly material topics requiring transparent disclosure and strategic response.

• Supply Chain Responsibility:

Many GCC businesses operate as regional distribution hubs or rely on complex international supply chains. Understanding supply chain environmental and social risks—particularly in countries with weaker governance—represents material concern for stakeholders and business resilience.

• Economic Diversification Contribution:

Alignment with national visions including UAE's economic diversification agenda and Saudi Vision 2030's transformation objectives represents material topic connecting business strategy with national development priorities.

• Stakeholder Engagement Process:

We facilitate comprehensive stakeholder engagement identifying material topics through

• Internal Stakeholder Workshops:

Engaging your Board, executive management, department heads, and employees to understand internal perspectives on material sustainability topics, business risks, and strategic priorities.

• External Stakeholder Consultation:

Conducting interviews or surveys with investors, customers, suppliers, regulators, community representatives, and NGOs to understand external expectations and concerns. For regional businesses, this includes engaging government stakeholders, local communities, and international investors with specific ESG focus.

• Peer and Competitor Analysis:

Benchmarking materiality topics addressed by industry peers, regional leaders, and international best practice to ensure comprehensive topic coverage.

• Regulatory and Framework Mapping:

Identifying topics emphasized by UAE regulatory requirements, international reporting frameworks, and sector-specific guidance ensuring compliance alongside stakeholder relevance.

• Materiality Matrix Development:

We create visual materiality matrices plotting topics by significance to stakeholders (y-axis) and impact on business (x-axis), providing clear prioritization framework that focuses reporting efforts on truly material topics rather than attempting superficial coverage of all sustainability issues.

• Material Topic Validation and Approval:

We facilitate management review and Board approval of materiality assessment results, ensuring senior leadership alignment with reporting scope and strategic sustainability priorities.

This rigorous materiality process ensures your sustainability report focuses on topics that genuinely matter to your business success and stakeholder decision-making rather than producing generic content disconnected from regional realities.

• GRI Universal Standards 2021 Implementation:

We guide you through the latest GRI Universal Standards including:

• GRI 1: Foundation 2021:

Understanding fundamental reporting principles including accuracy, balance, clarity, comparability, completeness, sustainability context, timeliness, and verifiability that underpin credible disclosure.

• GRI 2: General Disclosures 2021:

Reporting on organizational details, activities, workers, governance structure, strategy, policies, practices, and stakeholder engagement—providing comprehensive organizational context for sustainability performance.

• GRI 3: Material Topics 2021:

Documenting your materiality assessment process, listing material topics, and explaining topic management approaches for each material issue identified.

• GRI Topic-Specific Standards:

Applying relevant environmental, social, and economic topic standards based on your materiality assessment:

• Environmental Standards:

Including GRI 302 (Energy), GRI 303 (Water), GRI 305 (Emissions), GRI 306 (Waste), covering topics particularly material for GCC businesses operating in resource-constrained and carbon-intensive contexts.

• Social Standards:

Including GRI 401 (Employment), GRI 403 (Occupational Health and Safety), GRI 404 (Training and Education), GRI 405 (Diversity and Equal Opportunity), GRI 408 (Child Labour), GRI 409 (Forced or Compulsory Labour), addressing labour topics critical in regional workforce contexts.

• Economic Standards:

Including GRI 201 (Economic Performance), GRI 203 (Indirect Economic Impacts), GRI 204 (Procurement Practices), relevant for demonstrating economic value creation and supply chain responsibility.

• Multi-Framework Integration:

Leading investors increasingly expect reporting aligned with multiple frameworks. We help you integrate:

• SASB (Sustainability Accounting Standards Board):

Incorporating financially material sustainability topics specific to your industry, providing investor-focused metrics that complement broader GRI stakeholder reporting.

• TCFD (Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures):

Addressing climate-related financial risks and opportunities across governance, strategy, risk management, and metrics and targets pillars—increasingly expected by financial stakeholders and regulators globally.

• CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project):

Aligning your reporting with CDP questionnaire requirements if you're responding to CDP or customer supply chain disclosure requests, ensuring consistency across reporting platforms.

• UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

Mapping your sustainability impacts and initiatives to relevant SDGs, demonstrating contribution to global sustainable development while strengthening stakeholder communication.

• CSRD Readiness (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive):

For companies with EU operations or European investor bases, we provide guidance on emerging CSRD requirements and European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), positioning you for future regulatory expansion.

This multi-framework approach ensures your sustainability report satisfies diverse stakeholder information needs through integrated disclosure rather than producing separate reports for different audiences—reducing reporting burden while maximizing communication value.

• Regional Regulatory Alignment:

Beyond international frameworks, we ensure specific alignment with:

• ADX ESG Metrics:

Incorporating mandatory and recommended metrics specified in Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange ESG reporting guidance, ensuring listed company compliance.

• DFM ESG Disclosure Requirements:

Addressing Dubai Financial Market sustainability disclosure expectations for listed entities, meeting exchange-specific reporting obligations.

• SCA Guidelines:

Aligning with Securities and Commodities Authority expectations for corporate transparency and ESG disclosure by UAE-listed companies.

• Saudi Tadawul Requirements:

For companies listed on Saudi Stock Exchange, ensuring compliance with Tadawul ESG disclosure requirements supporting Vision 2030 objectives.

This regional regulatory expertise ensures your sustainability report satisfies local compliance requirements while maintaining international reporting credibility.

• Energy Consumption Data:

Systematically gathering electricity, fuel, and cooling consumption across all facilities from utility providers including DEWA, ADWEA, SEWA, district cooling operators, and fuel procurement records. We work with your facilities management, operations, and finance teams to compile complete energy data.

• Greenhouse Gas Emissions Calculation:

Computing Scope 1, 2, and material Scope 3 emissions following GHG Protocol methodology:

• Scope 1 (Direct Emissions):

Calculating emissions from owned or controlled sources including generator fuel consumption, fleet vehicles, refrigerant leakage, and any industrial process emissions using region-specific emission factors.

• Scope 2 (Purchased Energy):

Computing emissions from purchased electricity and district cooling using UAE grid emission factors specific to your operational locations, employing both location-based and market-based calculation methods where applicable.

• Scope 3 (Value Chain Emissions):

Quantifying material categories including purchased goods and services, business travel, employee commuting, waste disposal, and other relevant value chain emissions based on your materiality assessment and data availability.

• Water Consumption and Wastewater:

Documenting water withdrawal from municipal supply, groundwater, or other sources—critically important in water-scarce GCC context—plus wastewater generation and treatment where material.

• Waste Generation and Diversion:

Tracking waste streams by type (general waste, recyclable materials, hazardous waste) and disposal method (landfill, recycling, incineration, composting), calculating diversion rates demonstrating circular economy progress.

• Workforce Metrics:

Compiling employment data including total workforce by employment type, gender, age, nationality, turnover rates, new hires, and Emiratization/nationalization percentages from HR systems.

• Health and Safety Performance:

Gathering occupational health and safety data including injury rates, lost time injury frequency rates (LTIFR), occupational diseases, near-miss incidents, and safety training hours from HSEQ systems.

• Training and Development:

Documenting employee training hours, program participation, and skill development initiatives demonstrating investment in human capital.

• Diversity and Inclusion:

Compiling diversity metrics across gender, nationality, and management levels, showing commitment to inclusive workplace practices important in multicultural GCC environments.

• Supply Chain Data:

Gathering supplier sustainability information, procurement spend by category, supplier assessment results, and supply chain due diligence activities.

• Governance Metrics:

Documenting Board composition, independence, committee structures, executive compensation linkage to sustainability performance, ethics and compliance programs, and anti-corruption measures.

• Data Quality Assurance:

We implement rigorous data quality processes ensuring your sustainability information withstands third-party scrutiny:

• Data Validation:

Cross-referencing reported data against source documentation, identifying anomalies or inconsistencies requiring investigation, and ensuring mathematical accuracy across calculations.

• Completeness Assessment:

Verifying that data coverage spans all organizational boundaries and reporting periods consistently, documenting any data gaps or estimation methodologies transparently.

• Audit Trail Development:

Maintaining clear documentation linking reported metrics back to source systems, bills, records, or calculations—essential for third-party assurance processes.

• Assurance Preparation Support:

If pursuing external assurance (increasingly expected by investors and regulators), we prepare your organization for assurance engagement by:

• Compiling evidence files supporting reported metrics
• Documenting methodologies, assumptions, and estimation approaches
• Conducting pre-assurance internal reviews identifying potential issues
• Coordinating with assurance providers throughout the engagement
• Data Management System Recommendations:

For organizations seeking to streamline future reporting cycles, we advise on sustainability data management software solutions appropriate to your organizational complexity and budget, enabling automated data collection, calculation, and reporting that reduces manual effort in subsequent years.

This comprehensive data support ensures your sustainability report rests on solid evidence foundation that satisfies stakeholder scrutiny, regulatory requirements, and assurance standards.

We design report structures aligned with GRI requirements while optimizing readability and stakeholder engagement:

• Executive Summary:

Compelling 2-3 page overview highlighting key performance, significant achievements, and strategic priorities accessible to time-constrained executives and investors.

• CEO/Chairman Message:

Drafting or refining leadership messages that authentically communicate commitment, acknowledge challenges, and articulate strategic sustainability vision.

• About This Report:

Documenting reporting scope, boundaries, frameworks, data assurance, and contact information providing transparency about report parameters.

• Organizational Profile:

Describing business activities, markets, ownership structure, scale, and key brands/operations setting organizational context.

• Sustainability Strategy and Governance:

Explaining sustainability governance structure, material topics, stakeholder engagement approach, and strategic priorities demonstrating systematic management.

• Performance Sections by Material Topic:

Organizing performance disclosure around material topics identified in your materiality assessment, ensuring focused reporting on what matters most:

• Management approach for each topic
• Relevant policies and commitments
• Performance metrics with multi-year trends
• Initiatives, programs, and case studies
• Targets and forward-looking commitments
• GRI Content Index:

Comprehensive index mapping GRI indicators to report page numbers and providing brief answers or direct data for indicators not fully addressed in narrative sections—essential for GRI "in accordance" claiming.

• Assurance Statement:

Including independent assurance provider's statement if you've pursued external verification, significantly strengthening report credibility.

We develop compelling sustainability narratives that:

• Balance Transparency with Strategy:

Honestly acknowledging challenges and areas for improvement while highlighting progress and competitive advantages, avoiding greenwashing through authentic, verifiable disclosure.

• Tell Stories Through Data:

Moving beyond dry metric reporting to contextualize performance through case studies, employee voices, stakeholder testimonials, and operational examples that bring sustainability to life.

• Address Regional Context:

Connecting global sustainability topics to specific UAE and GCC realities—discussing water management in context of regional scarcity, climate action in relation to UAE Net Zero 2050, labour welfare within expatriate workforce context, and economic contribution aligned with national visions.

• Speak to Multiple Audiences:

Crafting content accessible to diverse stakeholders—from technical ESG analysts seeking detailed metrics to community members interested in local impacts to employees wanting to understand their organization's values.

Sustainability reports must be visually engaging to command stakeholder attention:

• Visual Identity Integration:

Incorporating your corporate brand identity while establishing distinct visual identity for sustainability reporting that conveys transparency and professionalism.

• Data Visualization:

Creating clear charts, graphs, infographics, and dashboards that communicate complex performance data accessibly, showing trends over time and progress against targets.

• Photography and Imagery:

Sourcing or coordinating authentic photography from your operations (where permitted) showing real people, facilities, and activities rather than stock imagery that undermines credibility.

• Accessibility Considerations:

Ensuring report design meets accessibility standards for stakeholders with visual or other disabilities, including appropriate color contrast, alt text for images, and navigable PDF structure.

• Digital and Print Optimization:

Preparing reports for both digital distribution (interactive PDFs, online report microsites) and print when required, optimizing for each medium's consumption patterns.

• Multi-Language Reporting:

For organizations requiring Arabic and English versions, we manage professional translation ensuring technical accuracy of sustainability terminology while maintaining narrative flow and cultural appropriateness in both languages.

Producing an excellent report delivers limited value if stakeholders don't engage with it. We advise on distribution strategies:

• Regulatory Filing:

Ensuring timely submission to ADX, DFM, or Tadawul meeting exchange disclosure deadlines and format requirements.

• Investor Communication:

Distributing reports to institutional investors, ESG ratings agencies (MSCI, Sustainalytics, etc.), and analyst community, potentially coordinating investor briefings on sustainability performance.

• Website Publication:

Publishing reports accessibly on corporate websites with archive of previous reports demonstrating performance trends over time.

• Stakeholder Targeted Communication:

Developing stakeholder-specific summaries or formats—one-page executive summaries for media, employee newsletters highlighting report insights, community updates on local engagement initiatives.

• Media Engagement:

Coordinating media relations around report publication, crafting press releases highlighting key achievements, and preparing spokesperson briefing for potential media inquiries.

• Deep Understanding of Regional Regulatory Landscape:

We track Securities and Commodities Authority guidance, Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange ESG reporting requirements, and Dubai Financial Market disclosure expectations continuously, ensuring your reporting maintains compliance as requirements evolve. This includes understanding:

• Mandatory vs. voluntary disclosure elements
• Submission deadlines and format requirements
• Specific metrics emphasized by exchanges
• Regulatory interpretation of international frameworks

For clients with Saudi operations or listings, we understand Saudi Tadawul ESG disclosure requirements, Capital Market Authority expectations, and Vision 2030 alignment considerations. We monitor sustainability disclosure developments across Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, and Qatar stock exchanges, anticipating regional regulatory harmonization and preparing clients for expanding requirements. We also understand how sustainability disclosure intersects with specific free zone authority expectations or sector regulators (ADNOC for oil and gas suppliers, government procurement requirements, hospitality sector guidelines). This regulatory expertise ensures your sustainability report satisfies all applicable compliance requirements while positioning you favorably for likely future regulatory expansions.

• Regional Business Context and Cultural Competence:

We understand regional business structures, decision-making processes, stakeholder relationships, and operational realities ensuring recommendations fit your organizational context rather than imposing incompatible Western corporate practices. Sustainability topics like labour welfare, diversity, community engagement, and stakeholder consultation require cultural sensitivity in the GCC context. We help you address these topics authentically while respecting regional norms and values. Our team works seamlessly in Arabic and English, facilitating stakeholder engagement, data collection from Arabic-speaking operations teams, and producing high-quality bilingual reporting. Deep familiarity with which sustainability topics genuinely matter in Middle East contexts versus generic global issues with limited regional relevance, ensuring your materiality assessment and reporting focus appropriately.

• Alignment with National Sustainability Visions:

We help you connect organizational sustainability performance with UAE's national climate commitment, demonstrating contribution to national goals while strengthening relationships with government stakeholders. For Saudi clients, positioning sustainability initiatives as contributions to Kingdom's transformation objectives across economic diversification, social development, and environmental quality. Demonstrating how your sustainability practices support broader GCC economic diversification strategies, moving beyond hydrocarbon dependence toward knowledge economies and sustainable industries. UAE and GCC governments actively court foreign direct investment, where robust ESG performance increasingly influences location decisions. We help you leverage sustainability reporting to position your jurisdiction attractively for international investors and partners.

• Practical Market Access and Efficiency:

Unlike distant international consultancies, we provide face-to-face consultation at your UAE or GCC facilities, facilitating stakeholder workshops, data collection, and strategic discussions that remote consulting cannot match. Operating in Gulf Standard Time ensures responsive communication during your business hours, accelerating project timelines and enabling efficient coordination. We have connections to regional ESG data providers, assurance firms, design agencies, and other service providers supporting comprehensive reporting solutions. We build long-term relationships supporting annual reporting cycles, regulatory developments, and evolving sustainability strategies rather than transactional one-time engagements.

• Comprehensive Regional Experience:

Successfully delivered sustainability reports for listed companies on ADX, DFM, and Tadawul across manufacturing, hospitality, real estate, logistics, trading, and professional services sectors.

• Framework Expertise:

Certified professionals with deep knowledge of GRI, SASB, TCFD, CDP, and emerging CSRD requirements ensuring your reporting meets international investor expectations.

• Local Market Understanding:

Based in UAE with team members across the GCC, providing on-site support, cultural competence, and regulatory expertise that distant international consultancies cannot match.

• End-to-End Service:

From materiality assessment through data collection, carbon footprinting, report writing, professional design, assurance coordination, and stakeholder distribution—comprehensive support throughout your reporting journey.

• Data Quality Focus:

Rigorous data collection and quality assurance processes ensuring your reported metrics withstand stakeholder scrutiny, third-party assurance, and ESG rating agency evaluation.

• Strategic Communication:

Reports that go beyond compliance to tell compelling sustainability stories that attract investors, engage employees, satisfy customers, and position your organization as regional leader.

• Bilingual Capabilities:

Seamless Arabic and English reporting, stakeholder engagement, and data collection supporting organizations operating throughout the GCC region.

• Ongoing Partnership:

Long-term relationships supporting annual reporting cycles, continuous improvement, regulatory adaptations, and evolving sustainability ambitions—not one-time transactional engagements.

• Proven Results:

Track record of helping clients achieve regulatory compliance, improve ESG ratings, attract sustainable investment, win sustainability-focused contracts, and strengthen stakeholder relationships through credible reporting.

• Reporting Readiness Evaluation:

Understanding your current sustainability data, management systems, previous disclosure efforts, and internal capabilities informing our support approach.

• Regulatory Requirement Mapping:

Clarifying which reporting obligations apply to your organization based on listing status, industry sector, and operational jurisdictions.

• Stakeholder Expectation Assessment:

Identifying which stakeholders (investors, customers, employees, regulators, communities) have sustainability information needs and what disclosure would satisfy their requirements.

• Strategic Objective Alignment:

Understanding how sustainability reporting fits your broader business strategy—investor relations, customer engagement, talent attraction, operational excellence, or regulatory compliance.

• Scope and Timeline Planning:

Developing realistic project plans specifying materiality assessment approach, data collection requirements, framework selection, report production timeline, and resource allocation.

• Investment and Value Discussion:

Providing transparent guidance about reporting investment requirements and expected returns through regulatory compliance, stakeholder engagement, operational improvements, and competitive positioning.

This assessment consultation provides clarity about what sustainability reporting requires in your specific context, enabling informed decisions about proceeding, appropriate scope, and optimal timing.

• Regulatory Requirement Clarification:

Understanding which reporting obligations apply to your specific situation based on listing status, industry, and jurisdiction

• Framework Recommendation:

Guidance on whether GRI, SASB, TCFD, or integrated multi-framework reporting best serves your stakeholder needs

• Data Readiness Assessment:

Preliminary evaluation of your current sustainability data collection capabilities and priority gaps to address

• Timeline and Investment Estimate:

Realistic projections for reporting project duration and investment requirements for your organizational context

• Strategic Value Discussion:

Exploring how sustainability reporting can deliver business value beyond compliance through stakeholder engagement and competitive positioning

• Question and Answer:

Opportunity to address all your questions about materiality assessments, data collection, assurance, regulatory compliance, and reporting processes

Schedule your complimentary consultation today and discover how Planet First Consultants can transform sustainability reporting from compliance challenge into strategic communication advantage.