The Changing Role of Corporate Sustainability Reporting, a Comparative Study between Korea and South Africa

[Purpose] In recent years, the issue of sustainability reporting has gained a wider acceptance among both firm managers and stakeholders globally. However, due to the lack of capacity to create their own guidelines on sustainability reporting, many governments have resorted to adopt and promote the use of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines. The stock exchanges of Korea and South Africa are among global stock exchanges that have adopted the GRI guidelines on sustainability reporting as a requirement for listed companies. This study is an attempt to examine how firms in the two countries are responding to the disclosure requirements of GRI on core environmental issues. [Methodology] Content analysis method is used to document the level of compliance and the nature of sustainability information disclosed by firms in the two countries. [Findings] The result shows an average disclosure rate of 77.3 percent for Korean firms and 67.5 percent for South African firms. The difference between the two countries is however, not statistically significant. Also, Korean firms tend to be early adopters of new versions of GRI standards compared to their South African counterparts. [Implications] The results of the study will help stakeholders－firm managers and regulatory bodies, in identifying areas where organizations may have to do more in other to fully meet the reporting requirements of the GRI. The results will also help in policy formulation and firm decision－making.