Disclosures around forest risks are rising in Southeast Asia, but the commitments and the comprehensiveness of company policies “need to be strengthened”, a new report says. An analysis of more than 400 firms across the region by environmental disclosure platform CDP found a 25% increase in forest-related disclosures, with the growth in reporting by Southeast Asian firms outstripping global trends. Four in five firms said they have forest-related policies, but only half of these have published general or commodity-specific company-wide no-deforestation policies with the inclusion of social and remedial elements. Just 4% reported timebound quantifiable no-deforestation/no-conversion commitments aligned with best practices. CDP found that 79% of Southeast Asian companies reported forest-related targets in 2022 with 57% linking targets with a no-deforestation/no-conversion commitment, either related to traceability, certification, compliance, supplier engagement or ecosystem restoration. A higher percentage (86%), have a traceability system in place for at least one commodity, with half reporting they can trace at least 90% of production or consumption back to at least municipality or equivalent level with no exclusions. CDP welcomed the growing involvement of firms in jurisdictional initiatives to halt deforestation, notably in Malaysia and Indonesia, but said “the quantity and quality of actions on forests among Southeast Asian companies are still far from sufficient”.
📢NEW REPORT. Nature Incorporated: CDP's Southeast Asia 2022 Report. This report summarising environmental disclosures across the region shows increasing environmental disclosure but highlights a need for greater commitment towards climate goals. Download: https://t.co/Lis0idh6fa pic.twitter.com/bAjaWcsS4S
— CDP (@CDP) March 20, 2023
