ICAG-GRI deepens partnership on ESG reporting future

By Dr. Eric Boachie Yiadom

When the leadership of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, Ghana (ICAG) and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) sat down together on the sidelines of the 2026 Global Sustainability Workshop in Cape Town, the conversation was not about who owns Ghana’s ESG reporting agenda, was more about working together to harmonize and effective ESG adoption , implementation and reporting in Ghana.

It was also about how the two institutions – each bringing distinct and complementary strengths –  can work together to build a world-class sustainability reporting framework in Ghana. The meeting was attended by the CEO of ICAG, Dr. Eric Oduro Osae,

The meeting, which I had the privilege of chairing on behalf of the workshop organizer, Greenvista Strategies was attended by Eric Oduro Osae (CEO of ICAG), Douglas Kativu (Director for Africa, GRI), Osei Adjayi-Gyamfi (Director Technical, ICAG), and Kwame Ampim-Darko (Director Quality Assurance Monitoring, ICAG).

The meeting was a natural extension of a partnership that has been developing for several years. Both ICAG and GRI have played important roles in advancing sustainability reporting in Ghana, and the Cape Town discussion was an opportunity to align those efforts more deliberately as the country enters a critical phase of its ESG journey.

Two Institutions, Complementary Roles

GRI has been a significant contributor to Ghana’s sustainability reporting infrastructure. In 2022, GRI provided technical support for the development of the Ghana Stock Exchange’s ESG Disclosure Guidance Manual – a landmark document that has guided listed companies in collecting, analysing, and publicly disclosing ESG information.

GRI’s expertise in global sustainability reporting standards and its deep experience across African capital markets –  including work with the Nairobi Securities Exchange, the Nigerian Stock Exchange, and the Eswatini Stock Exchange, Botswana Stock Exchange, Rwanda Stock Exchange and Uganda Stock Exchange –  has brought international best practice to Ghana’s doorstep.

ICAG, for its part, holds the statutory mandate for setting and enforcing financial and sustainability reporting standards in Ghana.

In March 2024, ICAG adopted and formally approved a roadmap for the phased adoption of IFRS S1 and S2 – moving from voluntary application during 2024 – 2026 to mandatory disclosure for Significant Public Interest Entities from January 2027, and for all other companies from January 2028. This roadmap has positioned Ghana as one of the first countries in Africa to set a clear and enforceable timelines for sustainability disclosures.

What became clear in Cape Town was that the combined value of these two institutions working together is far greater than either could deliver alone. GRI brings global standards expertise, technical depth in sustainability reporting frameworks, and a continent-wide network of partnerships.

ICAG brings regulatory authority, national enforcement capacity, deep knowledge of Ghana’s professional landscape, and the institutional mandate to ensure that reporting standards are credible, consistent, and enforceable.

Strengthening the Collaboration

The Cape Town discussion focused on how to deepen this partnership in practical terms, particularly around the development of revised ESG reporting guidelines for the Ghana Stock Exchange.

A constructive point raised during the meeting was that the collaboration between GRI and ICAG could be strengthened by involving ICAG more substantively and earlier in the standards development process.

As the body responsible for enforcing reporting standards nationally –  and the institution now driving Ghana’s IFRS S1 and S2 adoption – ICAG’s input at the formative stages of guideline development ensures that the final product is both technically robust and aligned with the national regulatory architecture.

GRI welcomed this perspective. The organisation committed to engaging GSE on the importance of submitting the guidelines to ICAG for their input and review before finalisation. This was not a concession by either party – it was a recognition by both that Ghana’s sustainability reporting ecosystem works best when its key institutions are coordinated from the start.

A Model of Institutional Coordination

This kind of collaboration matters because Ghana’s sustainability reporting landscape is becoming increasingly sophisticated and interconnected due to the following reasons:

1. The Bank of Ghana’s Climate-Related Financial Risk Directive took effect for banks in January 2026.
2. ICAG’s IFRS S1 and S2 mandatory adoption timeline begins in January 2027.
3. The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Corporate Governance Code already incorporates ESG dimensions.
4. And the GSE’s ESG Disclosure Guidance Manual provides the framework for listed company reporting.

For this architecture to function effectively, its components must be coherent. The guidelines issued by the GSE must align with the standards enforced by ICAG. The climate risk disclosures required by the Bank of Ghana must be consistent with the frameworks adopted by the SEC. And the global best practices promoted by GRI must be adapted to reflect the realities of Ghana’s professional, institutional, and regulatory context.

The Cape Town agreement between ICAG and GRI is a practical step toward this coherence. It establishes a working relationship where international expertise and national regulatory authority reinforce each other rather than operating in parallel.

The African Context

Ghana is not alone in navigating these challenges. Across the continent, countries are building sustainability reporting frameworks at pace:

1. Nigeria has embedded IFRS S1 and S2 through its Financial Reporting Council.
2. Kenya’s ICPAK has proposed an adoption roadmap with mandatory reporting for public interest entities by 2027.
3. Tanzania began mandatory disclosure in January 2025.
4. South Africa’s JSE has aligned its sustainability guidance with TCFD and ISSB principles.

In each case, the effectiveness of the framework depends on institutional collaboration between international standards bodies and national regulators, between stock exchanges and professional accountancy bodies, between government agencies and the private sector. No single institution has the full picture. The most credible frameworks are those built through genuine partnership and collaborations among key stakeholders.

Ghana’s approach, strengthened by the Cape Town meeting, offers a compelling model: GRI contributing global standards expertise and technical depth, ICAG providing regulatory authority and national context, and both institutions committed to a collaborative process that produces guidelines worthy of the confidence of preparers, auditors, investors, and the public.

What This Means for Professionals

For the CFOs who will prepare sustainability reports and disclosures, the auditors who will provide assurance on such disclosures and reports,  board members who will approve these reports, and  investors who will rely on them, the practical significance of this partnership is clear to all.

The revised ESG reporting guidelines for the Ghana Stock Exchange will carry both the technical credibility of GRI and the regulatory weight and backing of the ICAG. That combination gives professionals greater confidence , insight and clarity on the standards they apply and what compliance looks like.

It also sends a signal to the market ; that  when regulatory institutions are aligned, institutions that follow them can plan with certainty. And certainty – in a field moving as quickly as sustainability reporting – is one of the most valuable things a regulatory ecosystem can provide.

The Cape Town meeting was brief. But the partnership it strengthened will define how Ghana reports on sustainability for the decade ahead – and it may well serve as a model for other African countries navigating the same journey.

The 2026 Global Sustainability Workshop was organized by GreenVista Strategies in partnership with ICAG and GRI.

The writer is the Lead Consultant at GreenVista Strategies and a Senior Lecturer at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA). He chaired the sideline meeting between ICAG and GRI at the 2026 Global Sustainability Workshop in Cape Town.

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