Title: Sustainability reporting and assurance in Gulf Cooperation Council countries: what is missing?

Authors: Abdulhadi H. Ramadan; Mahmoud Nassar; Mohammad Haroun Sharairi; Mohammed Hassan Makhlouf; Khalil Nimer

Addresses: Department of Accounting, King Talal School of Business Technology, Princess Sumaya University for Technology, P.O. Box 1438, Amman, 11941, Jordan ' College of Business, Al Ain University, Abu Dhabi Campus, P.O. Box 112612, Abu Dhabi, UAE ' College of Business, Al Ain University, Abu Dhabi Campus, P.O. Box 112612, Abu Dhabi, UAE ' Accounting Department, Faculty of Business, Isra University, P.O. Box 33 and 22, Amman, 11622, Jordan ' Accounting and MIS Department, College of Business Administration, Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST), P.O. Box 7207, Hawali, Kuwait

Abstract: This study explores the sustainability reporting (SR) and assurance market in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region from the Big 4 auditors' perspectives and investigates the drivers and barriers of SR and assurance in the GCC region. We have interviewed ten representatives of auditing firms (i.e., members of Big 4) in the GCC region. The results of study reveal the immaturity of the SR and assurance market in the region but are hopeful for the future contingent upon certain factors. In addition, the voluntary nature of SR, the cost of reporting and assurance, and religious concerns among others are primary barriers in front of the eagerness of firms to adopt SR and its assurance. Reputation building and accessing international markets among others are the main motivations for the adoption of SR and assurance. The interviewees have firmly expressed that there is no direct relationship between SR assurance and financial report audit.

Keywords: sustainability report; assurance; Gulf Cooperation Council; GCC; Big 4; interview.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBGE.2023.132077

International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, 2023 Vol.17 No.4, pp.355 - 392

Received: 07 Feb 2021
Accepted: 23 Jul 2021
Published online: 11 Jul 2023 *

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