GRI and EFRAG are collaborating together to develop sustainability reporting standards and provide training

The GRI and the EFRAG signed a new collaboration agreement to further their partnership on sustainability reporting. The agreement includes commitments to work together on training programs and the creation of reporting standards, among other things.

The first agreement, which was established in 2021 to promote the development of EU sustainability reporting standards and their convergence with international standards, was followed by this announcement, which represents the second partnership agreement between EFRAG and the GRI.

The European Union’s impending CSRD will force corporations to report on sustainability-related effects, opportunities, and risks. The ESRS, created by EFRAG, was formally accepted by the European Commission in July. With the CSRD set to go into effect at the beginning of 2024, over 50,000 companies—up from the current 12,000—will be obliged to provide sustainability disclosures. Additionally, the regulations will require more thorough reporting on the company’s impacts on the environment, human rights, and social standards, as well as risks related to sustainability.

Under the new agreement, EFRAG and the GRI will collaborate in areas including standards and guidance development for both existing and new sector standards, proportionate reporting for SMEs in the EU, and on standards for non-EU companies for which the CSRD will apply. The organizations will also work together on education and training for ESRS preparers and users – including steps to accredit GRI as an ESRS training organization – as well as on the interoperability of digital XBRL taxonomies, with a simplified tagging system and digital correspondence table between both standards.