SCA Decision 3/RM/2020

SCA Decision 3/RM/2020: mandatory annual esg sustainability reports for uae-listed pjscs covering governance, emissions, and social and diversity kpis using gri and tcfd formats.

Jurisdiction
Status
active
Category
esg
First deadline
Annual reports due within 90 days of fiscal year-end (first reports for FY2020, submitted H1 2021)
Who must comply
Applies to all public joint-stock companies (PJSCs) listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) or Dubai Financial Market (DFM), as well as dual-listed foreign issuers on these exchanges.
Penalties
Fines and sanctions from the SCA for failure to submit or for inaccurate reporting, with possible public censure and trading suspension for repeated violations, plus heightened reputational risk among ESG-focused investors.

What it is

SCA Decision 3/RM/2020 is a United Arab Emirates regulation, issued under Article 76 by the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA), requiring listed public joint-stock companies to publish annual sustainability (ESG) reports.

It draws on GRI-based and TCFD-referenced formats, combining narrative ESG strategy disclosure with quantitative sustainability KPIs, with 2025 upgrades expected to incorporate IFRS S1/S2 alignment.

Who must comply

Applies to all public joint-stock companies (PJSCs) listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange or Dubai Financial Market, as well as dual-listed foreign issuers on these exchanges.

What you must disclose

Companies must provide a qualitative narrative on ESG strategy, governance and stakeholder engagement, together with quantitative KPIs including energy use and GHG emissions, water and waste metrics, workforce and diversity indicators, and board structure and independence. Materiality assessments are required, using GRI-based and TCFD-referenced formats, with reports due within 90 days of fiscal year-end.

Timeline

Introduced in January 2020 under Article 76, effective for FY2020 reports submitted in H1 2021 (last modified June 2022).

Annual reports are due within 90 days of fiscal year-end on an ongoing basis, with 2025 upgrades expected to incorporate IFRS S1/S2 alignment.

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