KUALA LUMPUR: The proposed National Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Strategic Plan has been given the stamp of approval, says Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

The Prime Minister, who chaired the National SDG Council meeting yesterday said the plan was among matters reviewed and approved.

He said the plan was drawn as part of the government’s efforts to bring Malaysia’s business entities towards ESG compliance and reporting in phases, to create a competitive advantage and sustainable development for the country.

“I also touched on the need to ensure that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are not burdened with high costs in their efforts to comply with ESG guidelines.

“The recommendation is for a dry run for the implementation of ESG be carried out by public-listed companies, multinationals and government-linked companies (GLCs),” he said in a Facebook post after chairing the meeting.

The Prime Minister said it was important to support SMEs in their respective value chains.

“Relevant ministries are advised to strengthen training programmes for targeted business entities,” he said.

On the current performance of the country’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) indicators, Anwar said the meeting was informed that Malaysia had made encouraging progress with a projected achievement of 43% of the SDG target by 2030.

This, he said, surpassed the global average achievement projection of 17%.

“The government remains steadfast in its adherence to the country’s SDG indicator targets, along with the targets in the Madani Economy framework.”

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2024/12/19/national-esg-strategic-plan-gets-the-stamp-of-approval