The world’s eyes turned to Azerbaijan last month for COP 29, the latest in the rolling series of United Nations summits to discuss the future of a sustainable world.
My work took me elsewhere for the duration, but I followed progress carefully. I was pleased to see that ACCA’s message in favour of a new and better way of doing business that respects impacts on people and planet, as much as profit and loss, found an echo.
As always, the event attracted political leaders, policymakers, agenda-setters, business chiefs and civil organisations from across the planet. There were more than 80,000 visitors to COP 29 in Baku.
We worked alongside many of our partners in sharing our core messages
Our agenda
A team from ACCA was also there to share our perspectives, representing the viewpoint of our members and future members from around the world. ACCA was eager to promote the agenda that has shaped our contribution at previous COPs: to advocate for sustainability reporting, to build support for SMEs, and to highlight the critical role of accountants in driving climate action.
We worked alongside many of our partners in sharing our core messages, notably EY, the International Chamber of Commerce, TheCityUK and the Global Capacity Building Coalition.
ACCA was eager to highlight the crucial importance of the widespread adoption of sustainability disclosures in driving investment in sustainable businesses and the net-zero transition. Our colleagues at EY and The CityUK hosted attention-grabbing discussions on this theme, including a sharp focus on IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards and their use across capital markets and global stock exchanges.
SME focus
Of course, as we have argued for many years, it is vital that SMEs should not be forgotten in the journey to net zero, and they still face huge challenges.
Debates on how to support small businesses were on the agenda in Azerbaijan, especially in a panel hosted by the International Chamber of Commerce and Sage that featured Nigar Apardarai, a member of the country’s National Assembly. There was also an engaging session staged by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, where the ACCA team took the chance to highlight our extensive resources for supporting SMEs on their sustainability journey.
We know that enormous investment is still needed in clean energy and sustainable business, and that was the topic of a significant event hosted by the Global Capacity Building Coalition, of which ACCA is a supporter member.
I was delighted to open ACCA’s annual Accounting for the Future conference in November, which addressed a number of these themes. They ranged from supporting the green transition to connecting sustainability to business strategy, among many other hot topics. If you missed any of the sessions on 26–29 November, you can catch up on demand.
ACCA will always raise its voice for a philosophy of business that works for all
Resilience
We saw at COP 29 how resilience is key as we face up to the stiff challenges involved in shaping a sustainable future. ACCA will always raise its voice in favour of a new philosophy of business that works for all people, whoever and wherever they are in the world.
There is plenty of work still to do in 2025, but we remain positive about the prospects for real, far-reaching change. And in that spirit I wish you and your families a happy, peaceful and prosperous New Year.
