As a longtime advocate of corporate ESG, Ping An has been pursuing sustainable development and related disclosure practices for 14 years.
Ping An Insurance Group (02318:HK, 601318:SH) announced that it has helped to develop China's first ESG disclosure standard, the Guidance for Enterprise ESG Disclosure, published by the China Enterprise Reform and Development Society (CERDS). The Guidance, effective on June 1, 2022, was developed with the participation of Ping An and dozens of other companies in China.
In recent years, awareness of environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues has grown in China, as has the demand for enterprises to make ESG disclosures. However, the common international ESG rating standards are difficult to match with the operating conditions in China. The Guidance for Enterprise ESG Disclosure is based on relevant Chinese laws, regulations, and standards while considering China's context. The Guidance includes a corporate ESG disclosure indicator system with three dimensions – environmental, social, and governance – and provides a basic framework for ESG disclosure. The Guidance also specifies disclosure principles, indicators, requirements, applications, responsibilities, and supervision for enterprises of different types, industries, and sizes. The Guidance can support Chinese enterprises in their ESG governance practices and disclosure, serving as a reference for self-evaluation and third-party evaluation. CERDS had strict requirements for companies participating in the development of the guidance standard. The companies must have outstanding performance and be ranked among the top in their industries, with high social influence and reputation. They must fully, accurately and comprehensively implement the concept of sustainable development in their operations, promote the construction of a corporate ESG system and achieve outstanding ESG outcomes.
As a pioneer in ESG in China, Ping An participated in the drafting of the disclosure framework, sharing its practical experience in ESG. It incorporated its proprietary CN-ESG evaluation system framework into the disclosure guidance to provide a standardized scientific approach for corporate ESG information disclosure. Ping An also made suggestions on the coverage of international standards, the setting of indicators with Chinese characteristics, applicability to different industries, and the setting of scoring standards. The Guidance for Enterprise ESG Disclosure is an important milestone for Ping An to promote the development of an ESG system with Chinese characteristics. Ping An's proprietary ESG management concepts and experience have been widely recognized by government organizations, industry experts and other organizations that have collaborated with Ping An.