The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) (Nigeria) has unveiled plans to promote the adoption of International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) disclosure frameworks in the Nigerian Exchange in line with global standards to improve market transparency, reduce information risk, and attract foreign capital inflows to the country’s capital markets.
Director-General of the commission, Dr. Emomotimi Agama, who made this disclosure on the sidelines of a panel session on IFRS S1 and S2 standards, said the commission was fully committed to positioning Nigeria’s capital market in line with the global baseline set by the ISSB, which operates under the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation.
According to the investment expert, this move is critical for building investor confidence, lowering the cost of capital for issuers, and making Nigerian securities more attractive to global institutional investors and development finance institutions (DFIs).
Agama explained that as a member of the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), the SEC had been actively engaged in international policy discussions and was a member of the ISSB Standards Adoption Readiness Work Group (ARWG) that developed Nigeria’s roadmap for implementation.
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He noted that the roadmap outlined a phased approach that begins with voluntary adoption by early adopters and large public interest entities (PIEs) before transitioning to mandatory adoption from 2027 for significant PIEs, 2028 for other PIEs, and 2030 for small and medium enterprises.
The Director-General maintained the new sustainability disclosure regime was designed to provide investors clear, comparable, and decision-useful information about how companies manage risk, build cash flow resilience, and execute transition strategies.
Agama pointed out that such disclosures would help lower perceived risks, reduce borrowing costs, and increase access to a wider pool of global capital.
This is even as he spoke on the collaborative arrangements the commission was making to harmonise data reporting expectations among Nigerian investors through the Capital Market Master Plan Implementation Council (CAMMIC), discussions with pension funds adminsitrators, asset managers, and institutional investors to align their data requests with ISSB metrics.
Agama said that doing this would reduce the current duplication and fragmentation in environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting requirements, which often place a heavy burden on issuers.
To further strengthen reporting quality, he hinted that the SEC was working closely with the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRCN) on phased assurance requirements that will ensure investor confidence while avoiding excessive costs for companies at the early stages of adoption.
Similarly, he disclosed that the commission was also collaborating with the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) on taxonomy-enabled digital reporting systems, to facilitate machine-readable disclosures and improve investor access to sustainability information.
Agama clarified that to achieve hitch-free transition of the Nigerian market to the global standards, the SEC would initially adopt a review-based supervisory approach and a comply or explain regime before moving towards full enforcement once preparer and assurance capacity has matured.
He emphasised that full adoption of the ISSB’s IFRS S1 and S2 standards would not only deepen the Nigerian capital market and boost its credibility but also stimulate product innovation, including green bonds, sustainability-linked bonds, and transition Sukuk.
He expatiated: “Aligning with the ISSB standards is central to our vision of building a transparent, resilient, and globally competitive market
“It will open Nigerian issuers to larger pools of long-term capital, strengthen investor trust, and support inclusive economic growth by enabling small and medium enterprises to integrate into global value chains through sustainability reporting”, the SEC boss added.
Agama assured that embedding sustainability standards into the capital market framework would consolidate the SEC’s role as an enabler of market development and further position Nigeria as a credible destination for responsible investment capital.
