Exploring the Materiality and Disclosure Practices of Climate Change Risks Within the GCC Region

The disclosure of climate change risks is of growing importance for both firms and their stakeholders, with both physical and transition risks posing potential adverse effects to the firm. Recent literature has focused on quantitatively exploring the relationships between climate change risk disclosures and financial performance and evaluating the materiality assessments of firms from a European perspective. This study complements those works by applying a qualitative approach, utilising directed qualitative analysis and thematic analysis of corporate public disclosures, to understand how firms within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region adopt the recently developed ESG taxonomy. The study finds that the disclosure of climate change risks is superficial and lacks substantial discussion about the material nature of those risks. These insights reveal the current reporting practices of GGC firms and underscore the urgent need for MENA firms to enhance transparency in their disclosures.