Qualitative Corporate Sustainable Development Disclosures (CSDD): A Case of Banking Industry in Pakistan

Abstract

The study's objectives were to examine the qualitative corporate sustainable development discourses of the banking industry in Pakistan. For this purpose, the data was collected from the annual reports of commercial banks from 2018 to 2020 with the help of qualitative content analysis. The findings revealed that the commercial banks in Pakistan are engaged in reporting the SDGs and providing the details of these disclosures to the broader stakeholders, such as social, economic, environmental and regulatory bodies. The results also shed light further that most of the banks are either involved in reporting regarding environmental and social practices. Moreover, some of them relate SDGs to their banking practices. Based on the findings, it is recommended to require regulatory push to enhance the gamut of the SDGs disclosures further in publicly listed companies, particularly in the banking industry. The study contributes to the theory, practice and policy in several ways. First, the study contributes to the limited literature on SDGs in developing countries like Pakistan. Secondly, the study's findings add value to nascent literature for reporting the SDGs in publicly listed companies and the banking sector.