Cause for Drop in Anti-corruption Disclosure Score for Singapore-listed Companies and Steps to Enhance Corporate Transparency

Mr Yip Hon Weng asked the Prime Minister and Minister for Finance (a) what are the underlying factors that may have contributed to the six-percentage-point decrease in the average overall anti-corruption disclosure score for Singapore-listed companies between 2022 and 2024, as reported in the biennial study conducted by the Centre for Governance and Sustainability at the National University of Singapore; and (b) what measures are being considered to reverse this trend and enhance corporate transparency.

Mr Gan Kim Yong (for the Prime Minister): All Singapore-listed companies in the study had anti-corruption disclosures, including disclosures on their compliance with anti-corruption laws and commitment to protect whistleblowers. Singapore was the only country in the report where all companies in the study fulfilled 100% of the disclosure criteria in these two categories. The study attributed the decline in the overall score on anti-corruption disclosures to an increased focus by listed companies in their public disclosures and communications on other topics, for example, sustainability and climate change 1 .

The Singapore Exchange Regulation will continue to engage with listed companies to monitor and strengthen disclosure practices.

Note(s) to Question No(s) 1:

1 A separate biennial Sustainability Reporting Review by the National University of Singapore-Centre for Governance and Sustainability (NUS-CGS) and Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX) found in the latest 2023 report that five of the top ten material factors disclosed by Singapore-listed companies were environmental-related. They include: (a) emissions; (b) supplier environmental assessment; (c) water; (d) effluents and waste; and (e) energy.