Convergence of sustainability reporting standards for sustainable development: are salient institutions obliging?

This chapter examines the process and intricacies surrounding the convergence of sustainability reporting standards for sustainability and the role of salient institutions in facilitating this process. Further, it delves deeply into the concern and question of whether the salient institutions are indeed beneficial in achieving sustainability reporting standards convergence. Thus, this chapter employs a stakeholder salience model (SSM) and qualitative content analysis to categorise the salient institutions and how they contribute to the process of sustainability reporting standards convergence and its implications for sustainable development. Consequently, the chapter sheds light on the perspectives of the influential international institutions in achieving harmonised sustainability reporting standards and sustainable development. Particularly, the study reveals a self-centred approach among the influential international institutions, driven by political and profit motives, influenced by a lack of understanding of the true essence of “sustainability”. The chapter also highlights areas that require further research.