Kaplan ESG Report 2025

K MENA Kaplan ESG Report 2025

Why Sustainability and ESG are MENA’s Next Strategic Growth Drivers

Kaplan ESG Report: Leveraging ESG to Fuel Growth, Build Trust, and Outpace the Competition

Executive Summary
ESG is no longer just a compliance framework; it has evolved into a core component of business strategy. While regional governments are driving ambitious sustainability mandates like the UAE Net Zero 2050 and the Saudi Green Initiative, forward-thinking organizations are leveraging ESG to fuel innovation and build stakeholder trust. This report explores the critical gap between establishing formal ESG strategies and actual implementation in the Middle East, highlighting why specialized ESG upskilling and education are essential to avoiding greenwashing and unlocking long-term value.

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The ESG Opportunity at a Glance

54%

54% of leading companies now use ESG as a strategic driver for growth, moving beyond mere regulatory obligation to fuel business expansion.

79%

79% of companies in the Middle East now have a formal Sustainability/ESG strategy, a significant increase from 64% in 2023.

88%

88% of institutional investors reported increased use of ESG data in the past year to make informed investment decisions.

Key Strategic Insights

The Competitive Growth Engine

ESG is fundamentally shifting from a box-ticking exercise to an enabler of long-term growth. Across major industries like energy and consumer goods, ESG efforts are increasingly tied to business expansion and brand alignment. Research highlights this financial link, with one study revealing that companies with strong ESG scores earned up to 3.8% higher returns over time.

The Regional Implementation Gap

Despite high regional adoption rates and unified pushes for enhanced reporting by entities like the GCC Exchanges Committee, implementation remains a major hurdle. Only 40% of regional companies produce comprehensive ESG reports. This inconsistency fuels significant investor concern; 95% of investors believe sustainability reports include unsupported claims, and 85% cite greenwashing as a rising threat.

The Talent and Education Imperative

The biggest hurdle to effective ESG integration in the Middle East is a lack of skilled talent and specialized expertise. Without professionals equipped to navigate complex global frameworks like the GRI Standards, organizations struggle to communicate their progress credibly. Investing in structured ESG training—such as Kaplan’s Sustainability and ESG Foundations program—empowers workforces to accurately interpret data, avoid unintentional greenwashing, and create meaningful transition plans.

Lead the Sustainability Transition with a Future-Ready Workforce

Download the Sustainability and ESG Report to explore how targeted ESG upskilling, structured reporting, and strategic training can help organizations in the Middle East close the implementation gap, build investor trust, and transform sustainability into a definitive competitive advantage.

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