Adoption and Implementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in China—Agenda 2030

Abstract

The present research is conducted on the Chinese corporate sector and raises the basic questions associated with the adoption and implementation of corporate disclosure practices such as SDGs. The sample for this research consisted of 100 Chinese companies, which are listed in the Shanghai Stock Exchange from 2016 to 2018. For this purpose, content analysis is developed. More specifically, a quantitative approach is applied to quantify and identify certain contents or words in the given text. Our results show that Chinese companies seem to be more focused on certain aspects of the UN SDGs at the cost of others, but the overall situation is, at best, not encouraging. The focus of attention of Chinese companies seems to be infrastructure development, industrial innovation, and economic growth, along with the provision of a dignified and respectable working environment, affordable and clean energy, and peace, justice, and strong institutions. The results can be used as guidelines by Chinese companies to determine the actual presence or absence of SDGs implementation inside the process of value creation as an integral part of their practices about corporate disclosure. The main contribution of this research relates to the analysis of the adoption and implementation efforts to report SDGs and the contribution of such reporting towards the fulfillment of the UN Agenda 2030. This can be of interest to researchers working on the given topic. It is of utmost importance for government policymakers and corporate decision-makers, who want to support companies that are contributing towards the achievement and adaptation of SDGs as part of their overall objectives.