Corporate environmental disclosure in Libya: A little improvement
| Date | 01 March 2011 |
| Pages | 149-159 |
| Published date | 01 March 2011 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/20425961201000012 |
| Author | Nassr Saleh Mohamad Ahmad,Fathi Ramadan Mousa |
| Subject Matter | Public policy & environmental management |
World Journal of Enterprenuership, Management and Sustainable Development, Vol. 6, Nos. 1/2, 2010
149
Copyright © 2010 WASD
Abstract: The practice of corporate environmental disclosure (CED) has been
in existence for more than a decade now, rising to prominence as a result of the
upsurge in environmental accounting in the 1990s. Ahmad (2004), by studying
in the period of 1998-2001, found that there is no evidence of environmental
disclosure either in term of its quantity or in term of its quality, especially if the
health and safety category is excluded; more than 5 years passed now. Some key
changes happened in Libyan context such as establishment of Libyan Stock Market
and issue of Libyan environmental law no, 15 of 2003. These changes may push
CED in Libya steps forward. Thus, the objective of this study is to examine to what
extent current CED practice in Libya has been improved. Content analysis is used
in this study to investigate CED practices by all the 18 largest industrial companies
quoted on Industrial and Mineralisation Secretary (IMS) in Libya. The results
of this study reveal that CED in Libya, both in term of its quantity and quality,
has been developed over the period between 2001 and 2007. Such development
was explained in the shadow of reciprocal direct and indirect accountability
model of industrial companies within the main central authorities especially, the
relationship with IMS.
Keywords: Corporate Environmental Disclosure, Libya, Libyan Stock Market,
Libyan Environmental Law, Accountability Model, Industrial Companies,
Industrial and Mineralisation Secretary
Nassr Saleh Mohamad Ahmad1 and Fathi Ramadan Mousa2
Academy of Graduate Studies, Libya
CORPORATE ENVIRONMENTAL
DISCLOSURE IN LIBYA:
A LITTLE IMPROVEMENT
INTRODUCTION AND
BACKGROUND OF RESEARCH
To reduce the confusion surrounding
the terminology used in the literature,
the term ‘corporate environmental
disclosure’ (CED) as applied by the United
Nations Commission of Transnational
Corporations’ Intergovernmental Working
Group of Experts on International
Standards of Accounting and Reporting
(UN ISAR, 1992, 1994) is chosen for
the purpose of this paper. It refers to
‘information made publicly available by a
company, through any of the key channels
or mediums, in relation to that company’s
interaction with its physical environment’.
In the early 1990s, the emphasis has been
shifted to CED rather than corporate social
disclosure (Gray and Bebbington, 2001;
Gray et al., 1987; Lodhia, 2001; Owen et al.,
1994). For example, Gray and Bebbington
(2001, p. 220) stated that ‘environmental
reporting is now a major feature of
1Assistant Professor in Accounting and Vic- Principal for Science Affairs, Academy of Graduate Studies,
Tripoli- Libya, Phone: +218913408180, Email: Nassr_ahmad@hotmail.com
2 Lecturer in Accounting and Head of accounting department, Academy of Graduate Studies, Tripoli- Libya,
Phone: +218913217418, Email:framousa@yahoo.co.uk
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