Board Composition and ESG Disclosure in Saudi Arabia: The Moderating Role of Corporate Governance Reforms

Abstract

There is an evolving trend of pursuing the transfer to sustainable development. Owing to this trend, and alongside the increasing monitoring by society, companies are progressively considering this new position in the capital market. Corporate governance mechanisms and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) activities have received extensive consideration. Using a sample of Saudi listed companies, this study examines the association between board composition (size, independence, and gender diversity) and ESG disclosure moderated by corporate governance reforms. Our reported results confirm that the size of a board and its level of independence have positive and significant impacts on ESG disclosure. Moreover, board gender diversity is found to be positively but insignificantly related with ESG disclosure. When the individual dimensions of ESG are considered, the results verify the significant role of board size and board independence and the insignificant impact of board gender diversity in environmental and social disclosures. Interestingly, all measures of board composition have a positive and significant impact on the governance disclosure score. The results also show that reforms of Saudi corporate governance positively and significantly moderate the board size and board independence–ESG relationship. Our results demonstrate that the enhancement of companies’ corporate governance will increase their ESG disclosures. This study offers perceptions from the outlook of a developing economy, Saudi Arabia, and presents theoretical and managerial implications for policymakers and investors.