Singapore Government to Publish Annual Sustainability Report Starting 2023

Starting from the 2023 Financial Year (FY), the Singapore government will publish an annual GreenGov.SG report detailing its efforts, progress, and plans for driving environmental sustainability. This initiative, announced by Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu during her Committee of Supply speech on March 2, is part of GreenGov.SG, aimed at having the public sector lead the charge toward sustainability.

The initial report will cover Scope 1 and 2 emissions, electricity usage, and water consumption, all reported with reference to international standards and frameworks. Statutory Boards will follow this practice starting from FY2024, with entities such as PUB, the National Environment Agency, and the Monetary Authority of Singapore already pioneering the publication of sustainability reports.

The government aims to encourage more businesses to disclose their environmental performance through these public sector reports. In addition to reporting, sustainability will become a key factor in public sector procurement, starting in 2024. Environmental standards will be considered alongside price and quality in large construction and Information and Communications Technology (ICT) tenders, which account for 60% of government procurement contracts. Five per cent of tender evaluation points will be reserved for environmental sustainability.

While acknowledging that sustainability comes with additional costs, Fu emphasized the importance of adopting greener goods and services. She also expressed hope that these public sector initiatives will inspire more private companies to follow suit in publishing sustainability reports and incorporating sustainability into their procurement policies.