Investor support for ESG waning
JOHANNESBURG (Daily Investor) – Investor support for Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) resolutions is decreasing, with the number of board resolutions relating to ESG passed on a steady decline since 2021. This is according to investment firm Schroders which invests its funds worldwide, including South Africa, and manages over £700 billion. Schroders revealed the information during a week-long webinar on activist shareholding and shareholder voting trends during companies’ Annual General Meetings (AGM). The firm noted that the volume of environmental and social resolutions presented to shareholders is increasing. However, the support for these resolutions is declining, with fewer and fewer resolutions passing. Across the companies in which Schroders is a shareholder, resolutions related to environmental and social concerns rose to over 400 in 2022. The support for these resolutions peaked in 2021, with 15% passing in that financial year. In 2022 and 2023, support for environmental and social resolutions declined markedly, with less than 10% passing in 2022 and less than 5% passing in 2023.
