PETALING JAYA: The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), while applauding the Malaysian government’s intention to make green economy one of the key focus areas under the upcoming revised Budget 2023, is encouraging the adoption of green budgeting to identify priorities and options for action to enable the country to achieve an environmentally sustainable economy and fulfil its commitments against climate change.
ACCA – which sees climate change as the defining challenge of the present generation, increasingly affecting lives and livelihoods worldwide each year and Malaysia not spared from this global challenge – is of the view that it is crucial for the government to take the lead in the country’s response to the challenges associated with climate change, and set an example by minimising the impact of its own activities on the climate and the environment.
“One of the most powerful tools a government can use for climate action is its annual budgets. National budgets matter, as they not only provide a statement of intent, but they also put government objectives into action. And therein lies the importance of green budgeting, which is an approach that integrates climate change and environmental considerations into budget processes and decision-making,” Andrew Lim (pic), portfolio head, ACCA Maritime Southeast Asia, explained.
“We believe it is timely and urgent for the Malaysian government to adopt green budgeting to ensure that the country remains on the right track to realising its goals of reducing its greenhouse gas emission intensity by 45% across the economy based on the gross domestic product by 2030, compared to 2005 levels, and eventually, becoming carbon neutral by 2050, as outlined under the 12th Malaysia Plan covering 2021-2025,” he said.
In its recently published Professional Insights report, titled “Green Budgeting: A Toolkit for Public Sector Finance Professionals”, ACCA sets out the reasons for considering green budgeting and the methods that can be adopted. It notes that green budgeting is a wide-ranging concept and can involve different approaches.
The toolkit also outlines the basics of green budgeting, focusing on the role of finance professionals in turning goals and ambitions into tangible plans. It highlights examples of green budgeting methods and sets out the steps for making green budgeting a success, while emphasising the importance of ownership by the finance function to make climate action a priority.
Malaysia is set to table its revised Budget 2023 in Parliament on Friday.
