2025

This article discusses the integral role of tax in advancing sustainable development goals (SDGs) and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) frameworks, emphasizing the shared responsibility of governments and businesses in achieving sustainability. It argues that corporate tax governance should align with an organization's sustainability commitments, values, and principles, with sustainable tax practices being a board-level priority. Companies dedicated to SDG and ESG objectives should expand upon corporate social responsibility (CSR) principles, recognizing an ethical obligation to pay a fair share of tax and maintain proactive transparency to enhance accountability. Key challenges include fostering a mindset shift to integrate tax into ESG frameworks and developing a public transparency benchmark that provides detailed tax data for analyzing corporate tax performance effectively.