ANALYSIS OF ANTI-CORRUPTION DISCLOSURE BY SOUTH AMERICAN MINING AND STEEL COMPANIES

Abstract

This research aims to analyze the disclosure on the topic of fighting corruption in sustainability reports (SR) published by companies in the mining and steel sectors in South America. The methodology involved three steps: detecting the presence or absence of the approach on the theme; quantifying the disclosures based on the index of Lopatta et al. (2017); and classifying these disclosures according to the type of information on the fight against corruption that are addressed in the reports based on the GRI-205 Standards. For the analyses, 112 keywords related to the topic were sought in the reports. The results indicate that all ten companies have addressed the topic of anti-corruption in their sustainability reports. However, the information disclosed is not in accordance with the recommendations of the GRI-205 Standard and is therefore incomplete. It was identified that the companies analyzed did not present full transparency in relation to the measures taken to combat corruption. These results are relevant as they complement the literature on the disclosure of sustainability reports and reveal how much and in what way the issue of corruption is being addressed by companies in these industries. In addition, it contributes by encouraging and signaling the need for further research on this subject. Practically speaking, it contributes to the decision-making process of stakeholders and signals the need to improve accountability to society. For regulators, this research signals the need to develop more efficient and specific mechanisms for disclosing information about corruption and fraud.