Climate Disclosure Implementation Constraints In Fragile States: A Comparative Analysis Of Nigeria And Ukraine Under An International Regulatory Framework With A Proposal For Reform
Ajisafe Victor O, Department of Private Law, Federal University Oye-Ekiti, Ekiti State, Nigeria
Kuyoro Iseoluwa P., Department of Private Law, Federal University Oye-Ekiti, Ekiti State, Nigeria
ABSTRACT
Jurisdictions are seriously migrating from soft law voluntary disclosure to hard law mandatory governance where IFRS S2 and CSRD/ESRS compel Scope 1-3 completeness in compliance with art. 13 of the Paris Agreement. However, fragile states including Nigeria and Ukraine which are face barriers of resource transition, emission data estimate infrastructure and war experience climate disclosure implementation constraints. S. 77 of the. Nigerian Financial Reporting Council Act 2011 and art. 222 (1) of Ukrainian Criminal Code criminalize false information arising from resource transition, emission data estimate infrastructure and war creating legal impossibility for board directors in fragile states. This research comparatively analyzes climate disclosure implementation constraints in Nigeria and Ukraine under international law to situate the foundation of legal impossibility, seeking to determine whether competing obligations from IFRS S2, domestic penal statutes, treaties and private contracts create mutually exclusive obligations for board directors, and whether there is a binding mechanism under international law to resolve the conflict. Pure doctrinal method is adopted using private international law, particularly arts. 3 and 9 of Rome I Regulation, natural law, legal realism, and critical legal studies; designed into five stages: normative analysis of treaties, statutes, standards, and contract; diagnosis of arts. 3 and 9 of Rome i Regulation covering party autonomy, mandatory rules and legal impossibility; synthesis of multi- layered legal theories; and conclusive teleological reform proposal. The findings reveal that (a) climate disclosure failure in the two jurisdictions are not technical but of negative conflicts of legal order void of hierarchy; domestic courts in the countries will predictably apply domestic penal forum under art. 9 (2)-(3) of Rome I Regulation; (c) IFRS S2 conflicts with domestic penal code. The significance of the research proposes triangulated compliance model (TCM) - IFRS S2 as a baseline, top up implementation as compliance reporting tools are available and derogation clause incorporation under the Rome I Regulation.
Keywords: Climate disclosure, Implementation Constraints, Fragile State, Comparative analysis and international regulatory framework.
